Celie and Nettite Compare/Contrast Essay
The epistolary novel, The Color Purple, written by Alice Walker, is about a young woman's struggle. Celie, who faces many hardships in her life has to learn to step up to the ones who disrespect her. In the story, Celie explains her hard life to God daily in letters. Celie also begins to lose some faith in God as she starts to write to Nettie, her sister. Celie, and Nettie’s separation in life and encounters with discrimination and religion exhibit various similarities and differences between their point of views towards faith, gender, and treatment by others. Nettie is more privileged and respectful to herself, which allows her to escape abuse by others while Celie is less confident and suffers the wrath of abuse.
Celie’s approval to stay with Albert affects her religion in a more negative way than Nettie who manages to escape the horrible treatment of Albert and become a missionary. Celie is religious at first and God is an important factor in her life, but since Nettite left she begins to lose faith in God. Everyday, Celie wrote a letter to God.
She says, "Dear, God (New paragraph) Nettie here with us. She run way from home. She say she hate to leave our stepma but she had to git out, maybe fine help for the other little ones." (pg 16)
From this quote, she shares a connection with God and shows how Nettie would react when things don't go her way. However, deeper in the story, she starts to lose some of her deep religious beliefs and start to drift away from them. When writing to Nettie she says,
“What God do for me? I ast.At this moment, she doesn’t think God is almighty anymore because he hasn’t done anything noticeable to Celie. Celie thinks God hasn’t done anything for her, except give her a horrible life of suffering. Nettie on the other hand is religious but also more focused on other things. She says, “I wrote a letter to you almost every day on the ship coming to Africa.” (pg 130) When she is going to Africa, she still writes to Celie but not to God. However, she thanks God for her safety, “I thought I had cut myself. but thank God you were there to tell me i was all right.” (pg 188) Nettie is always busy, but still gives thanks to God. The way in which Celie and Nettie’s lives are affected by other people affect the way they feel towards things.
She say, Celie! Like she shock. He gave you life, good health and a good woman that love you to death. Yeah....And a sister i probably won’t ever see again.”(pg 192)
Celie and Nettie are both affected by gender inequality in different ways. Some men like Albert disrespect women that put up with this kind of treatment and don't show any sign of resistance. She says in her letter to Nettie, “Well, you know wherever there’s a man, there’s trouble.”(pg 205) From this quote, Celie shows her hatred and her experience with men. Celie sees men as a sign of trouble because they always put Celie up with things to do for them. Celie also believes that women are made weaker because other people say so. Celie also shows hatred to men by saying, “the God I been praying and writing to is a man. And act just like all the other mens in know. Trifling, forgitful and lowdown.” (pg 192). From this quote, Celie is expressing her feelings toward men. The men have treated her so bad she starts to lose faith because God is a man,. Nettie on the other hand believes everyone should be stronger because she is more confident. However, Nettie does not hate men all as much as Celie. She says, “Corrine is a lucky woman to have him as her husband.”(pg 138) She can see that not all men are bad and as bad as Albert was, she sees the positive side of Corrine’s husband. Nettie hasn't always been treated badly because of gender like Celie. Celie who stayed with Albert longer than Nettie, has been affected deeply by a man who sees nothing in women
The treatment of others toward Celie differs with the treatment toward Nettie because Celie is looked down upon. Nettie has Celie who, “ast him to take me instead of Nettie while our new mammy sick. But he just ast me what ‘m talking bout. I tell him I can fix myself up for him... He beat me for dressing trampy...”(pg 7) Celie cares for Nettie and would rather take one for Nettie than to let her suffer. Celie only has Shug who would support her when she admits to being beaten. Shug said, “I won’t leave, she say, until I know Albert won’t even think about hitting you.” (pg 75) Shug Avery is someone that will defend Celie from albert’s beatings. she’s willing to stay for Celie and not many people have helped Celie out. Nettie is a stronger woman who tells Celie to fight back. She advises Celie,”You got to fight” (pg 17). She gives Celie advice on not getting taken advantage of because her resisting attitude has allowed her to be independent. Treatment by others differ between Celie and Nettie because Nettie makes stands while Celie obeys.
From their struggles in life, Celie and Nettie both encounter religious faith struggles, gender inequality and cruel treatment by others. Also, Nettie has found openings to fix these problems in her life while Celie lives with them. Nettie's way of dealing with things that don't go her way is to quit it. Celie's way is to accept those things and go with the flow. Alice Walker’s point is to show struggle between faith and the inequality between man and woman. The Color Purple presents brutal treatment towards women, but also shows how women can fight back and gain what they want. It shows sisters who represent the strong and the weak and the outcomes of both.
