Dependent Woman as the Most Ideal Woman

3. Dependent Woman as the Most Ideal Woman

In The Color Purple, Celie has the most idealized woman image. This is implicitly stated by Mr. ____ ‘s brother too. He said, ―I wish Margaret was more like you. Save me a bundle of money ‖ (Walker, 1982, p. 63). From his statement, he wishes that his wife is supposed to be like Celie whom people see as a helpmate of her husband. Harpo also says the same thing about Celie. He compares Celie to Sofia, whom he believes although she is a good wife, she is not as good as Celie and not as obedient as Celie. Harpo tells Celie how disobedient Sofia is to him, Sofia does not listen and she overpowers him as the head of the house. However, Celie replies by

Harpo and Celie‘s conversation about Sofia: That don‘t mean you got to keep on bothering her, I say. Sofia love you,

she a good wife. Good to the children and good looking. Hardworking. Godfearing and clean. I don‘t know what more you want.

Harpo sniffle.

I want her to do what I say, like you do for Pa. When Pa tell you to do something, you do it, he say. When he say not to, you don‘t. You don‘t do what he say, he beat you. … …. But not Sofia. She do what she want, don‘t pay me no mind at all. I

try to beat her, she black my eyes. … (Walker, 1982, p. 69-70)

Harpo compares Sofia to Celie, since undeniably both of them hold the same values of how a good wife should be. However, as told by Harpo, Sofia fails on the passivity. According to the shared image of ideal woman, the most important thing for a woman to be a true woman was her passive role and being submissive to the male counterparts.

In a black community, it was very natural for a black woman to have a man beside them. Their consideration did not only come from the bad labeling from the society towards the independent women, they also thought that they should stick to their man. When Sofia decides to leave Harpo, Celie says, ―he your husband, I say. Got to stay with him. Else, what you gon do? ‖ (Walker, 1982, p. 72). This shows black women ‘s dependency towards men, also the proof of the inability of a black woman to defend their own existence and low self-esteem. It was common for a black woman to depend on their men, as the result of the values spread by Black Madonna movement. The thoughts of having no man to depend on was a frightening thought, In a black community, it was very natural for a black woman to have a man beside them. Their consideration did not only come from the bad labeling from the society towards the independent women, they also thought that they should stick to their man. When Sofia decides to leave Harpo, Celie says, ―he your husband, I say. Got to stay with him. Else, what you gon do? ‖ (Walker, 1982, p. 72). This shows black women ‘s dependency towards men, also the proof of the inability of a black woman to defend their own existence and low self-esteem. It was common for a black woman to depend on their men, as the result of the values spread by Black Madonna movement. The thoughts of having no man to depend on was a frightening thought,

The obedience of most black women in the black society was unexpectedly the result of their action to call off the bad labeling of Amazon or matriarchs attached to them. Hoping that by having more dependency upon men, they would have the equal position with the white women, who were dependent to their men. The black women expected that they would get the same respective position in the American community, which was the main goal of the Black Madonna movement. According to the Black Madonna movement, the relapse of black woman to their traditional sphere at home was one of the ways to uplift the image of black woman. The portrayal of successful Black Madonna movement was to keep all black woman stay under black man ‘s hand and surrender their independence. Most of black women in the early 20 th century had similar thoughts about womanhood. Harpo ‘s statement: ―but people use to men doing this sort of thing. Women weaker, he say. People think they weaker, say they weaker, anyhow. Women spose to take it easy. Cry if you want to. Not try to take over ‖ (Walker, 1982, p. 218-219), explains the current way of thinking on how woman should be, that is, women should be weaker.

In the early 20 th century, most of black man in patriarchal family believed that women should be dependent; and black women were trained to be dependent too. They were taught to be passive and submissive to their male counterparts. This was

assertive, independent, and domineering than white women ‖ (Hooks, 1981, p. 181). The image of dependent black woman probably due to the efforts done by Black Madonna activists that they were obsessed with white femininity, and being independent was not in the agenda to fit the cult of true womanhood. Due to the propaganda spread in the patriarchal community, most black women believed that they had no other role except of being mothers and wives. Therefore, in order to make black woman to be dependent, black man would always try to make them believed that they could not do anything without man ‘s help.

When Celie decides to leave Mr. ____, Mr. ____ tried to convince her that she will not be able to survive without him. His action is the typical thing any men do to make black woman feels that they can do nothing without man ‘s help. This is as stated by Mr. _____:

You ‘ll be back, he say. Nothing up North for nobody like you. Shug got talent, he say. She can sing. She got spunk, he say. She can talk to anybody. Shug got looks, he say. She can stand up and be notice. But what you got? You ugly. You skinny. You shape funny. You too scared to open your mouth to people. All you fit to do in Memphis is be Shug ‘s maid. Take out her slop-jar and maybe cook her food. You not that good a cook either. And this house ain ‘t been clean good since my first wife died. And nobody crazy or backward enough to want to marry you, neither. What you gon do? Hire yourself out to farm? He laugh. Maybe somebody let you work on they railroad.

… He laugh. Who do you think you is? he say. You can ‘t curse nobody.

Look at you. You black, you pore, you ugly, you a woman. Goddam, he say, you nothing at all ‖ (Walker, 1982, p. 207-208)

inferred that by being a woman, she will not be capable of doing anything on her own. In his utterance directed to Celie, Mr. ____ also predicts the most probable thing which can happen to without-a-man black woman. Hooks writes that ―… they (black women) should educate themselves in case they did not find that man who would be the most important force in their lives, who would provide for and protect them ‖ (1981, p.184). At that time, black women were trained to do nursing and teaching just in case they did not get married. Unmarried black women should struggle for living by being a teacher or a nurse, or the worst case, being a maid or servant for the whites, as their job was limited to the domestic works.

