The Consequence of Erasing Celie's Sexuality (The Color Purple)

Alice Walker's The Color Purple is an American classic, but many have only seen the 1985 film, in which the book's sapphic themes are incredibly downplayed. This has led to many misunderstandings about Celie's sexuality and debate about whether or not the book's portrayal of black men is particularly helpful. This has led to many controversies and debates that were reignited with the newest adaptation of the book.
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The Color Purple,Celie,Seelie,the color purple 2023,Is Celie a lesbian?,Is oprah a lesbian

[@_MIMC]

This is my FIRST video about The Color Purple! I will be posting another soon~! This is the channel where all of my TV/Movie related content will live! If you appreciate it and want to hear more about my ambitious plans for this channel, please consider supporting me on Patreon! www.patreon.com/katblaque

[@searchingfororion]

Me: Not knowing anything about anything about modern rap/hip-hop (my exposure starts at 80's and ends around Chronic 2001 era with minor exceptions for viral/cultural zeitgeist singles): Kat says the name of the single and my metalhead background hears, "Nau scheint die klein" ^Which is way less homophobic/exploitative and also really funny translated especially when applied to this fellow.

[@searchingfororion]

Also, all of the work that you put into this including the background of each iteration especially the original adaptation and who and why they were involved and cultural context is not only fascinating and evidence of the quality applied to your research but methodically and wonderfully presented. This is absolutely excellent and I wanted to say thank you for clearly going above and beyond a standard review. I hope you're as pleased with the final product as I (as well I'm sure the rest of the audience) feel and appreciate. It certainly shows.

[@thekaticorn99]

can’t wait for the next video!

[@ccsx222]

I can’t wait for the next video you are so articulate and have really great insight im so happy you spoke on this too

[@MarkvanBeelen]

Thank you for this incredible analysis. As a general musical theatre geek as well as an admirer of the 80's film adaptation of the book, I was aware of perhaps 40% of everything surrounding the journey of The Color Purple through the years. But it's nothing compared to the amount of information you provide in your video. Thank you for sharing your knowledge and your perspective. I can't wait for the next video.

[@MK-jb5sj]

I HATE that critics think the story is "[straight] woman becomes lesbian to escape bad men" instead of understanding that Celie was always a lesbian and that the book reflects the real experiences of lesbians in this place and time

[@MK-jb5sj]

*Black lesbians specifically

[@saraa.4295]

Let's be honest..in that time, escaping to another men would be the easier version...

[@SparklyCoconut-le3fu]

@@saraa.4295 not necessarily.

[@j.t.7671]

​@@saraa.4295That's what got Mister's wife before Celie killed.

[@saraa.4295]

@@j.t.7671 well, not saying running away with another man would be easy, but especially if the other guy has more power than the abusive guy, it was by far the safer option than escaping with another woman in those time.

[@gadgettop23]

its frustrating to hear that portraying abuse and rape on screen is much more preferable than showing lesbian relationships. really tells a lot about this industry. great video!

[@ccsx222]

THAT PART.

[@yasinradee]

👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾👏🏾

[@LoneWulf278]

EXACTLY. Very suspicious and bizarre.

[@Ojo10]

​​@@LoneWulf278normalcy. Dworkin addressed it in her book right wing women chapter one about the view these Christian women had on lesbians and rape. They would protest that all lesbians were rapists yet despite knowing multiple women who had been raped by men, and none by women, they protested lesbians, because at least with men there was a twisted feeling of normalcy, and they were too afraid of lesbians as an unknown.

[@dog5221]

So glad folks are pointing this out more! Like, it can be said and implied with equally as much impact, without showing it explicitly. It feels like these choices aren't made with survivors in mind, queer and black femmes especially

[@emmalouge123]

Woman: "I have suffered horrendous abuse my whole life at the hands of men" Men: "Well that seems unfair... To us." And they wonder why there's no more patients for them 🙄

[@BlancheDeverOh]

Not to be pedantic here, but did you mean patience? If not, this is a good observation, because women who admitted to being abused were a lot of times sent to asylums or declared insane. They don’t have any more “patients” to forcefully institutionalize now.. but even that’s a concept we’re seeing reversed SMH

[@PurrthaKit]

Amen , Down with the KANGS!!!!

