Reading Journal Day 2/ The Color Purple

1/25/19


Letter 9
Reflection:
This letter spoke to me because it shines light on the topics that people wouldn’t speak about in that particular time period. In this letter, it is revealed that Celie was given the responsibility of taking care of Mr.___’s four children and she again has the role of the mother and now a wife at still, a very young age. At certain times, Celie described her and Mr.___’s sexual encounters and Celie was extremely disconnected and emotionally withdrawn from the actual encounter in its entirety. Whilst in these moments, Celie thought of her younger sister, Nettie, and what she had to go through without her being there with her father and just her well being in general. It is not very often when a person speaks up about sexual assault and physical abuse. During this time, the characters were not very educated anyway, but especially since it was Celie’s father Inflicting this on her, it left her kind of trapped and it makes me feel like I am trapped too.  I feel like placing myself somewhere in the story and thinking “if I were there, what could I do to help”. It’s definitely unfortunate that women were treated like property, but even after leaving her abuser, It followed Celie, leaving her unable to enjoy any intimate moments with her new found spouse. The story is unraveling, but slowly, and I can not wait for what is to come.

Day 2

Today, I tried a new hairstyle and noticed how walking with your head up makes a big difference in how powerful and confident you look. I walked with my head higher than usual with my signature smile on my face and it felt different. I learned that focusing more on your own habits and tendencies, sort of allows you to fix the things that need to be fixed and to accept and embrace the things that are meant to be. I got home feeling accomplished after spending time with my best friends and realized that today was a day for me to love and appreciate myself.