The peripeteia- the color purple

Every person goes through some kind of change in his or her lifetime, sometimes for the better but other times for the worse, nevertheless it is important for people to always believe in themselves and to know that all change happens for a reason, but it is the reaction towards that transformation that will decide the outcome of the individuals future.

Firstly the change in this novel is very sudden and it happens when Celie chooses to move away with her new beloved friend Shug, who is the only person Celie loves besides her sister Nettie. It was in this precise moment that Celie stopped being the withdrawn women who does not know how to defend herself, she was know ready to stand up for herself in front of her abusive husband and show him that she will not tolerate to live under the circumstances she has lived so far, abused and mistreated. This was the moment that I was waiting for throughout the novel and I knew that Celie had the strength and courage within herself to do something that she wanted to do for once in her life.

Secondly she was not the quiet and stupid little woman that people in her life had told her she was. This was the moment when she realized that she was worthy of something and someone better and based on that she decided to change the outcome of her future. Celie took control of her destiny and no one could stand in her way. This particular situation left everyone surprised and amazed and no one could believe that Celie was taking destiny into her own hands.

Moreover even though the change came suddenly I personally believe that it had been building up in her for a while, but that she waited for the right moment to show everyone that she was not just a doormat they could step over and also to show her “husband” that he did not control her anymore and that she was the boss of herself.

Furthermore when it came to the ending I was very surprised that Celie and her ex husband actually became friends and shared long conversations with each other. I thought that they would not talk or spend any time together after she left him, but he became very nice towards her and they had one big thing in common, they both loved Shug very much and that was one of the factors that brought them closer. In the very ending Celie finally reunited with her sister and I was so glad that the reunion happened and that they finally got to meet each other after all these years, it was wonderful.

For a while Celie did not know if Nettie was alive or dead and I feared that she would never get the chance to meet her beloved sister again, however not only did she reunite with her sister but she also got to meet her children for the first time. The novel ended with a huge barbeque and the whole family was gathered, furthermore I was very content with the ending because Celie became a stronger person and finally had all of her loved ones at her side. 

To conclude I believe that the message of the title is, that it is important for people to always stand up for themselves in various situations. In the novel it is mostly woman that are mistreated by men and they are also very powerless and are supposed to obey their husband and not have any opinions of their own, however there is also a mistreatment towards the black population. In that way the novel does not only show the mistreatment of women but also  racism that existed in society.  The novel shows the injustices that occurred among people with different gender, ethnicity and so on, these problems still exist in some countries sadly enough. To continue the book wants to convey the message that people should always fight for their own rights and stand up for themselves even though there are many injustices, just like Celie did.  

Finally the color purple was mentioned a couple of times in the novel but I still do not know why the author chose this particular title for the novel, it was not revealed in the book as I thought it would be.

The peripeteia- The Color Purple

In every novel the characters go through some form of transformation, not least, in this novel.

In the beginning the protagonist was portrayed as an ugly, unintelligent and withdrawn person who was afraid to express her opinion; in her world, her job was to obey and do as she is told. However this all change in this sudden scene when she decided to move away with Shug, one of the few persons Celie love. She decides that she will not tolerate to be mistreated nor abused by her husband and she chooses to take destiny in her own hands. She learns to respect herself, and that she is worthy a life of happiness and love. This shocked everyone because were not used to see her this empowering and see her take a stand for herself.

Additionally, I think this was a change that did go on throughout the novel and reached its peak where she realized that if she did not take control over her life, no one would. I believe Shug was a source of inspiration and that she had a huge impact on her revolutionary realization. Shug was described as strong, independent woman who did not let anybody mistreat her and she was a big role model in Celie’s life.

Moreover, in the ending of the novel, Celie became friends with her husband and they actually shared a heart-to-heart conversation. This really surprised me because of how he treated her while she was living under his command. But they both had one thing in common that brought them closer to one another; they both shared the same love towards Shug.

Furthermore, one of my favorite scenes, and one of the most toughing scenes, in the novel was in the ending when Celie was reunited with her dear sister Nettie that she hadn’t seen for over thirty years. That particular scene left an emotional impact on me because it depicted the love that subsisted between them. 

To summarize, I believe this novel wants to show the injustice and racism that existed, and still exist, in some parts of the world towards black people and women. I think the book wants to portray the importance of standing up for oneself and always fight for one’s rights, just like Celie did. For many years, men have always been dominant and women have fought to gain recognition as individuals who deserve equal treatment, and Celie managed to do that. In the end, she was not seen as the weak link, but rather as an equal.