[@seeleunit2000]

That's what I've been saying for a long time. They have their heads firmly up their backsides

[@yoyodre]

Does anyone not object to being generalized? Who benefits from stereotyping?

[@classycolas]

Lmao @ the lil boosie tweet... "im fine with my kids seeing scenes of r*pe, abuse, etc. but i draw the line at them seeing adults consensually kissing!!"

[@Turquerina]

These kinds of bigots will always have their priorities in the wrong order, I'm not surprised.

[@mykittystinksbad2]

It's even more ironic since he's an actual degenerate predator that orchestrated the rape of his own son and nephew yet wants to come out the side of his mouth about gay people.

[@liamdamon]

I worked at Walking Dead conventions and the number of parents who were vocally angry that the show depicted two men kissing was astounding. I asked "you were okay with them being exposed to graphic violence and extreme gore but not a quick scene of same-sex affection?" And they each responded unironicly, "Exactly!".

[@themaggattack]

​@@liamdamonThat's why TWD was such a good show (in the beginning before it got way too sadistic just for the sake of being sadistic.) Because in the beginning, the show forced us to see humanity and our inhumane ways. The characters were just trying to hold on to a shred of morality and goodness in the face of horrific events. Love is love. Love in any form is ALWAYS better than zombies! Of course the deeper message flew right over a lot of fools heads.

[@sailorluna.3252]

The way his daughter is a lesbian tho💀.. that man is weird in the head

[@baddabing-badaboom]

It's crazy to me that almost every film about youth HAS to have a teen boy masturbating but the discomfort suddenly arises when it's a female character.

[@LoneWulf278]

Exactly. It’s so crazy. 😂

[@samaraisnt]

dead on.

[@shayshay513]

I’m sorry but men getting mad about this story when it’s a black woman’s story… is wild to me

[@erincrow7084]

But not surprising

[@maam-yj8ph]

Exactly. The fact that there are not a lot of novels or plays etc. from the black American male perspective shows how non-introspective most of them are. How about a male gay perspective on living in the closet on the downlow?

[@shayshay513]

@@erincrow7084 not at all sadly.

[@PurrthaKit]

Black males are professional victims. Unless you are feeding into the delusion of them being "Kangs" and praising them for the bare minimum, you are bashing them. FOH

[@eauxkei702]

tale as old as time

[@botanicalitus4194]

I am so sick, and I mean SO sick of men constantly making womens stories and struggles and experiences about them. Im not bIack but I am arab musIim and I see the attitude that book critic had (where he was disparaging the book for not making literaI raypists more sympathtic ) ALL the time in our community. I hate to break it to these men, but the exploitation of women is almost always coming directly from the men in those womens own communities. If they dont like that fact they can either work to change it, or stay tf out of our way when we are telling our stories to the world. Im so heated right now

[@jesireemorales8483]

what a great way to explain it and your totally right in every way.

[@funsizedazzy6708]

Thank you

[@thenicksaints]

Telling “OUR” 😂stories tht depict men in a evil shallow point of view. While being sensitive to how women are depicted is CRAZY hypocritical.

[@funsizedazzy6708]

@@thenicksaints so those men don’t exist? Every story has a right to be told and not all the men were bad the preacher dad and harpo, harpo messed up listening to sealy about putting hands because that’s all she knew was men putting hands to control their women and there are so many women who think like that because of the men in their environments. I grew up with great men but I also know their is good in bad in every group of people women and men

[@kiamaria331]

Fact of the matter is... a MAN is often the villain in a woman's story. Don't like it? Challenge your fellow men about their tendency towards abusive and predatory behavior instead of bitching about women sharing their stories. @@thenicksaints

[@TheDawnofVanlife]

So I was a baby lesbian in the 80s…100% unaware of my sexuality or honestly any sexuality. I remember my mom letting me watch this film at about 12ish years old and while the discussion of abuse and right and wrong was an open one that honestly I think my mom handled pretty well, when I questioned the kiss between Celie and Shug she swept it away saying ‘she was just being a nice friend’ my mom wanted to love this movie so much she erased the fact gay romance existed at all. As a college student I read the book soon after coming out to some college friends and was astounded how BLATENT the love story was in the book. Because most of the queer romance I found was honestly white folks, I found The Color Purple to be this treasure. I never saw Celie as liking women in reaction to abuse so much as trapped in a situation where she couldn’t and was not allowed to love to her true self. I felt similiarly trapped for a long time before coming out to my mom who took it alright, but it became the thing she knew that we never talked about.

