Celie & Mr. _____

In the exposition, the relationship between Celie and Albert is forced. It was obvious that neither of the two had feelings for each other whatsoever because Albert even wanted to marry Nettie but Alphonso had refused to let Nettie marry, so Albert eventually settled for Celie. The relationship was only necessary for Albert to have a wife because he wanted someone that would take care of his children and fill the role that was expected for women. Celie was was the one to cook, clean, take care of the children, and she was also the source of pleasure for Albert. In the rising action, the relationship is further strained. Celie learns that Albert had been hiding the letters that Nettie had written to her, and this causes great anger in Celie, which also causes her and Albert's relationship to keep falling down hill. She also curses and Albert while having a family dinner. In the climax, Celie and Shug had moved on from Albert's place. Celie's relationship with him is still there in the sense that she will always feel the abuse that Albert had subjected to her, however, she is finally away from his confinement and way of life. In the resolution, Celie and Albert are brought together once again at the end of the book. The connection Shug had with Albert came to the sense that what Albert had been doing was wrong. The relationship further improves when Albert gave back all of Nettie's letters to Celie and in the end, Albert realizes he had mistreated Celie and he seeks friendship with her.

The symbol that best represents the relationship between Celie and Albert would be a puzzle. A puzzle symbolizes the relationship between the two because they're married, yet they don't love each other. Albert beats and abuses Celie, however, in the end Albert realized he had been mistreating Celie and he wants to become friends with her. In the end, the relationship was was fixed. This is like a brand new puzzle because you don't know where to place each piece or if it will fit, but once the puzzle is complete, all the pieces fit together to form a beautiful picture. "Sitting on the porch with Albert... feel real pleasant...us plan a big family reunion..."(285)

The relationship between Celie and Albert is significant because it shows that through human perseverance, anyone can spring up from abuse and empower themselves, even the person who committed the abuse. As it can be seen throughout the book, Albert is largely taught by his father that women are only good for their role as a woman and not for their love. When Albert was taught this, it became the only thing he knew of a women. His love for Shug before was a relationship of love and it can be seen from the past that Albert was capable of love, but his father had erased this quality for him. It was unfortunate that Celie was Albert's  next bride in the transformation of his personality because if that wasn't the case, Celie would have been in a loving, fostering relationship much like Shug and Albert had years ago. At the end, both people in the relationship are empowered. They learn to give up Shug, which was the one person bonding them together, and give each other a chance or a try. They end up becoming not lovers, but friends. From a relationship of abuse to a relationship of friends, that is a large transformation which was what empowered the two.