Margaret receives dual portrayal in The Keepers of the House; she is seen as independent woman in Abigail ‘s eyes, and dependent woman for William Howland. Although Margaret is characterized as a strong-build woman and fitting the image of Amazon —just like Sofia in The Color Purple, she somehow owns values of the delicate white woman. As stated by Kaiser that ―… the cult of True Womanhood was not intended to apply to them (black women) no matter how intensely they embraced the values ‖ (1995, p. 99), the most impossible characteristic of true woman for a black woman, which only be owned by white woman, were fragility and white skin. Black Madonna Movement only gave them slightly elevated status, but would never grant them the equal status with the white woman.

values of true woman. Despite Margaret ‘s own decision to be ‗white‘ after the death of her grandmother, William often sees her as if she were a white woman; fragile, delicate, unassuming, weak, something no black woman can be. The first time William met Margaret, he could not help to think of the old story of a black woman who is ―a great tall woman, free and easy in her movements as if her skin was white‖ (Grau, 1964, p. 75). Although to William, she does not act like any white woman, like what she claims to be, whenever he looks at her, she looks fragile and delicate:

He stood up, and she seemed much smaller, fragile almost. She did not raise her head to look at him, the way white woman might. She didn‘t act at all like a white woman. As for her having a white father, he didn‘t believe it, not with the color of that skin. But lots of gals said so, and you had to let them have the comfort of it, if there was any.

… …. How could anybody that tall, he wondered, look so delicate just

because she was sitting down? (Grau, 1964, p. 117)

Sometimes William also describes her of having the values of how true woman should be, most probably from how she behaves, but it is more from how she looks might spark the thought for William.

It was strange, he thought, standing on his porch in the chilly night, how she changed. Sitting she was a child, delicate, uncertain. When she walked, she moved with a stride if a country woman, long steps, arms hanging motionless at her sides. A primitive walk, effortless, unassuming, unconscious, old as the earth under her feet. (Grau, 1964, p. 129)

the passage shows how Margaret ‘s image changes into white-woman like, simply only by sitting or walking.

William still holds his ground that he has to protect Margaret too as his wife. Due to the white values of keeping woman in the pedestal, William respects and values Margaret, like a white man ‘s treatment toward white woman. William might sees Margaret as his partner, despite the ―white male perceptions of black woman as ―beast‖, sexual savages who are unfit for marriage‖ (Hooks, 1981, p. 65). Ultimately, this is not too much issue for William, as he looks beyond the skin border between them. William still includes Margaret in any activity he can do, such as when he needs to take Abigail ‘s mother to Santa Fe. In the public‘s eye, Margaret might be seen as a servant accompanying her master, but for William, her existence is more than that. As being said by Abigail, ―you (William) miss Margaret‖ (Grau, 1964, p. 192), and as being said by Annie Howland, William ―doesn‘t want to leave that Margaret ‖ (Grau, 1964, p. 180). It is important for William to keep Margaret as close as possible because he is scared that people might find out their real status and hurt Margaret. At one scene, William insists that he should protect Margaret even before they marry, as stated in ―…. He kept wanting to stay awake and listen. To be sure she had finished in the kitchen and come safely upstairs to bed ‖ (Grau, 1964, p. 130), it is the urge of William to protect Margaret, despite the common sense that black women do not need protection (Hooks, 1981, p. 108).

Although it is not depicted explicitly how dependent Margaret is to William, it is seen through how William thinks that everything should be placed in the odds for

properties and wealth for Margaret, as a part of his protection, the guarantee that Margaret does not have to suffer if something happens to him. After she sent her children away, William is the only reason she lives. Shirley Ann Grau as a white woman writer puts the values of white woman upon Margaret correctly. She is seen as a loyal helpmate of William and she should be able to support William which she does alright. Margaret is also portrayed as passive and obedient woman. She knows her duty as a housekeeper and does it without any word of protest, instead she seems to be enjoying her work. She never exchanges any word of quarrel with William or the other family members. Most of the time Margaret continues working on the household chores without any words, and she does not speak much. She is after all the perfect depiction of true woman will be, except for her skin color.

Margaret ‘s dependence on William is also seen through the later story after the death of William. Margaret is devastated by William ‘s death. It was right after William ‘s death that Abigail expects to see some sign of sadness from Margaret. John Tolliver shows his sadness but somehow Margaret does not show it upright. However, Abigail can sense Margaret ‘s sadness from the way she behaves:

Her smooth round black was unmoved. It was just the face of a middle- aged Negro woman who looked older than her years, and who wasn‘t particularly concerned by whatever was happening around her. The black skin helped, of course —its color looked so silent, so impenetrable. It hid the blood and bone under it.

… And she went into the kitchen to cook breakfast. Happiness or death,

you had to eat, and she had to fix it.

as if the hold of the earth had on her gotten stronger, all of sudden. (Grau, 1964, p. 216)

it can be inferred that Margaret ‘s grievance towards William is not shown directly, as most of whites would be. She still does her duty as the housekeeper to serve foods despite of her mourning. She is not that strong in actuality because William ‘s death breaks her down. She weakens and she dies not long after William ‘s death, Abigail says that Margaret might embrace her own death or it might be an accident, no one knows for sure, as ―and there wasn‘t any part of the world that looked familiar or comforting to her ‖ (Grau, 1964, p. 235). William might mean more than just a husband for her. He is her protector, the one who loves her so much, the one who needs her, the one who comforts her, and the one she can depend on. When he left, she loses the only person she can depend on, this is what devastated her. Grau might want to use this to portray that as a woman, black woman is still weak, as unlike the black women portrayed in The Color Purple, Margaret is a lot weaker.