[@liamdamon]

When I came out as a teenager in the early 80s, a black female coworker and friend was shocked that there were gay black people. Her mother (and her church) told her that being gay was strictly a white thing. This friend later came out as a lesbian.

[@themaggattack]

I read The Color Purple in high school (not as assigned reading- of course the school wouldn't assign something with such progressive ideas- I just checked it out from the library.) It blew me away. I felt like I was in on the "secrets" from the book that most people (the ones who just saw the movie) didn't know. The lesbian element... the spiritual element... the rejection of colonized religious brainwashing... it almost felt like I was privy to a special imaginary fantasy. I think that made it feel even more precious to me. I also read The Temple of My Familiar, which was sort of loosely a sequel-ish to The Color Purple. Not really, a sequel, though... but Celie and Shug did briefly show up in it, which was really cool. I might have this next part mixed up with another Alice walker book (it's been a few decades since I went on my Alice Walker reading binge😂)... but I think one of the characters in TTOMF was a bisexual massage therapist living in San Francisco. (Alice Walker must have put a lot of herself into that character.) She was very independent, relaxed, free, progressive, and accepting of herself and others. I remember thinking she was living the dream, baby! 😂 I really need to go on another Alice Walker reading binge! I feel like I'd appreciate it even more now, as a grown, middle aged woman.

[@j.t.7671]

​@themaggattack Hi, I'm reading TTOMF right now and you are correct, the massage therapist in the book is actually Celie's grandaughter Fanny (Olivia's daughter). She grew up in the house with her mom, Grandma Celie and Mama Shug. Celie and Shug grew old together, and had Celie's kids and grandkids around for a time. Beautiful, really.

[@lyndsieb701]

I'm sorry you went through that. It's amazing what humans do to our loved ones

[@samaraisnt]

that’s so sad :( that you had to hear that blatant lie & that this type of erasure is perpetual and continues today..

[@jazwhoaskedforthis]

I feel like asking for more complexity or empathy for characters that are rapists is sort of insane. If Alice Walker or people who resonated with her book can relate to stories where men are abusive predators, who are they to tell her that that characterization isn't fair? Who are they to tell women to have more empathy for characters who would have none for them? IDK y'all, I don't really have any empathy for rapists and child abusers. I don't care if their depictions are one-sided, because when they decide to become rapists and abusers that is the only side that matters when it comes to the survivor's story. IDGAF about them as people.

[@saraa.4295]

I could imagine that Spielberg was a bit hesitant to make a movie where every black male character is an irredeemable rapist who is a rapist just because he is bad... This was a common racist accusation thrown at black men once, so going there full force in this movie could feed the racists narrative, or put Spielberg into hot water for perpetuating racist stereotypes...

[@LoneWulf278]

Same here. I think the medium of film has always had a weird and untrustworthy relationship with abuse stories. If you think about the countless biopics about serial ki11ers, you realize that abusers are always the ones who get the complex and empathetic stories. It’s really not common that victim characters get the complexity. It makes me appreciate the book even more. It also makes me realize that the status quo depends on women identifying with the emotions of the people abusing them more than their own. Otherwise, this one story wouldn’t be so threatening. 🤔

[@sophiejones3554]

Ok but... ? The character in the book is VERY real and relatable, and not at all simple. Scarily so. Mr.___ isn't some outlier, some psychotic weirdo monster. He is the guy next door. He's your dad. He's your boyfriend. He's who your brother might become if you don't teach him better. He doesn't have any stand out characteristics, one might even say he's painfully average and THAT'S THE POINT. Alice Walker is showing us an ordinary, normal household through a broken mirror. It's Rosemary's Baby, but they're black and the horror isn't pregnancy but domestic violence and heteronormativity. It's about how women are so abused they don't even know what is and isn't abuse (Celie wasn't just abused by her husband, but also by her father: she literally has no recollection of a time when she wasn't being abused and THAT IS ON PURPOSE). It's about how the narrative of manhood and womanhood is itself abusive. It's about how *we* not only erase but encourage abuse. He doesn't have a name, because he is the archetypal man of our society. He is the standard to which all men are held. The entire goddam point here is that if you let society tell you who you are then Mr. ___ is who you will be. The monster is society, he is only it's tool. He *is* toxic masculinity, and nothing more than that. He conforms to society so closely that he no longer has any identity outside of it. He has pleased society, become a respectable man, but lost himself. I feel like you're confusing empathy and justification. One can have empathy for people who do terrible things without justifying the things they did. Their actions were morally wrong, their feelings were valid and could have been dealt with in a better way. They should learn that better way. People don't "decide to be r*pists". They *do* decide to "assert my authority" or "show her I'm a real man". The entire point is that they are given permission by society to not consider the woman's perspective, and whether or not she consents. Indeed, the whole point here is that even Celie doesn't think about whether she consents until Shug points out that she should. Women are not seen as being able to consent, and their consent is not deemed necessary. That's the goddam point.