The title “The Color Purple” was mentioned several times in the novel. Shug said that God gets pissed off if a person walks past the color purple and does not marvel at it. However that statement does not help me understand why the author chose that particular title for the novel. Maybe she meant that we all have a piece of the color purple within us, that we all are beautiful in our own way and that we should take a step back once in a while and marvel its beauty.

The Color Purple – The Peripeteia

The biggest change in the novel occurred when Celie was struggling with her inner conflicts. For instance she blamed God for all the bad things in her life. When Shug listened to her complains she told her about her thoughts of how God is according to her. Consequently, it opened up Celie’s mind and made her realise that the God she believed in was everywhere and that she does not have to be afraid. Afterwards she suddenly confronted Albert and left with Shug and her new boyfriend Grady and Squeak for Memphis. On the other hand, Sofia had become free from being a maid and moved into Harpo’s place.

This action Celie did was a huge shock for Albert. Never had he thought that Celie would ever do something like that. As a result he became very depressed for a while, but his son Harpo came to his rescue and helped him. Thanks to Harpo’s encouragement, Albert decided to send all the rest of the letters he had hid to Celie. Because he finally understood how selfdestructive evil was. On the other hand, Sofia saw Harpo’s love and care towards his father. Slowly but surely she started to have feelings for him again.

In comparison, Celie’s stepfather might have changed to the better as well. One example of this is that Celie’s mother bequeathed the house he lived in to Celie and Nettie. He could probably have changed it but he had not. In addition, he had the house  renovated. When he died, Celie became the rightfull owner of the house and her stepfather’s new wife and children had to leave. Hopefully, this was the least atone he could do for them. Unfortunatly this is just some teories I thought of, with no evidence in the book.

However, this leads us to Ceclie and her new life. While she lived with Shug, she started to believe that she enjoyed her life, knowing that she had love, friends, money and time. In addition she found a labour she loved. Later on when she inherited the house, she decided to go back. While she tried to make the house beautiful Shug deserted her. Even though she loved Celie, she had met a new young boy she was interested in. When Shug told her she felt rueful. Because most of the happiness she felt was connected with Shug.

Although Shug only wanted to play with the boy’s feelings and have fun, the boy actually encouraged her to contact her children. Eventually she found one of them who were willing to see her. Even though the young man left for an education later, Shug felt all right. Meanwhile Celie tried to continue with her life. She saw that Albert had changed to a better man and for the very first time they gradually start to have decent conversations. During her time waiting for her sister to come back, another turning point happened. Finally, she started to be content with her life, even though she did not know about her sister’s life or death.

In the last three pages of the book, Celie and Nettie were finally reunited. In the end they introduced each other to their new families. I believe the ending was realistic because of the war that kept them away from each other for at least 30 years. I am glad that it was a happy ending.

The word purple showed up three times in the novel; in the begging when Celie saw the woman who carried her daughter in a clothing shop, the second time when Celie was making trousers for her sister, and the third time when Celie had her room painted in purple. After some research I found out that purple signified different things. Other than royalty and wealth, it is also associated with piety, strength, female homosexuality, patience, sadness and trust. In fact all of these things had occurred in the story, which might be why the book is entitled The Color Purple.

The main message of this novel is about how African American were oppressed in the southern United States during the interwar period. Being a woman of colour at that time and place, you were at the bottom of the American society. Alice Walker also challenges the gender roles, racism and sexism in her novel.  Embedded in her message is also that evil does not come out of nowhere, only love that lasts through hard times is true and that faith is when you know that the only thing that remains unchanging is God. Her novel is a mix of the diversity of African, American and European cultures and their perspectives and values.

reading log 3 - the color purple

The big change in the novel reaches its peak when Celie decides to actually leave her husband and move in with Shug in Memphis. This decision changes all the characters lives to something better. The decision and therefor the big change didn’t come all of the sudden since the atmosphere in Celie and Mr.-----‘s marriage have been leading up to it and especially since she found her sister letters he had hidden away. It’s in this moment she feels the strongest hate for him and makes the decision to actually change her life for the better and stop living with the man she hates.

