The Color Purple Characters

It's Hard Out There for a... Black Woman in the Early 1900'sPoor Celie. She's got it tough straight through the first part of the book. She is purely a victim: She’s repeatedly raped by her fathe...

Nettie is the only character who loves Celie consistently and unconditionally throughout the entire novel. Because she loves Celie so strongly, Celie reciprocates the care. Their mutual love for ea...

Pa is a remorseless child molester at the beginning of the book, and unfortunately no better at the end of his life. He has a fetish for teenage girls, and our first introduction to him is when he...

Mr.__ (or Albert as he is occasionally called) may be a jerk for most of the book, but at least he changes. Mr.__ is one of the only male characters in this novel capable of reflection and personal...

Harpo has some issues. Naturally, he’s a really nice guy and enjoys domestic activities like cooking and taking care of the house. However, because society and his father’s behavior tell him th...

Sofia is the type of assertive woman that Celie is not. She won’t back down from a fight and if anybody picks on her, she beats them twice as hard as they give it to her. Celie admires this quali...

Shug is larger than life, and she sure does know how to love. Her problem is that she loves and keeps on loving, even when she adds other people to the mix. She has a weakness for people, and she k...

Squeak might have been mousy at first, but she gains power after the white warden rapes her—not because of the rape, but in spite of it. After being raped, she stands up to the rest of the people...

Corrine is the Reverend Samuel’s wife and the adoptive mother of Celie’s two children, Olivia and Adam. Corrine is a good woman, but in Africa she becomes paranoid about Nettie, especially beca...

Samuel is the kind minister who takes Nettie in after she escapes both Pa and Mr.__. As Nettie spends time with Samuel, she realizes that not all men are aggressive and bent on dominating women, wh...

Grady is Shug’s husband. Celie thinks Grady is extremely boring and just plain not good enough for Shug. Celie can’t stand the way he treats Shug, calling her "mama." Shug quickly tires...

Tashi is a bold, intelligent, and assertive young Olinka girl who befriends Olivia and Adam. She eventually becomes Adam’s wife.

Olivia is Celie’s daughter who was raised by the Reverend Samuel and his wife Corrine.

Adam is Celie’s son who was raised by the Reverend Samuel and his wife Corrine. Adam marries a young woman, Tashi, from the African village his family acts as missionaries to.

Germaine is Shug’s nineteen-year-old lover. He’s sort of like Shug’s last youthful fling. The relationship doesn’t last long.

Eleanor Jane is the mayor’s daughter who Sofia raises. Eleanor Jane is the only member of the mayor’s household that shows any kindness toward Sofia. Eventually, Eleanor Jane comes to s...