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The

Color

Purple

Created by TOBI CUMMINS

#1: Celie is sexually abused by her father

After her mother dies, Celie's father rapes her on multiple occassions. She becomes pregnant twice, and she believes that he kills the children after they are born.

This abuse affects Celie for the rest of her life, causing her to fear men. Throughout the book, she does not refer to any man by his name until she has established a comfortable relationship with him.

#2: Celie is married to Mr. ____

Initially, Mr. ____ came to Celie's home to ask if he could marry her sister, Nettie. When their father refused, he offered Celie to him. Mr. ____ reluctantly agreed because he needed someone cook and clean his house, in addition to caring for his children.

Celie's marriage was a key turning point in her life because it removed her from her house and her family. Mr. ___ only continued the abuse that Celie faced in her own house. The emotional abuse Celie endured at his hand was evident when he forbade Nettie from visiting Celie, virtually cutting Celie off from all communication other than himself and his children.

#3: Celie sees her daughter

While out in town, Celie sees a woman with a young girl that resembles her. Believing this to be her daughter, Celie works up the courage to talk to the woman, who tell her the girl's name is Olivia.

This meeting was very important to Celie because she knew that her child was alive and beign cared for. Celie received further confirmation that it was her child because she had given her daughter the name Olivia, and had stitched it into her clothes before she was taken away.

#4: Mr.____'s eldest son, Harpo, gets married

Harpo is in love with a girl named Sofia, but their families do not approve of their relationship. When Sofia becomes pregnant, she moves into Mr. ____'s house. Soon, the couple decides the house is not big enough for everyone, so they build a smaller house on the property.

Harpo's marriage to Sofia changes the dynamic of the house by inserting Sofia's strong personality. Additionally, it brings Harpo more into the spotlight of the story, and portrays him as more of an adult.

#5: Celie tells Harpo to beat Sofia

Harpo becomes angry that Sofia does not listen to him, so he asks Celie what he should do to make her "mind" him. Because violence is the only discipline Celie has ever known, she tells Harpo to beat Sofia.

After Harpo's unsuccessful attempt to beat Sofia, Sofia confronts Celie about the incident. Sofia tells Celie that she should not let people walk all over her and she needs to stand up for herself. Sofia, dismisses this suggestion due to her learned submissive behavior.

#6: Shug Avery comes to town

Famous singer Shug Avery, known for her promiscuity, comes back to her hometown. After Mr. ____ seems flustered after news of her arrival, Celie discovers that they were once in love. Shug is very sick, so Mr. ____ takes her in.

Shug Avery coming home is a big event for Mr. _____. The two were once in love, but Mr. ____'s father did not approve of Shug, so they could not marry. Shug is often looked down on by the townspeople because of her promiscuous lifestyle, but it also revered for her singing. Mr. ____, however, never cared about this, and loved her no matter what.

#7: Shug and Celie grow closer

As Celie helps Shug recover from her illness, the two grow closer and closer. Celie takes care of Shug, doing her hair and bathing her, and Shug writes a song for Celie. Despite her friendliness toward Celie, Shug constantly teases Mr. ____, whose first name is discovered to be Albery, for not standing up to his father.

Celie is grateful for Shug's friendship, but she soon starts to feel more strongly for her. These feelings only develop when Shug writes Celie's song, which makes Celie feel more special than she has ever felt before. Celie is also impressed by how Shug can talk back to and ridicule Mr. ____.

#8: Sofia leaves Harpo

Harpo continually tries to gain weight so he can be on the same physical leve as Sofia, in order to beat her. Sofia has finally had enough of Harpo trying to control her, so she leaves town to stay with her sister, bringing her children along.

When Sofia is fed up with Harpo's insistence on her obedience, she shows her tenacious personality by leaving him and going to live with her sister. This once again shows Celie that she does not have to tolerate abuse and can control her own life.

#9: Harpo meets Squeak

After Sofia has been gone for nearly six months, Harpo opens a juke joint on his father's property. While construction is under way, a woman named Squeak comes by and asks to be a waitress. Her and Harpo soon form a relationship, as he believes that Sofia is not coming back. Once the juke joint opens, Harpo asks Shug to sing, she agrees and sings the song she wrote for Celie.

Harpo's opening of his juke joint and relationship with Squeak demonstrate how he has begun to move on from Sofia. For a while after she left, Harpo was devastated, but this shows his resiliency. Celie's feelings for Shug are becoming stronger, and she feels love for Shug when she sings her song on stage.

#10: Sofia comes back

One night at the juke joint, Sofia shows up with her new boyfriend. Despite this, her and Harpo are still friendly, dancing and talking together. This causes Squeak to become jealous, she calls Sofia a b*tch and slaps her. Sofia's bold personality is shown once again when she knocks out Squeak's front teeth with one punch. The next day, they mayor's wife approaches Sofia and asks her to be her maid. After Sofia's refusal, she gets into a fight with the mayor that lands her in prison.

Sofia's return puts a rift in everyone's lives as they had just been adjusting to life without her. Harpo and Celie are not upset that she is back, though, unlike Squeak. The fight between Sofia and Squeak most likely contributed to Sofia's outburst with the mayor's wife. After Sofia had been experiencing abuse in prison, the family convinces the sheriff to allow her to work for the mayor's family instead.

#11: Celie and Shug discover the letters

While looking around the house, Shug and Celie discover dozens of letters from Nettie that Mr. ____ has kept hidden. Nettie has written to Celie for years, and Celie never even knew about it. The letters inform Celie that Nettie has become a missionary in Africa, and the family she is with is the one that adopted her children.

The discovery of Nettie's letters ignites a spark in Celie. She feels intense anger toward Mr. ____ and tells Shug that she wants to kill him. Finding Nettie's letters gives Celie the courage she needs to stand up to Albert and live her own life

#12: Celie, Shug, and Squeak go to Memphis

Discovering that Mr. ____ had hidden Nettie's letters from her was the last straw for Celie. One night at dinner, Shug announces that her and Celie are going to Memphis, and Celie tells off Mr. ____. Squeak then decides that she will join them.

Once in Memphis, the three women begin a new chapter in their lives. Shug returns to her singing career, but with a new purpose now that her and Celie can love each other openly. Squeak starts signing at clubs and other venues. Celie begins making pants not only for men, but women too. This is the first time in Celie's life in which she has been truly happy.

#13: Celie goes back to Georgia

In Memphis, Shug falls in love with a younger boy, and asks Celie to wait for her while she has a fling. Celie refuses and goes back home to Georgia. There, she forgives and forms a new friendship with Albert. After her father dies, she discovers that he was actually her stepfather, and his house actually belonged to her and Nettie. Celie moves into the house and begins selling pants out of the store.

Though heartbroken by Shug's desertion, Celie finds love within herself and makes the brave decision to return to Georgia. Her friendship with Albert and her confidence to open her store shows how much she has grown throughout the story.

#13: Reunited (and it feels so good)

After decades apart, Nettie and the other missionaries come home. She has married the adoptive father of Celie's children, and Celie's son, Adam, has married an African girl. Celie and Nettie have a very emotional reunion, falling to the ground while embracing each other.

Celie's reunion with Nettie brings the story full circle. It is evident how much the two women have grown from living with their abusive stepfather. Though they have lived separate lives, the two sisters have been connected the whole time, and this is accentuated through their weeping embrace at the end other book.

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