This change affects many of the characters in the book for instance it leads to Harpo and Sofia’s reunion in which they found the way back to each other and develops a healthier relationship. This can occur since Harpos girlfriend also moves to Memphis to start a career of her own and change her life in to be doing something she loves singing.  But Mr.---- might go through the biggest change. When he is left to tend for himself he starts to revalue his life and try to become a better man, which creates the opportunity for him and Celie to grow a sincere friendship in the end. Then of course Celie is also changed when she learns to stand up for herself and creates a business out of making pants and in this way can take care of and tend for herself.

I did like the how the book ended and was really content with the way our characters lives unfolded. Even though their lives at different point seemed dark and with no escape from the mess they created for themselves all of them actually pulled them selves together and started to become the master of their own success. I think the book wanted to tell us how life in the south states were for black people during this period but also that you can create your own happiness no matter where you have been in the past.

The title I think is connected to how the people in the book manage to create a better life and how they have moved on from a dark place to something more bright and colourful.

The Peripeteia– pride and prejudice

The Peripeteia

In this novel the beginning of the change happens very quickly, however the following events and the transformation of the main character takes a little bit longer. The change comes when Elizabeth Bennet receives a letter from Mr Darcy where he explains why he acted the way he did in a situation, but also he tells the truth about Mr Wickham. The reason for his this action is because Miss Bennet accuses him for being unfair and cruel, something he feels he need to explain why to her. Until this letter, Elizabeth has thought of Mr Darcy as a disagreeable person, whom she dislike, however this letter changes a lot, both when it comes to her feelings towards him, but also his behaviour towards others and her behaviour towards him. Although everything doesn’t change entirely at once, but at least it is a start.     

The change continues when she meets him again at his house (Pemberley). He shows her that he has transformed to a better man and that he has taken in on what she accused him of to be. Until this visit she only stopped to dislike him, but now another feeling starts to take place in her. Her feelings towards him start to be more of the loving kind.

When the change take place, Elizabeth also knows that she has done him wrong and she is ashamed of herself and some of her actions. So when she realises this, she starts to change her behaviour towards Mr Darcy. 

All this happens very slowly and even if you (the reader) understand what is happening, Elizabeth has a hard time finding out what her true feelings are until she think it is too late for them to ever get married. “She began now to comprehend that he was exactly the man, who, in disposition and talents, would most suit her. His understanding and temper, though unlike her own, would have answered all her wishes”. This is when Elizabeth really understands that she loves him and that she could have been utterly happy with him as a husband.   

The ending

I can’t deny that I’m a sucker for happy endings and therefor I like the ending of this novel very much. I think the world is dull enough anyway for books to have sad and cruel endings. I also think the end is appropriate because of the fact that she does not start to love him until he changes and she gets to see his real self. Off course the marriage of Jane and Mr Bingley is very pleasing as well and their happy ending is as happy as Mr Darcy and Elizabeth. In addition to this it is great that Jane and Elizabeth have the chance to live so close to each other.

On the other hand, not everyone have their own fairy tale ending in this story, which is both a little sad but also more realistic. So even if I said that I love happy endings, I also like when it is a bit realistic, due to the fact that in the real world not every one can be as happy as they want to. I know I contradict myself, however I believe that endings of novels and stories should be both realistic and end well, which this book provides.

The message

I believe that Jane Austen has several messages in the story. One is that women do not have to behave in a certain way, but also that you shouldn’t have to much pride and prejudices towards others. However the main message is for me that love and happiness is just around the corner if you don’t let you pride and your prejudices get the best of you. The main characters realise that they have done wrong and treated different characters unacceptable only due to their pride or their prejudice. And off course that you should learn to see past your prejudices.

The title

It is easy to know way she has chosen the title pride and prejudice because all through the book they often talk about their pride and their prejudices. Many of the characters in the novel let their pride and their prejudgments get in the way in so many occasions, especially the main character Elizabeth Bennet who cannot see Mr Darcy for who he is until it is almost to late. Additionally the whole book is about pride and prejudices and that is why it is such a good name for the novel.  