[@saraa.4295]

@@sophiejones3554 good point. I'm not sure it was the main focus of the book though, i think for the book, it was more the point to see it all from the perspective of the abused, someone unable to change the larger system. The movie, knowing it will have a larger audience than the book had, and much bigger than the book anticipated to have when written, was by its nature more rounded. In the book you see nothing, unless celie sees it. That's not how it is in the movie, so it's natural you see a larger picture. And yes, mister may be a terrible husband eveb by the standards of his time, but not remarkably so.

[@sophiejones3554]

@@saraa.4295 idk, I think the "main focus" of the book would depend on who you ask: which is the chief sign of a top quality book in my opinion. Main focus or not though, the theme was strongly present there in the choices the author made. That's all I ever intended to say here.

[@porscheamartin]

What both adaptations are missing is the critique of Christianity and how that made a huge impact on Celie’s ability to walk into self love. I hate Steven Spieldbergs portrayal of Shug. She was so much more than he made her to be. She was so free and not looking for validation from her father or “god”. That’s the point of the Color Purple. It’s finding God in the little things; not the cishet white man that tells you what to do.

[@thekalenichannel1812]

Exactly! When I read that book as a young girl one of the most impactful parts I remember is Shug telling Celie to stop picturing God as a white man. She told her to kill the white man in her head and realize God comes in the form of everything.

[@Talia778]

Thank youuuu that’s literally how it got its name!! I loved the books message about rethinking Christianity. I thought it was so ahead of its time.

[@regisnyder]

Christianity had a big influential part in the making of the film (the original). They definitely treaded lightly when it came to Shug’s sexuality and the scene. Black Christianity can be worse than White Christianity because it stays 10 toes down to hold on beliefs that were taught.

[@porscheamartin]

@@regisnyder True. It's not just her sexuality, its the depiction of her as a sinner that needed to be saved; a loose woman with no morals. The scene with her singing in the church is not in the book and one of the reasons why I hate the movie's depiction of Shug. They created an all around more palatable character for the black conservative community.

[@themaggattack]

​@@porscheamartinYes, it's sad how they had to pander to the Madonna/whore dichotomy, dial it down due to homophobia, and seek a big name white male producer just to get attention for the movie. They did the best they could do for the 80's, though. I haven't seen the musical screen adaptation yet... I can appreciate that it's swinging to the other side of the pendulum from oppression p*rn to a celebration of how Celie found happiness... but... I'm just hoping that one day someone will re-make it as the book was actually written. To include the most important parts of the book. Especially the part about religion and freedom from colonized Christian brainwashing. Which indeed was the crux of the whole story.

[@carlito876]

Celie was always a lesbian…she was not a lesbian because of the abuse she suffered. Thats not how human sexuality works…..its not something that people can choose or change

[@queenmotherhane4374]

Yes-Celie was both a lesbian *and* the victim of sexual abuse by men.

[@beccangavin]

31:59 Wait. There’s ince$t and r@pe in the story but the gay stuff is the problem? I’m confused about where people draw lines. …Oh. OK now hearing more about the fellow, his values are not something I want to understand.

[@TheDawnofVanlife]

I mean look at the P. Diddy situation. Many are ignoring the fact he’s a predator who uses unbalanced power dynamics to dominate and control (and allegedly sexually victimize people of both genders) just to say ‘wait, Diddy is gay.’ The fact there are (alleged) sexual victims who happen to be male is causing more rukus then the fact the fact that they are sexual victims.

