Resistance through Female Bonding in Alice Walker's The Color Purple

Abstract

The notion of Female Bonding lies in the affirmation of the solidarity and similarity of all women. The Color Purple is a novel structured around four protagonists, not divergent in socioeconomic status and values. They have enough in common to share a rich friendship. They are all in their late thirties and are similar in many ways. A little more thought would tell us what brings these black females together in the novel. The absence of responsible men in their households makes them stick together. None of them has found a reliable man who is adequate in every sense. She does not tell her to imagine a black God. Shug tells Celie to feel loved by God by being herself.

When black people are talked about, sexism militates against the acknowledgement of the interests of black women. When women are talked about racism militates against recognition of black female interests. When black people are talked about, the focus tends to be on black men. When women are talked about the focus tends to be on white women. The compounded nature of their experience is absorbed into the collective experiences of either group or as too different. Celie is subjected to plenty of unlucky events. She is encircled by racist obstacles and harsh constraints of patriarchy. Though she makes an effort to rise above these traumatizing events, she cannot go beyond these obstacles.