The Color Purple
Alice Walker
#3
For a while, reading this book, I couldn't make up my mind if the narrator and main character, Celie was attracted to males or females. She had made subtle comments throughout the beginning of the story that she was never attracted to men and had never felt real pleasure during sex with any of them. However, it isn't until Shug Avery is introduced that Celie has something pushing her to really think about what or who she wants. Shug not only explicitly talks to Celie about still being a virgin because she had never had an orgasm, but is a woman who draws Celie's eye. While I questioned if Celie was simply fond of Shug and appreciative of her help with how Albert treats her, the comments have been building upon themselves so much that it seems like Celie is indeed sexually attracted to women (or at lease Shug Avery).
Some examples of these comments are when she thinks Shug "looks like a real good time" and has her "eyes glued there [to Shug's bosom] too" along with all the men. There is even a scene, no matter how brief, where Celie and Shug spend the night together when their husbands are out of the house and it is insinuated that they sleep together. Celie has also made many comments about her jealously when Shug and Albert, her own husband, sleep together- but none are in reference to her husband.
With this evidence it seems obvious that she is lesbian, at the very least for Shug, but I think the reason it took me so long to recognize this is because Shug was described as someone to whom everyone was attracted. She is a showgirl with one of the biggest voices in the South and was pulling people in miles to hear her sing. She is described as wear short and low cut gold and red dresses. Celie references her large bust and glowing skin a number of times, but, at least at first, like they were common knowledge. The fact that Shug also ends up somewhat taking care of Celie after Nettie leaves also poses the possibility that Celie simply cares about her deeply as a friend, not a love interest.
As I said before, even with this wariness, I have concluded that the evidence is far greater that she is lesbian that not. Assuming I have made the right call, this opens up a really interesting discussion about the fact that Celie now is not only facing difficulty and adversity because of her age, class, and gender, but also because of her sexuality. This is obviously something she would never "come out with" since she hasn't even given it much thought herself, but its easy to say this might have something to do with her relationships towards men. In my first blog post I talked about her indifference towards them and the acceptance in how they treat her. Maybe she does this so readily, at least for the first half of the book, because she simply has no want to impress them, feel equal with them, or bond with them as the result of not being sexually attracted to them. I am interested to see if she develops any other love interests, and whether or not they are male or female, later in the story. Also, it would be interesting to see her self-reflect on if she, or her society, have any views on homosexuals and if she ever explicitly defines her sexuality.
With this evidence it seems obvious that she is lesbian, at the very least for Shug, but I think the reason it took me so long to recognize this is because Shug was described as someone to whom everyone was attracted. She is a showgirl with one of the biggest voices in the South and was pulling people in miles to hear her sing. She is described as wear short and low cut gold and red dresses. Celie references her large bust and glowing skin a number of times, but, at least at first, like they were common knowledge. The fact that Shug also ends up somewhat taking care of Celie after Nettie leaves also poses the possibility that Celie simply cares about her deeply as a friend, not a love interest.
As I said before, even with this wariness, I have concluded that the evidence is far greater that she is lesbian that not. Assuming I have made the right call, this opens up a really interesting discussion about the fact that Celie now is not only facing difficulty and adversity because of her age, class, and gender, but also because of her sexuality. This is obviously something she would never "come out with" since she hasn't even given it much thought herself, but its easy to say this might have something to do with her relationships towards men. In my first blog post I talked about her indifference towards them and the acceptance in how they treat her. Maybe she does this so readily, at least for the first half of the book, because she simply has no want to impress them, feel equal with them, or bond with them as the result of not being sexually attracted to them. I am interested to see if she develops any other love interests, and whether or not they are male or female, later in the story. Also, it would be interesting to see her self-reflect on if she, or her society, have any views on homosexuals and if she ever explicitly defines her sexuality.
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