[@nightmeowonelmstreet215]

0:41

[@nightmeowonelmstreet215]

Ew

[@andreaslind6338]

It's not just him though...violence is always treated much more casually in American culture. Just look at the TV, there are cop shows, any amount of gun deaths, the news shows auful things, and noone bats an eye, but when we see Janet Jackson's nipple for half a second ALL HELL BREAKS LOOSE.

[@billiealexander3480]

Well the original film did come out long before the widespread acceptance of gay rights in anyway. Actually I can't remember if it was in the middle of the epidemic when homophobia was rampant or right before. And the new movie waters down all of that and makes it happy fun time.

[@liamdamon]

I saw the Spielberg version in the theater when it was first released. It was glaringly obvious to me, as a gay man, that Celie and Shug had a sexual relationship. It was clear that Celie was in love with Shug and even jealous when she brought a man to their home and announced her marriage. True, the sex wasn't shown onscreen, other than a kiss, but the dialogue during the scene and the interactions after do confirm to the viewer that it was a sexual relationship. And that these two women were lovers. Maybe it's because movies at that time didn't have a lot of explicitly queer characters and most were coded. But for me as a queer man in 1985 that code was very easy to interpret. Fried Green Tomatoes in 1991 still showed a coded lesbian relationship in a mainstream Hollywood release. It wasn't until the Wachowski's Bound in 1996 that a lesbian relationship was portrayed more directly, and even that movie started out as an independent release.

[@TheDawnofVanlife]

I think that was the problem with coded media in the 80s. As a 45 year old woman I now realize while I was glad to ‘crack the code’ because it was there for me to ‘crack’, this ‘wink wink’ nature of 80s media did allow the audience to think their interpretation was the correct one and we who ‘saw it as more’ were just ‘trying to make it more than what it was’.

[@thatcreativebeauty]

Exactly but you got a remember that a lot of these people that are doing reviews about the book or the original movie we’re not even born during that era.. So it’s easy to talk about what should’ve been done and how things weren’t done because they weren’t born in that era, but I actually prefer sex seems to be somewhere in an allusion whether is straight or gay. I don’t feel like I need to see a whole porno in the middle of the movie and for you to tell me explicitly what’s going on with that relationship that’s the whole point of a movie for me to draw my own conclusions. Also, it makes it more family-friendly if you don’t have a lot of sex scenes in the movie.

[@primadonna3843]

exactly, however the movie needed to be told with more mystery. It isn't earasing lesbianism. I also think it would have been more offensive to film an erotic scene and mis represent the movie

[@thechumbucket8986]

​@@primadonna3843what?

[@thaboiinblue]

I feel like there never SHOULD have been a code to crack in the first place. Echoing other comments, why is it okay to show cishet sex, graphic violence, language, and SA, but unambiguous queer sex is off the table? And that’s the thing to. SO many “scenes” didn’t even have to be nude necessarily. Even a REALLY intense makeout, them in bed together in afterglow could have still made it even more obvious, and shown a lot more respect to queer love/sex/relationships being JUST as real and valid as any other. But I ALSO feel… just let them have the actual love scenes. Stop downplaying and IMPLYING something that is NOT negative. Ceelie being attacked was fine to show, but her making love to the woman she loves needed to be deciphered?

[@blushpinkbunny_]

i really wish that the lesbian plot of this story didn’t get washed away with each rendition of this story 😢

[@themaggattack]

It didn't get washed away with time- it got washed away with politics. If you want the full story, read the book.

[@thechumbucket8986]

"lesbian themes" lol more like lesbian PLOT

[@joshuamcdowell9745]

I feel like the film should have been a miniseries instead of a feature film. The Broadway musical was a more accurate adaptation because it was closer to the book than the 1985 adaptation. The director Blitz Bazawule made too many changes to the story in the 2023 adaptation. It wasn't a direct copy and paste adaptation of the Tony Award winning musical. Most of the songs from the Broadway production wasn't in the film and the songs helped told the story.

