CHAPTER I INTRODUCTION
1.1 Background of the Study
Writing with the purpose of changing people‘s pessimistic views about women of achieving gender equalities and denouncing the injustices inflicted to
women became the main goal for feminist writers and activists. They aimed at creating a world, at least in literature, where women would be able to live as
individuals. Women often depicted as the inferior gender, a passive object that could not survive on its own and that could do nothing for itself. Women, in literature,
could only exist through the eyes, minds and lives of men but never for themselves. Beautiful and obedient, they could never think on their own. They were obliged to
occupy a secondary place in the males world not because of their capacities but rather because of imposed cultural and social forces. This representation led to deny
womens dignity and even worse their identity. The history of patriarchy reveals a variety of injustices women suffered from.
They represented, in a way, the oppressed class that had always been subject to men‘s domination through male self-interest and had been prevented from full
development as human beings. Sexism, under patriarchy, was the norm that ruled gender relationships for men were in control of everything.
According to Simone de Beauvoir, in The Second Sex 1949 Women have been made inferiors and the oppression has been compounded by mens belief that
women are inferiors by nature. Viewed from the religious side, humans believe that the woman was created from one of the rib of man, it is one which makes the
assumption that a woman is under a man. Men are culturally different from women. Physically, men are strong while women are weak. Men’s nature is rude and
women’s is gentle. Men’s idea is always authoritative and women’s is dependent. Men are always active and become determiner while women are only passive and
become receiver. There are many more things that can show the women are in the secondary place. like a woman should stay at home to cook, look after the children
and serve her man, and then a woman should keep in silence when a man speaking.
These issues finally cause women to start questioning this kind of gender inequality and struggling to fight against the superiority of men, called Feminism.
Feminism is a phenomenon in the society. In discussing feminism, people will talk about women. Feminism is a kind of social changing which derives from
women’s suffrage movements in the nineteenth century in Europe and America. It is closely related to the social changing of gender issues. Mary Wollstonecraft, the first
feminist who wrote A Vindication of the Rights of Woman 1792, encourages woman writers to insert feminism in their literary works. Finally, feminism has been
widely spreading. The term feminism can also be used to describe a political, cultural, or
economic movement that is aimed at establishing equal rights and legal protection for women. Feminism involves political, cultural and sociological theories, as well as
philosophies concerned with issues of gender difference. It is also a movement that campaigns for women’s rights and interests.
Feminism is defined by different feminist. They define feminism according their own point of view. As they think differently so their definition too is different
from others. But all the definition is almost same in the main point. Here the writer is going to put some definition of the most popular feminist in the world.
• Estelle B. Freedman 2003:285 said in his book ‘No Turning Back’:
“Feminism is a belief that women and men are inherently of equal worth. Because most societies privilege men as a group, social movements are
necessary to achieve equality between woman and man.” •
Rosalind Delmar 1986:13 said in her book ‘What is feminism’ that :“Feminism is usually defined as an active desire to change women’s position
in society.” •
Christina Hoff Sommers 1994: 22 said, in the book ‘Who Stole Feminism’
that : “a concern for women and a determination to see them fairly treated” •
Ratna 2004:184: Dalam pengertian yang paling luas, feminisme adalah gerakan kaum wanita untuk menolak segala sesuatu yang
dimarginalisasikan, disubordinasikan, dan direndahkan oleh kebudayaan dominan, baik dalam bidang politik dan ekonomi maupun kehidupan social
pada umumnya. In its broadest sense, feminism is a women’s movement which rejects the marginal, subordinated and underestimated things by the
dominating culture either in politics, economics or social life in general. •
Awuy 2002:1 in his essay Feminisme di Persimpangan Jalan states: Feminisme merupakan sebuah fenomena kultural. alasan kemunculannya
ialah berdasarkan ketidakpuasan terhadap realitas yang dianggap sebagai konstruksi patriarkal. Feminism is a cultural phenomenon of unsatisfactory
to the reality of patriarchal construction.
Feminism has finally changed traditional perspectives in a wide range of area in human’s life. Many feminist activists have campaigned for women’s legal rights
such as rights of contract, property rights, and voting rights. Nowadays they are also promoting women’s rights to bodily integrity and autonomy, abortion rights, and
reproductive rights. They have struggled to protect women and girls from domestic violence, sexual harassment, and rape. On economic scopes, feminists have
advocated for workplace rights, including maternity leave and equal pay. In addition to that, they also fight against other forms of gender specific discrimination against
women. The reason of why feminism exists is because the patriarchal construction has
subordinated and repressed the essence of women during the last decades. In a patriarchal society, men have the power, dominate social or cultural systems, and
have authority over women and children. Men’s superiority, which is also supported by the culture, finally creates significant injustice as portrayed in Alice Walkers
novel The Color Purple which become one of the problems of the study that will be discussed in this thesis.