The sudden change - Pride and Prejudice

The peripeteia – the sudden change

I believe that the sudden change in Pride and Prejudice takes place almost in the middle of the book when Elizabeth and Mr Darcy have a huge fight. He proposes to her, and she can’t understand why he asks for her hand when he has cost so much pain to her family and herself. In the beginning of the book, before the fight, Elizabeth dislikes Mr Darcy very much due to the things Mr Wickham has told her that Mr Darcy did to him, which result in almost all of the prejudices and bad feelings she has against Mr Darcy. But after the conflict, Elizabeth receives a letter from Mr Darcy where he explains the situation with Mr Wickham, which shows that Mr Darcy only tried to protect his sister from Mr Wickham who wanted to escape with her because of her money. He also tells her that he is the one that separated Mr Bingley with Jane, because he thought that Jane didn’t love Mr Bingley equally. This, of course, makes her more confused than ever, but still, she starts to question her feelings for him, and as the days go by, she realizes that she loves him very much.

The feelings Elizabeth has for Mr Darcy is something that has been going on almost throughout the novel, and a quote by Elizabeth on page 252, shows the readers that her feelings for Mr Darcy have grown increasingly. “It has been coming on so gradually, that I hardly know when it began.” This is also the point where everything changes because Elizabeth finally understands, by heart, that Mr Darcy is an extremely caring person, and everything he did and still does is because he wants to protect his family and the people close to him.

The ending

I think that the ending of the book was a typical happily ever after ending for most of the characters. Elizabeth and Mr Darcy finally got each other, and so did Jane and Mr Bingley. Even though, for example, Lady Catherine or Mr Wickham didn’t end up quite happy as the others, I still believe that the ending of the book was good. I wouldn’t want it to end in another way, because I don’t think that Lady Catherine or Mr Wickham deserved a happy ending due to the fact that they weren’t good people, and they were only thinking about themselves. Lastly, I believe that everyone got what they deserved, good or bad, happy or not, all of them were choosing their own destiny by the choices they made.

The title

I still believe that the title Pride and Prejudice is a very good name for this book, because it describes what the book is about. Almost every character that Austen writes about is described as a person with a lot of prejudices. Elizabeth and her family, for example, have many prejudices against Mr Darcy in the beginning, and Mr Darcy himself, is portrayed as a very pride person.

The message of the novel

I believe that Jane Austen was unhappy with the society during the 18^th century, and therefore, she wrote this book to show people how wrong it was that for example a woman should marry a man with a great fortune, and not because she loved him. I also think that this novel is written in a very ironic way about the society, and that Austen was expressing her anger against the unequal society, but through the novel.

Moreover, I would say that another message of the book is how important it is to stand up for yourself, and that you should be satisfied with nothing but the best. Elizabeth, for example, could have married Mr Collins or Mr Wickham, but for all the wrong reasons. She was smart enough to realize that she wouldn’t be happy with none of them, because she didn’t love them, and that she never could. Finally, I think that it’s very important not to let your prejudices and your pride become a problem for what you really feel, and that you shouldn’t judge people too quickly.

Pride and prejudice 2

There are a number of conflicts in the novel, both internal and external. However, the main conflict is the one between Elizabeth and Mr. Darcy. After their first meeting at the ball in the nearby town of Meryton, Elizabeth believes that Mr. Darcy is nothing but a proud and rather unpleasant man whom she does not want anything to do with. Admittedly, Mr. Darcy’s thoughts about Elizabeth were not very high after their first meeting either. However, unlike her, he soon changed his opinion of her and began falling in love with her. Elizabeth, on the other hand, stood by her belief until she gradually learned things about Mr. Darcy that made her hesitate in her opinion of him. She became more and more aware of what kind of person Mr. Darcy really was and she now understood why he did and said the things he did.

This is where an internal conflict arises. She began doubting herself because of everything she had learned about Mr. Darcy. He was not a horrible person at all; the only reason why he had tried to separate Jane and Mr. Bingley was because he believed that Jane did not love Mr. Bingley equally as much. From this act, Elizabeth saw that Mr. Darcy was protective of the people he loved and now she was ashamed for judging him without even knowing the reasons behind his actions.

Throughout the novel, this internal conflict evolves into something that Elizabeth did not see coming; she was so busy fighting Mr. Darcy that she did not realize that she had feelings for him. These feelings scare her and make her question everything. Should she allow herself to love him and finally be happy?

