Symbols

Amen
In the first half of the novel the word "amen" is used as a symbol of mindless conformity among the women who disagree with Shug’s wild behaviour. Later, "amen" is an affirmation used generally at the end of a letter to reinforce important ideas.
Important page references: 23, 41 and at the end of several letters.

Clothes
Clothing is an important idea regarding the theme of identity. The clothes people wear usually foreshadow the role they are about to take on. For example, Celie’s choice of a "blue" dress represents her life as slave for Mr. _______. Later, Nettie is forced to wear Corrine’s old clothes and this is portentous of her marriage to Samuel.
Important page references: 20, 113 and 134

Eyes
The saying 'the eyes are the window to the soul' is very true in this novel. Mr. ________ covers his eyes when Shug is sick to conceal his hurt. When Celie says Olivia "got my eyes" we make the inference that women, just as they share much the same treatment, also share the same souls.
Important page references: 14, 42, 51 and 56

Frogs
The Color Purple, full of dramatic coincidences was considered by many critics to be a fairy story, not at all connected with the real world. Celie's comment: "frogs is what they stay" however contradicts the fairy tale element that suggests frogs when kissed will turn into princes. This is interesting, because after this point the reader notices a marked difference in Mr. _______, the man Celie was addressing. Nonetheless, the symbol of the frog [pictured] signals the reality and validity of Celie’s testament.
Important page reference: 215

Laughing
Characters that are depicted as laughing such as Corrine and Celie do so in the company of someone who is at that time experiencing pain or anger. As a result, laughing is a symbol of healing and regeneration.
Important page references: 16, 39, 88 and 171

Letters
Celie is told to "not never tell nobody but God."  Yet, by writing her thoughts in her unique style, the reader actually ‘hears’ her voice, so that the reader hears her voice even if nobody else will. The same can be said for Nettie’s letters, that contain a unique voice and yet were forbidden to be read by Mr. _______. Letters therefore signify not just communication, but protestation and defiance against one’s oppressors.
Important page references: 18, 102, 110 and 191

Needles
As well as being the instrument by which Celie attains economic independence, the needle [pictured] is also a symbol of non-violent protest against men.
Important page references: 51 and 125

Pants
As well as being a personal source of economic independence, pants are a symbol of women’s liberation from the confines of a dress.
Important page references: 124 and 182

Pink
Though pink has always traditionally been the stereotypical colour for the female and naivety, this idea is somewhat played on in The Color Purple. Both Shug Avery and Alphonso’s fifteen-year-old girlfriend Daisy are associated with pink, and given the personalities of these two women pink is more a symbol of power than of vulnerability.
Important page references: 24, 153, 177 and 240

Purple
The symbol of the colour purple can be interpreted many ways. Some see purple as a symbol for bruises on the beaten woman’s face, whereas others find it to resemble royalty or everything that is considered beautiful.
Important page references: 20, 167, 180 and 184

Quilting
Quilting is centrally linked with the theme of sisterhood. The process of sewing different pieces of material together in order to make one single quilt [pictured] links quilting with the idea of oneness or unity.
Important page references: 39, 51, 53, 60 and 119


Razor
If needles are a non-violent protest against men and the patriarchal – male-dominated – system, then razors are the opposite. On page fifty-three, Shug smiles "like a razor opening" at Tobias, Mr. _______’s visiting brother, but then settles down to sew with Celie. Later on, Celie looks about ready to cut Mr. _______’s throat after he hides Nettie’s letters. Shug however manages to appease her. The razor is then an age-old retaliation, that thankfully is later superseded by sewing, a more passive though ironically more powerful substitute.
Important page references: 51, 103 and 125

Rose
As Celie explores her body in letter thirty-five, we read that it is like "a wet rose." Later as Shug sits back and tells Celie that "God is everything," Shug is described as "a big rose." Therefore, in both cases the symbol of the rose stands for growth and blossoming, whether that is sexual or religious.
Important page references: 69 and 167

Roundness
Roundness has always been a symbol of womanhood. Roundness is always mentioned in context with a house and both Nettie and Shug express their desire for a window. If the round house represents womanhood then the window symbolises a desire for both women to be explored for who they really are not just for what they look like.
Important page references: 134 and 177

Shells
The shell itself was traditionally a symbol of the female uterus, and put in the context of Mr. _______ previous attitudes towards women, in handling the shell we get the sense of him getting to know ‘his feminine side.’
Important page references: 213

Stamps
The stamps on Nettie’s letters depict a "little fat queen" alongside one that has "peanuts, coconuts" and "rubber trees." Juxtaposed, these create the idea of the novel being ‘stamped’ with colonialism.
Important page references: 101 and 102

Stars
Early on, Celie is led on by her ‘guiding stars,’ Shug and Olivia. This idea has its origins in slave history, as many slaves followed the north-star on escaping from the slave owning societies. The star [pictured], therefore represents the path to a better life, which can be achieved if followed.
Important page references: 14, 29, 53, 62, 230 and 240

Teeth
This symbol acts as a reminder of the fact that many people often hinder the cause they often seek to help. An example is Nettie and the English missionary society whose teeth are "rotten" through eating too much sugar, the commodity that enslaved many black people.
Important page references: 93 and 127

Trees
Though it undoubtedly suggests Celie’s emotional deadness early on when she refers to herself as a tree, it may also be seen as a sign of change, hope and renewal.
Important page references: 28, 60, 62, 141, 161 and 176

Written by Matthew Kane [2001]
Compiled by Hannah Baker and Matthew Kane

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