For this unit, Diversity in our Humanities class Forbidden Books, we discussed the positives and the negatives of diversity, and how censorship can affect the diversity of societies or populations. We also read the book The Absolutely True Diary of a Part-Time Indian, because it portrays racism at a young age from a first person point of view. We also watched the movie The Color Purple, which shows both racism and misogyny from the point of view of Celie, played by Whoopi Goldberg. For this Action Project, we wrote papers about the wide censorship of The Color Purple and explained whether or not we agreed with the banning or not. I enjoyed this Action Project because it helped me see books and movies from the point of view of someone who would not agree with me.
One of the most commonly contested books and movies is The Color Purple, by Alice Walker. The historical dramatic movie adaptation from 1985 stars Whoopi Goldberg as Celie, Donald Glover as Mister, and Oprah Winfrey as Sofia. Set from the early 1910s to the late 1930s in southern Georgia, the story follows Celie, a young girl who is raped by her father and had two children by him by 13, and married off to a much older man at 14. Her younger sister Nettie moves in with her and her new husband, Mister, but after she refuses to have sex with Mister, Nettie is kicked out and Mister swears that they will never see each other again, but they promise to write. Over the years, Celie is abused by Mister and is never allowed to see any of the letters from Nettie, which Mister takes and hides. When Shug Avery, the woman the Mister is really in love with, stays with them on the farm, Celie falls in love with her, and Shug writes her a song. After continued years of abuse, Celie finally stands up to Mister and leaves the state with Shug, her husband, and other women who had been abused by racism and their husbands. After decades of being separated, Nettie comes back from her mission trip to Africa, where she took Celie’s two children, and the whole family is reunited.
One of the reasons that The Color Purple was banned so often was because of the intense racism that occurs throughout both the book and the movie. Sofia, the wife of one of Mister’s sons, Harpo, was once in town with her children when the Mayor’s wife, Miss Samuel came up to her, announcing how cute her children were. Sofia smiles and her children thank her, but then you can hear the Mayor admonishing his wife because of how much she loved “the coloreds”. Sofia tenses and starts to move away, but before she can, Miss Samuel grabs her arm and asks her to be her maid. Even though this was extremely racist and rude, Miss Samuel thinks she is doing Sofia a favor. The Mayor comes over to see what is going on, and wonders why Sofia won’t answer his wife. He rudely says that Sofia should be grateful, and before he can continue, Sofia punches him in the face. Because of her race and gender, Sofia is placed in prison for over 7 years, and after her release is forced to become Miss Samuel’s maid anyway.
Another reason this book was banned was because of the relationship between Celie and Shug Avery. Though it was short and not a main point of the book, Shug and Celie share a kiss while Mister is away. After decades of abuse from Mister, Shug is the only one in Celie’s life who is kind and cares about her. Some people found that this scene is “grotesque” and “against god” because it portrays a lesbian couple in a positive light. It also showed that a woman cheating on her husband can be positive, even though a Christian marriage is against cheating or infidelity.
The Color Purple was also banned because of its portrayal of domestic abuse and sex. Even though none of the abuse is ever shown in a positive light, some people felt that they did not want to normalize abuse for their children. When Celie gets married to Mister, she had already had two children, both by her father when he raped her. Even just the first day that they are married, Mister beats and yells at Celie, and has sex with her without her consent. I think the reason that people were so upset by this is that none of the characters really thought it was unusual to beat your wife, and historically, it was not against any laws.
I do not believe that this book should have been banned. It really opens your eyes about what it was like to be a black woman in such a misogynistic and racist time and place. I truly believe that we must look to the past at our mistakes, not only as individuals but also as a society, to change our ways and learn. If this book was banned and not made available to anyone, we might be in a different place today. Even though it may be difficult to read because of the abuse and racism, I think this book can help us be better people by realizing how far we’ve come as a society and making us hope for the future.
One of the most commonly contested books and movies is The Color Purple, by Alice Walker. The historical dramatic movie adaptation from 1985 stars Whoopi Goldberg as Celie, Donald Glover as Mister, and Oprah Winfrey as Sofia. Set from the early 1910s to the late 1930s in southern Georgia, the story follows Celie, a young girl who is raped by her father and had two children by him by 13, and married off to a much older man at 14. Her younger sister Nettie moves in with her and her new husband, Mister, but after she refuses to have sex with Mister, Nettie is kicked out and Mister swears that they will never see each other again, but they promise to write. Over the years, Celie is abused by Mister and is never allowed to see any of the letters from Nettie, which Mister takes and hides. When Shug Avery, the woman the Mister is really in love with, stays with them on the farm, Celie falls in love with her, and Shug writes her a song. After continued years of abuse, Celie finally stands up to Mister and leaves the state with Shug, her husband, and other women who had been abused by racism and their husbands. After decades of being separated, Nettie comes back from her mission trip to Africa, where she took Celie’s two children, and the whole family is reunited.
One of the reasons that The Color Purple was banned so often was because of the intense racism that occurs throughout both the book and the movie. Sofia, the wife of one of Mister’s sons, Harpo, was once in town with her children when the Mayor’s wife, Miss Samuel came up to her, announcing how cute her children were. Sofia smiles and her children thank her, but then you can hear the Mayor admonishing his wife because of how much she loved “the coloreds”. Sofia tenses and starts to move away, but before she can, Miss Samuel grabs her arm and asks her to be her maid. Even though this was extremely racist and rude, Miss Samuel thinks she is doing Sofia a favor. The Mayor comes over to see what is going on, and wonders why Sofia won’t answer his wife. He rudely says that Sofia should be grateful, and before he can continue, Sofia punches him in the face. Because of her race and gender, Sofia is placed in prison for over 7 years, and after her release is forced to become Miss Samuel’s maid anyway.
Another reason this book was banned was because of the relationship between Celie and Shug Avery. Though it was short and not a main point of the book, Shug and Celie share a kiss while Mister is away. After decades of abuse from Mister, Shug is the only one in Celie’s life who is kind and cares about her. Some people found that this scene is “grotesque” and “against god” because it portrays a lesbian couple in a positive light. It also showed that a woman cheating on her husband can be positive, even though a Christian marriage is against cheating or infidelity.
The Color Purple was also banned because of its portrayal of domestic abuse and sex. Even though none of the abuse is ever shown in a positive light, some people felt that they did not want to normalize abuse for their children. When Celie gets married to Mister, she had already had two children, both by her father when he raped her. Even just the first day that they are married, Mister beats and yells at Celie, and has sex with her without her consent. I think the reason that people were so upset by this is that none of the characters really thought it was unusual to beat your wife, and historically, it was not against any laws.
I do not believe that this book should have been banned. It really opens your eyes about what it was like to be a black woman in such a misogynistic and racist time and place. I truly believe that we must look to the past at our mistakes, not only as individuals but also as a society, to change our ways and learn. If this book was banned and not made available to anyone, we might be in a different place today. Even though it may be difficult to read because of the abuse and racism, I think this book can help us be better people by realizing how far we’ve come as a society and making us hope for the future.
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| McGee, Matt. The Color Purple (April 23, 2006) |
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