Fiesta peripety

The primary turning point is most likely when Brett reveals to Jake that she and Cohn went to San Sebastian together, which undoubtedly means that Brett and Cohn had an affair. Jake instantly understood this and begins to dislike Cohn. Up until this point they had been friends, close friends, but when Jake found out he started to see Cohn as competition in the race to win Brett. Jake is obviously jealous of Cohn, even though Brett doesn't view Cohn as seriously, and as a consequence begins to treat Cohn as a rival. The antisemitism now appears as Jake uses it as an actual insult, aswell as belittling Cohn for not being a WWI-veteran like Jake. Which funnily enough is a big reason as to why Brett and Jake aren't in a relationship; Jake was injured in some way that left him incapable of having sex. Jake's friend Bill didn't like Cohn either, and takes Jakes side against Cohn who've now become sort of the antagonist of the book, an antagonist you feel sorry for though because of his many flaws and awkardness. Another fun fact is that the introduction, the first page, now becomes relevant, when Cohn gives Jake a good beat-down when he refuses to tell Cohn where Brett is. A typical romantic-story i guess. This turning point is definitely an immidiate one, given that the mood changes the instant Jake finds out. I think this is maybe not the turning point of the entire book, but since it's the turning point of the primary story-line it's also the biggest and most important turning point. Other sidetracks aren't as important as the Brett-Jake story.

I was actually rather satisfied with the ending, I think it left a good feel to the book and a nice final touch because it mellowed down a bit, the conflicts ended a few chapters before and then the pace slowed down a little. I particularly enjoyed the few pages about Jake in San Sebastian, when he goes swimming and whatever. They were completely useless and didn't add anything to the story, but it left a good impression of Jake as a character and prepared for the final sentences with the Brett and Jake-story unfolding. "We could've had such a nice time together" and "Isn't pretty to think so" is an alright resolution, and also conclusion, meaning that if-only Jake hadn't been injured or whatever the reason was, they would've been a great match which I can tell because they seemed to be good friends and on the same wavelength on a lot of things, unlike Brett and others.

"fiesta: the sun also rises" The first part, fiesta is a reference to where most of the book took place, during the fiesta and bullfighting in Pamplona. The other part, sun also rises, is not as obvious but it means that the sun will keep rising long after they've left spain, paris, or even died. Life goes on and the world keeps on spinning, their  love-issues become insignificant and truly pathetic if you look at it from a wordly perspective. And no-one would remember anything at all about Jake and Brett unless this book was written(yes i know it's fiction) because the lost generation are all dead, like we'll be one day; the sun also rises!

You can never truly know what Hemingway had in mind, but having read this book I think I can say with confidence that there's no obvious message like in fantasy-books or whatever. There are lots of themes and underlying messages you can pick up on but no real, primary, heavyweight-point of the book. That said here's some thought. Just like the title implies, Jake shouldn't have cared, or hesitated at all with Brett, because once he's deal it won't matter anyway. I can go into various depths on this but to keep it simple I believe that one message is, that "the lost generation" were a bunch of people with no real purpose to live for but instead went on spending-sprees, partied, went to Spain and partied some more, got into some problematic relationships, and lived in self-denial about it all. Oh, and they drank a lot.

Brave new world – reading log 3, the peripeteia

I believe there is one change, which comes gradually in the last third of the novel. However this change have two important moments. The first one is when John, the savage, refuses to come out in front of all the important people in their part of the world. When this happens Bernard looks like a fool and people, who have started to respect him now lose their respect. He is no longer someone who is important to the world. And yet, John receives greater power.

The second major part of the change is when John’s mother dies. After this death John becomes furious with the people in the new world and their view on death and how they all are away on “soma holidays”. When Bernard and his friend Heimholtz walks in on him throwing away all the workers soma they try to calm him down. Then safety personnel rushes in and arrested John, Bernard and Heimholtz.

The novel ends with people getting out to see John, the savage and his weird ways of living. After he has whipped his back, and people knowing about his beastly behaviour, they want to see this. When they get to the lighthouse where John lives, they do not find him. They search inside the house only to find John’s legs dangling and turning in certain directions as if he has taken his life.

I believe John took his life. I think this was a good way too end the novel because it makes me think. And mainly because what happiness is and means. Leading me to the message of the novel. I believe the message is that unless we feel sadness and other feelings, we will not know what true happiness is. Also what can happen if we do not feel the happiness or we cannot feel any fulfilment, like Bernard and Heimholtz.

The title is said by John quite a lot and it is a reference to what a character, Miranda, said in one of the works by Shakespeare. I believe the quote was taken as a title because it seems appropriate for the plot. When the old world meets the new world, and how it was maybe a brave way to live in the new world compared to the old.