[@jaishan09]

​@joshuamcdowell9745 your reply is perfect and the exact way I feel! The 2023 film just ripped out the spirit present in the Broadway musical! It is why it is my favorite adaptation of this story and one of my "sacred" texts

[@JustLilKeko]

I always can't help but roll my eyes when black men get upset about being the monsters in black women oriented stories because more often than it should they are. Also disappointed that the modern adaptation didnt show more of the saphic themes. They actually can now and they decided not to. Anyway great video

[@Pandemonioxo]

Im glad kat brought up the musical, i wish she delved more into its representation of the deep love that it had no bones about showing between Seely and Shug. The musical features one of the most beautiful love songs in musical theatre, let alone an incredibly important moment of lesbian theatre history, as there is barely a handful of lesbian relationships in musicals, let alone shows revolving around lesbianism. There song “what about love?” brings me to tears, from its beautiful harmonies, to its moving lyrics, its one of the most honest depictions of love in my mind. The original version with Fantasia in the og broadway cast is my favorite

[@DuskyJewel]

🎯

[@Deadpool4president]

The critique of the book characterizing all black men isn't even true. The reverend was a super great guy who raised Celie's two kids as his own (thinking they were orphans). He was depicted as a genuinely good man.

[@redmaple1982]

I cant help but think that the people who were offended by the book are themselves abusive - or have run cover for abusers.

[@koalamud5087]

​@@redmaple1982 that's exactly what I was thinking lmfao why aren't they more angry about the actions of the abusive men instead 💀 weird

[@maggyfrog]

as an asian, this book was quite shocking for me to read back when i was in my late teens. however i personally didn't get the impression that the writer was depicting all black men as evil, only that in that specific era and circumstance, women who were abused tended to be surrounded by abusers, as in the abusers sort of flocked together. it was also the first book i ever encountered that talked about the female anatomy (vulva, labia, the outer external parts) and described it delicately like a rosebud, juxtaposed with how the main character's experience with men around her being utter savages. *edited for typo

[@Sirrahlala]

The whining about how Black men are depicted is nonsense. Extremely abusive Black men definitely exist and abuse towards women across all races was normalized in this time period. There is a reason the temperance movement and the feminist movement become major political forces after Women's Suffrage was attained. Physical/emotional/financial abuse was rampant and partially alcoholism-fueled. Not depicting all this as normalized is false and a disservice to history. Besides, period movies do exist depicting healthy Black romance and strong family ties.

[@mjallen1308]

OMFG! Yes! I was just about to comment this but now I don’t have to. It’s STILL normalized even today. We never wanna tear down anyone we put on a pedestal no matter how destructive, abusive, problematic, etc they are….pastors included.

[@thenicksaints]

Yikessss coming from women whining and forcing themselves into narratives for “diversity” tell me did the color purple have a diverse view of black men ??

[@thenicksaints]

@@finland4ever55 “black men can be super psyco” the mayonnaise sheltered girl is a Racist lol shocker

[@aydenkelly6274]

In New Zealand, the suffrage movement was led by a women's temperance organisation. Gender-based violence - and the economic and social conditions that enable is - has driven feminism since the start.

[@creativedesigns4007]

But the problem is that we have so many depictions of Black men being monsters and so many depictions of Black women becoming victims. This industry is overly saturated with these depictions of my community. It's exhausting! That's not to negate the fact that those things happen in real life, but at what point in time will it be okay to play into the psyche of Black people in a positive manner, on a regular basis? At what point in time will it be okay to see healthy heterosexual relationships within the Black community? At what point in time will it be okay to see healthy parenting within the Black community? At what point in time will it be the norm to see us depicted as the superheroes, not just sprinkles of a few here and there, ten years apart? The fact that the norm is toxic relationships between Black men, women, and children constantly smeared all over the silver screen, time and time again, is highly disturbing, and I know seeing these messages has brainwashed us into believing that that's how we should treat each other. At some point in time, we have to stop allowing the atrocities from slavery to be carried through the generations and separate from those who paint the narrative for our community to be so broken!

[@alexissandren1884]

"You can't turn someone gay, you can only make them wish they where (gay)!" -Will & Grace

[@selwatchesyt]

I'm shocked so many people didn't know Celie was a lesbian just watching the 80s movie. I was a kid when I saw it. I saw it quite a few times growing up and I always knew Celie was a lesbian and Sug was probably bi. There is a scene when Celie is following Sug around saying she's like honey and I'm a bee (or something similar). It reminded me on how I crushed on boys at school. She's never shown having attraction to ANY male so I just figured she was meant to be a lesbian.

