Walker also effectively introduces the main characters in the first 6 letters. We receive enough information to build a rough profile of these people.
The most important character obviously is Celie, a black woman living in a male-dominated community. From the first 6 letters, we discover she is innocent and naïve through the style in which she writes her letters. A prime example of this is in letter 5 “A girl at church say you git big if you bleed every month.” This shows she does not understand much about sex and procreation. Celie is also selfless and courageous in the way she “always git in his light” (letter 5) when Pa looks at her sister Nettie in a perverted way. She does not mind being beaten and raped by Pa so long as Nettie does not have to go through the pain she has to endure. This shows that she is also considerate and caring “(Nettie) scared. But I say I’ll take care of you. With God help.” (Letter 3). In the first letter we get another insight into Celie’s character from the way she opens the novel. She starts to write “I am a good girl.” But she crosses out “I am”, replacing it instead with “I have always been”. The way she crosses out “I am” is a form of self-negation and shows that she has extremely low self esteem due to the way she is being treated as a black female. She is starting to believe that she is worthless, which is exactly how people around her treat her. Letter 6 leaves us with some hope though. Celie first sees Shug in this letter. Shug becomes a role model and also a symbol of rebellion against oppression for Celie. “She grinning with her foot up on somebody motorcar…. I dream of Shug Avery”. When referring to Shug though, she reveals again her extreme lack of self esteem “She bout ten thousand times more prettier then me”.
Pa is also introduced in these first letters and becomes the “shape” or stereotype Celie applies to all men she encounters. Pa is oppressive, malicious and tyrannical “He beat me today because he say I winked at a boy in church” (Letter 5) “I see him looking at my little sister”. He is also violent and ruthless “He took (my baby) while I was sleeping. Kilt it out there in the woods.” (Letter 2) His role in the first 6 letters is mainly to shock the reader and add effect to the opening. The reader also responds to his injustices towards Celie by forming a stronger bond with her.
Another important character introduced is Mr._____. He is Nettie’s boyfriend by letter 4 but will later on end up marrying Celie. Mr’s real name, Albert is not used by Celie due to the fact that he is “in the same shape almost as Pa”. Celie regards all men as products of the same violent, ruthless and tyrannical mould.
In these first 6 letters, Walker also introduces the important themes within the novel with the oppression of Celie as the backdrop.
The most important theme introduced is that of the Roles of Women. Celie lives in a community where the traditional roles of men and women are upheld, with the majority of the pressure and responsibility put on women. Women have to do the housework, 100% of the child-raising and in some cases; they are required to earn an income through farm-work. A black woman’s life was very bleak. They were seen as slaves that could be commanded by men without question. They could be raped by their husbands and beaten. In the first letter we get an idea of a woman’s role in this society from Pa when he says to Celie “You gonna do what your mammy wouldn’t.” He says this just before raping her. We get the idea that when a black woman gets married, there is only one good year where happiness is present. “Now I tell her to marry Mr____.....an try to have one good year out your life.” (Letter 5) Presumably, after the wife gets “big” or pregnant, the marriage fails. The effectiveness of this bleak image from Celie is quite shocking to the reader who sees marriage as symbolic of love and commitment instead of a contract with which women sign their lives away to their husbands. An example of this is when Pa marries again “I think she thought she love him”. (Letter 4)
Another important theme is that of Sisterhood. When Pa looks at Nettie, Celie stands in his way and sacrifices her body to protect her. Celie also gives Nettie advice to help her in life “I tell Nettie to keep at her books” (Letter 4). The theme of Sisterhood is a continued theme but in the first 6 letters, it provides hope for the reader and also is used as a tool to reveal Celie’s selflessness.
Also there is the continuing theme of Religion. In this novel, Celie writes her letters to the only being that can save her from her oppressive surroundings, God. The “Dear God” at the start of each letter, not only sets the tone of the novel for the reader, but also reveals Celie’s faith in Christianity. God is her source of strength throughout the first 6 letters. Whenever something important happens, Celie writes to God for help. When referring to Nettie she says “I’ll take care of you. With God help.” Despite all she is going through, she never loses faith in her religion. Like Sisterhood, Religion is a symbol of hope to the reader and these two themes work well in contrast to the bleakness of the Roles of Women.
The final theme is that of Hiding. Celie writes her letters in secret due to the warning from Pa at the beginning of the book “You better not never tell nobody but God. It’d kill your mammy.” Celie feels she can only tell God her problems as she is fearful of Pa and what he will do to her if anyone finds out about the rape.
In conclusion, Alice Walker opens her novel with 6 very effective letters that fully involve the reader in the story. Her use of the letter/diary style plays on the reader’s emotions and directs the reader’s sympathy towards the main character. Celie’s naivety and also her poor, blunt and shocking writing style have a similar effect.
The letters are used effectively by Walker as a way of spanning many years in a few pages. Walker also introduces and develops the main characters in the first 6 letters with great effect. These characters in turn are used by Walker to introduce important themes which are to be conveyed. The themes of Roles of Women, Religion, Sisterhood and Hiding are all born and begin to develop in the first few pages of the novel, making the letters more interesting for the reader and in turn more effective as an introduction.
