The Color Purple Essay

The Color Purple

In the novel, "The Color Purple" the main character Celie, and another character Sofia are as different as day and night. Celie never emulates Sofia, but Sofia tends to serve as a visible reminder that Celie does not have to take everything lying down. But Celie of course is completely passive and does not surpass it. Instead she serves as a foil to Sofia, where confidence is deprived.

The character Celie has been behind the "proverbial eight ball" since she was fourteen years old. She is the second child of her "Pa" and is continuously dominated by every man in her life. She is constantly subjected to abuse by Mr. and told she is ugly. Celie does little to fight back against her step father, and later in life she reacts the same when Mr. abuses her. The character Sofia suffers for her independent spirit and impudence. When Harpo meets Sofia in church she is fifteen, but even at that age she is still strong. She is confident and not intimidated by men who think they have power over her. She is loyal and devoted to Harpo, but when he starts treating her badly, she leaves him.

The character Sofia serves as a foil to Celie because she is a women with authority in her life. She is strong physically and this is what gives her confidence. And if someone was to say an opinion, the only opinion of any value to her is her own. She is independent and does not allow herself to be walked over as Celie does. In the novel, Sofia's life has been a constant struggle, which flares up the foil between her and Celie. Sofia gets upset with Celie when she tells Harpo to beat her, which reveals Celie's jealousy. She tells Celie, "All my life I had to fight. I had to fight my daddy. I had to fight my brothers. I had to fight my cousins and my uncles. But I never thought I'd have to fight in my own house." (42) This means all of Sofia's life she's been fighting against someone, and when Celie tells Harpo to beat her, it reveals that Celie is jealous because she knows that Sofia can fight back but she can not. Sofia is not afraid to stand up for her rights, while Celie is not even aware that she has rights to stand up for. Sofia is an assertive woman that Celie is not. She will not back down from a fight, and Celie admires this quality, but often times it causes Sofia trouble. Some of the trouble is Sofia is extremely honest. when she struggles, she says so. When somebody hurts her she says so. And when she's mad, she acts on it, unlike Celie that bows down to anyone.