[@carlao7157]

Exactly. I was a kid amd i got it

[@artis_1001]

My first time watching the color purple was in 2020. I knew then, the story had a sapphic theme to it. When I realized that, my mind went from “this is a classic black movie” to “this is a queer black story of sexual abuse and healing.” Having Spielberg direct the first adaptation of the book was , in my opinion, the best thing they could’ve done to get commercial success; however , I just think it’s wild that black leaders and organizations don’t want queer black stories being highlighted because they don’t want black men to look bad …

[@Ceares]

Yeah, Quincy Jones wasn't stupid. He knew having Spielberg direct it would put the type of shine on it that having a black or female director wouldn't. He knew how to use an ally when he needed to.

[@CindersSpot]

How does one even sue a theatre for offering you a gay role?? Like, you accepted the role! If you didn't do the research beforehand that is. On you.

[@susanjoyce4244]

If you get the chance to view the musical, I’d highly suggest it. It’s not subtle AT ALL about the romantic nature of Celie and Shug’s relationship and does a much better job of retaining the intimate moments shared between them in the original book

[@solofemmenoire9108]

It really needed a black lesbian director and screenwriter. And not Lena Waithe either

[@maffieduran]

Lena is an SA apologist, so I agree

[@funsizedazzy6708]

Lmao

[@TckleBxx]

@@maffieduran😮 please please fill me in

[@joshuamcdowell9745]

Dee Rees would have done a great job with The Color Purple musical

[@iamknife7]

I will never forgive Lena Waithe for Them season 1, that shit was unnecessary.

[@SoulfulVeg]

As an older GenX, I can tell you that many or our dads and granddads had 2nd families, outside children, and implanted plenty of trauma in us and our mothers. This story resonated with us, because the misogyny was witnessed by us. If men want to create stories about the men from that time that showed tenderness, caring and understanding, let them do so.

[@DeannaJacksonDJsDelectables]

I was born in 1987, so this book and movie were incredibly popular for about a year before I was born. I see some black men's complaints about them, and I'm hearing hit dogs hollering. The book and movie depicted quite a few women's real life experiences, especially black LGBTQ+ women. The homophobia and misogyny still going strong after all this time shows we still have a long way to go, too.

[@cjisokayiguessxp]

it is so validating to hear someone say that celie is a lesbian. When i watched it for the first time i was like 16 and i immediately was like hang on- i think she's gay... and everyone around me thought i was reading too much into it lol

[@FaeQueenCory]

I thought "Boosie" was supposed to be pronounced the same as bougie/bourgie... But the fact that it is indeed correctly pronounced the same as "bussy" gives me no end of sadistic humor.

[@lastseenontuesday6040]

hahahahaha stop☠☠☠

[@TckleBxx]

Wait… but it’s not. It’s pronounced like BOO like a ghost abd then “C.” BOO-C.

[@FaeQueenCory]

@@TckleBxx Chile... That's the same way you say "bussy".

[@samaraisnt]

^ what she said. you’re still saying it wrong.

[@SCAVULLO]

The original movie version might not be so in-your-face or evident, but it has all the key elements, the feelings between women, the abuse, the empowerment, the self-discovery. I will find it ever so endearing!

[@ferncrafted]

we did a unit on banned books in my sophomore year, and, with no idea whatsoever what i was getting into, i picked this up. i was flabbergasted. my mom had only seen the movie and said she really loved it, and i, an extremely closeted queer, was like "...even the lesbian stuff?" she was like "theres no lesbians. i would have remembered lesbians." and wouldn't budge. she was offended i would imply such a thing. I finally got her to read the book. we never talked about it again 😂

[@tonyhall1421]

I picked up on it early. It was clear that Celie was infatuated with Shug in the movie. When I read the book I got to see her complete love for her.

[@Rahshu]

The comment about it all being told from the perspective of the women struck me. I mean, yeah, it was. I never saw that as a negative. Not every story has to center the men or take them into consideration. If a book is a "sausage fest," it's usually said in a joking way, the chastisement being a slap on the wrist. Here's a novel putting women front and center, and it's decried as, potentially, genocidal. Talk about an overreaction. As downplayed as the homosexuality was in the movie, I noticed it as an adolescent. It mattered a lot to me as there weren't many gay depictions out there yet. This one was particularly powerful and beautiful. It was imperfect, but considering it was made in the mid 1980s, it's remarkable that it even exists! I remember being told that what I was seeing wasn't really lesbianism but not being totally satisfied with the explanations. The book was certainly more graphic about it all, and as I revisited the novel ever few years, I understood it more fully. It was satisfying to get more depth with each reading, including reading a translation in Spanish. Both the book and movie are still very dear to me, and they definitely changed me.