Alice Walker an American author and activist who excelled in literature often emphasize in her works the importance of regaining feminine entity, self-esteem,
fulfilling self-realization and achieving sexual awareness. The concern of black women, the impact of racism and sexism as well as their impact on black women
were the main themes of these black writers. In their fiction, the female characters are able to change, to progress and excel in all aspects of life. en.m.wikipedia.org
Alice Walker aims to portray the experiences of black women in her novels. “…deepen our understanding of the limitations and possibilities of lives of black
Americans…” Bell, 1987: 269. She is African-American writers. “This is evident in the way that Walker has passed on some of Southern heritage in her fiction”
Lauret, 2000: 96. Alice Walker‘s epistolary novel, The Color Purple is one of the best literary
works that clearly illustrate the sufferings of African-American women from patriarchy, sexism and racism. Awarded the Pulitzer Prize in 1983. The Color Purple
is the story of Celie, a poor, barely literate Southern black woman who struggles to escape the brutality and degradation of her treatment by men” Gates, Jr-Appiah,
1993: 16. Walker’s novel The Color Purple published in 1982 begins with the scene of rape. When the protagonist of the novel, “…Celie is 14…stepfather, whom she
believes is her father, begins to rape her…” Walker, 1996: 50 She cannot tell this trauma to anybody. At first, her stepfather starts to do this when her mother is not at
home. Then he says “…you better shut up and git used to it” Walker, 1985: 3. Celie’s expressions show how difficult position she stays. “But I don’t never git used
to it. And now I feell sick used to it. I be the one to cook. My mama she fuss at me an look at me. She happy, cause he good to her now. But too sick to last long” Walker,
1985: 3. The rape scene of the novel “…is based on Walker’s great-great-
grandmother, who was raped and impregnated at age 11 by her master Walker’s great-great-grandfather” Winchell, 1992: 85. As seen, this abuse is related to a real
event and it is written by the writer to demonstrate what a black female live. This event reveals “…the portrayal of black family…” 86 The writer suggests that
“…child-rape, incest…” Birch, 1994: 222 is an undeniable fact of most blacks’ lives.
The reason of significance of the Celie’s rape scene is that there is not a race issue. Celie is black and her stepfather is black, as well. This incident displays that
being a member of a black family is dangerous for a female. These facts are the representatives of a black female’s life. Celie is demonstrated “…the black woman as
oppressed …”Evans, 1984: 163 The Color Purple does not only describe but even goes beyond that purpose.
In fact, Alice Walker‘s true intention from writing this novel is not only to give voice to black women but also to provide them with a path to be followed in getting their
freedom. Walker shows us the evolution of her major character, Celie, from being a sexually abused child to a passive wife and finally to an emancipated woman.
Emancipation is any of various effort to procure economic and social right, political right or equality, often for a specifically disenfranchised group, or more generally in
discussion of such matters. en.wikipedia.orgwikiemancipation In The Color Purple, the sense of hope even in despair is one of the most
characteristics that impress the reader. Although Celie, the main character, suffers deeply from the effects of sexism and racism, she does not give up and even ends
triumphant and victorious. Celie, a black, poor and uneducated woman is able to free herself from the evils of patriarchy, so the question to be raised is how is that
possible? What is the path that Celie follows in order to struggle against man domination? Celie, at the end of the novel, becomes a totally independent woman;
she frees herself spiritually, physically and economically. A sisterhood relationship with her sister Nettie, Stepdaughter Sofia and close friend Shug Avery are some of
the key elements in Celies freedom. Feminist movement must align under a common banner, that sisterhood will strengthen and increase feminist exposure
Hooks 1984:44 Celies relationship with these women helps Celie to achieve spiritual freedom and gain economic freedom. The Color Purple may be fiction, but
it would be a very powerful and wonderful way to teach moral development as we see the main character Celie.
The analysis underlying this paper assumes that Celie, the protagonist, is able to free herself through writing letters and with the help of women around. Thus,
close attention is given to sisterhood, this magic and strong female relationship that gives Celie physical, spiritual and mental strength in order to get rid of males
oppression. Her sister Nettie, her stepdaughter Sofia and her close friend Shug are of great help and support in her emancipation. In addition, the central character, Celie,
expresses herself through writing letters. Pouring her sufferings down into a paper is a therapy that enables her to survive and even to liberate herself.
What motivated this work is a personal interest in women‘s struggle for emancipation. The author want to represent that all of women in this world should be
able to achieve gender equalities and denouncing the injustices inflicted to women and no longer be the oppressed creatures that is a passive object that could not
survive on their own and that could do nothing for themself. Nowadays, Men and Women have had the same right. Women have no longer occupy the secondary place
but they have been equal to men in society. As a female, I appreciate authors such as Alice Walker who are concerned with women‘s problems and sufferings. In this
novel, a woman is able to free herself and change radically and that really fascinates me. Moreover, Alice Walker‘s novel is an example of hope as it provides the reader
with a sense of optimism that the reader can experience when reading the novel.
More importantly, the novel offers a model of inspiration for women‘s struggle against man domination.
1.2 Problem of the Study
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