The Color Purple

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The Color Purple

• Novel and Film presented by
• Lisa Hanz and Jana Jaeger

02/19/2009 New World Genres Cathy Waegner
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Outline

• Facts
• Characters
• Plot (Novel vs. Film)
• Group Work

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Facts - Novel

• written 1982 by Alice Walker
• Pulitzer Prize for fiction (1983) National Book
  Award
• adapted into film and musical
• focuses on female black life during 1930s
• Southern United states, mostly Georgia
• very explicit content number 18 of the 100 Most
  Frequently Challanged Books

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Facts - Film

• first shown in 1985
• directed by Steven Spielberg
• starring Whoopi Goldberg (Celie), Danny Glover
  (Mister) and Oprah Winfrey (Miss Sofia)
• shortlisted for eleven Academy Awards, won none
• shortlisted for five Golden Globes

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Characters

• Celie
• Nettie
• Shug Avery
• Sofia
• Mr. ______

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1. Celie

• poor, uneducated
• beginning 14 years old
• abused and impregnated twice
• only bad experiences with men
• first real love her husbands mistress
• in the end self-confident and strong
• own business designing/sewing pants
• finally happy when Nettie returns

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2. Nettie

• Celies younger sister
• educated and smart
• teaches Celie to read and write
• runs away from their father, lives with Celie
• runs away again Albert tries to seduce her
• promises Celie to write to her
• becomes missionary
• later marries Samuel (pastor)
• return to America with Adam, Olivia, Tashi

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3. Shug Avery

• attractive female blues singer
• Shug short for sugar
• seemingly arrogant and selfish
• helps Celie to explore her sexuality and awaken
  her self-esteem (Shug is bisexual)
• honesty in harsh contrast to sweet name

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4. Sofia

• strong, aggressive
• not willing to be obedient
• generous to her beloved ones, forgiving and
  caring
• fights against everything that seems wrong to her

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5. Mr. _____

• aggressive, dominant towards women
• weak and subordinate towards Shug
• not able to organize his life without women
• angry because he had to marry Celie

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Plot Novel

• consists of letters Celie writes to God
• later the reader (like Celie) is able to read
  Netties letters
• Celie begins to write to Nettie instead of
  writing to God
• most important points in the novel
• sisterly love
• Celies contempt for men
• development into strong/independent woman
• lesbian relationship with Shug
• healing friendship with Shug and Mr. Albert

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Plot - Film

• Main Differences
• Mister is given a name Albert Johnson
• focus on Celies life
• Shug does not leave Celie for Germaine

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• Mister helps Nettie to get back to America
• Mister is not together with Celie as Nettie
  returns
• Celies bisexuality/lesbian relationship with
  Shug is given almost no prominence

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Group Work

• 1. Why did Walker choose this title?
• 2. Why does Celie write her letters to Nettie and
  not to God anymore?
• 3. Name some differences between Celie depicted
  in the novel and Celie depicted in the film!
• 4. Why does Celie never bring up her husbands
  name?
• 5. Why do you think Walker made this book an
  epistolary novel (Briefroman) ?

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Thank you for your attention!