Alice Walker’s The Color Purple Essay

Alice Walkers The Color Purple takes place in the 1920s-1930s during the times of segregation and womens suffrage. In this portrayal Celies step-son confides in her one wickedness sitting on her front porch steps.Read the following passage from Alice Walkers The Color Purple. Then, in a well-organized essay analyze how the sources style exposes the tone of voice towards the unequal treatment of women by the use of literary elements such as speak to to emotion, syntax, and raillery.Harpo sitting away on the steps, crying handle his heart gon break. Oh, boo-hoo, and boo-hoo. He got his head in his hands, tears and s non running down his chin. I experience him a hansker. He blow his nose, look up at me out of two eyes stringent alike fists. What happen to your eyes? I ast. He clam round in his mind for a story to tell, then fall back on the truth. Sofia, he say. You still bothering Sofia? I ast. She my wife, he say. That take int mean you got to keep on bothering her, I say. Sofia love you, she a redeeming(prenominal) wife. honest to the children and good looking. Hardworking. Godfearing and clean. I dont know what more you want. Harpo sniffle. I want her to do what I say, like you do for Pa. Oh, Lord, I say. When Pa tell you to do something, you do it, he say. When he say not to, you dont. You dont do what he say, he beat you. Sometime beat me anyhow, I say, whether I do what he say or not.Thats right, say Harpo. But not Sofia. She do what she want, dont pay me no mind at all. I try to beat her, she fatal my eyes. Oh, boo-hoo, he cry. Boo-hoo-hoo. I start to take back my hansker. Maybe push him and his black eyes transfer the step. I think bout Sofia. She tickle me. I used to hunt game with a lower oneself and arrow, she say. Some womens cant be beat, I say. Sofia one of them. Besides, Sofia love you. She probably be dexterous to do most of what you say if you ast her right. She not mean, she not spiteful. She dont hold a grudge. He sit there ha nging his head, looking retard. Harpo, I say, giving him a shake, Sofia love you. You love Sofia. He look up at me best he can out his fat little eyes. Yes maam? he say. Mr.___ marry me to take care of his children. I marry him cause my daddy do me. I dont love Mr.___ and he dont love me.In this passage from The Color Purple, the authors opinion of the waymen treat women is clearly displayed through the tone of the text and style of her writing. Alice Walker exposes her strong disapproval of the mistreatment of women through literary elements such as syntax, raise to emotion and irony.Walker uses specific syntax in order to emphasize the importance of the points that Harpos familiar makes. The word Hardworking. is treated as a sentence in itself, and the neighboring phrases such as Good to the children and good looking., Godfearing and clean., and Sofia love you, she a good wife. are short and punctuated like sentences in the same way. The author does this to point out that among st all the dialogue written, these phrases are the most significant text in the horizon because they demonstrate her opinion that men, including Harpo, should not mistreat women, and especially women who take care of themselves, behave according to unearthly teachings, and are good to their families and husbands. She also uses this same sentence structure to emphasize the ways Sofia doesnt form for example, She not mean, she not spiteful. and She dont hold a grudge. This shows that Sofias behavior does not deserve punishment, and therefore she and other women of similar character should not be harmed.The passage contains emotional magical spell which serves the purpose of pointing out the authors opinion of the mistreatment of women. Sofias redeeming qualities are plainly declared characteristics such as hardworking, loving, religious, and loyal to family. When the reader learns that Sofias husband tries to beat her despite her mannerisms, sympathy is evoked. The appeal to emoti on continues when a briefing on the lady companions past is supplied. The reader learns of the char cleaning womans misfortunes including beatings that take place regardless of her actions, and a forced marriage that leads to her upbringing of another womans children.Imbedded deeper in the text, is situational irony. Walker uses imagery like He got his head in his hands, tears and snoot running down his chin. and onomatopoeic words such as sniffle and boo-hoo to point out Harpos exaggerated reaction. Harpo feels that his inability to beat his wife puts him in an unfair situation. These examples are used to point out the realityof the situation women such as his companion Celie are the unlucky ones because they are forced into partial relationships in which they are beaten and mistreated. The imagery and onomatopoeia making fun of Harpos actions, serve the purpose of pointing out his hypocritical ridiculous behavior.Throughout the passage provided, Walker uses stylistic techniques such as syntax, emotional appeal, and situational irony to illuminate her critical opinion of the mistreatment of women. Her particular methods provoke reflection and contemplation in the reader at once the passage has been comprehended. As a result, this increases the value of her work as a whole.