[@anjabartlog496]

Maybe it's because I was already an adult and already immersed in queer culture when I saw this movie, but I found it VERY obvious that Celie and Shug were in a queer relationship. I'm not saying it wasn't an overly censored and glossed over portrayal of lesbians, but I'm surprised at how many people are saying they watched the movie and fully didn't realize they were gay

[@helena4440]

I only watched the Spielberg movie (so far) and thought it was fairly obvious that Celie and Shug were in some form of romantic/sexual relationship. But I had no idea Celie was a lesbian. I assumed Shug was bi/gay and Celie was just looking for someone to love and appreciate her. So in that sense it's still not faithful to the book, it adds another important layer to know that Celie was a lesbian

[@anitrahooper5031]

I grew up in the 80s & this was my first realization that bisexuality is an option. I had not seen any representation at that point. Thank you for going into this. I haven't seen the new adaptation, yet.

[@Twat_Dirt]

Wdym by “option”? You don't choose to be attracted to different genders, you just are! If I were to call being a monosexual homosexual an option is be the bad guy.

[@TrillianSwan]

I found this book in my school library in about 1983. Blew my mind! I loved it so much that I insisted my mom take me to see the film (much to her confusion why this teen wanted to see it so badly). I was so disappointed that they left out this storyline, even tho the rest of it was spot on. Thank god for open-minded school libraries, or I would never have come across the novel…

[@lyndsieb701]

Too bad so many people are trying to ban books these days! Please vote!

[@twebster179]

My mom gave me my first copy of this book when l was about 14 after my parents saw the movie at the theater. It formulated my idea of spirituality and my place in the world as a baby queer. I read it again periodically..

[@skyesaxon6423]

Alice Walker's childhood photo is the cutest thing I've ever seen!

[@seldaz]

I haven’t seen either of the film adaptations, but I read the book in high school as a 17 year old lesbian and was so struck by Celie and the vividness of her descriptions of attraction and lack thereof, this almost makes me want to watch and see how the narrative plays with those things pushed to the background/changed. Such an interesting vid!

[@jacqueline4777]

I just reread the other day because I was organizing my books and thought hey it's been a while....I am so glad my high school English teacher (Catholic school!) had us read and analyze this book so in depth. Over 10 years later i'm realizing what an impact it had on me as a young woman and has informed so many of my beliefs about love, friendship, sex, labor, history.... Everyone should read The Color Purple and learn about the deepest sorrows and highest joys of the human experience through Celie's beautiful eyes.

[@LoneRanger-et7gq]

Another great video, Kat. You briefly touched on the different, more joyful/optimistic tone of the remake/musical, pointing out that it watered down some of the more traumatic aspects of the Walker's work. In addition to the hiring of a black male director, I think the musical direction was a way to placate bm. To add, I do agree with the director, Hensen, and Walker about reconciliation and healing between bm and bw. With that said, I think it is sort of dimissive and irresponsible not to examine Walker's work in the context of the present blaque f3micid3 epidemic, which spiked during the Covid. The fact that bw and bg are 4xs (compared to other ethnic groups of women excluding Native women) more likely to be SA and deleted by someone they know is disturbing. I haven't heard anyone from the cast and production make this correlation. In January of this year, Chicago had to create a special task force that specifically deals with stemming violence against bw. Taking this into consideration, The Color Purple still resonates with too many bw.

[@anusha3340]

this is the first video so kat might speak more about this in a future one ❤

[@justinejustice_league1857]

I haven't read the book however in Spielbergs version, they don't hold back in letting the audience know how unattractive and dark skinned Celie was, which had a direct correlation as to how she was treated by black men. She was an undesirable and only used for labor and pleasure, unlike pretty lighter skin women who are to be treated well. Today, dark skin women are constantly told that their features are undesirable and almost masculine. Pretty privilege was real even in those days, and colorism was rampant.

[@andiman44]

But Nettie was just as dark and was seen as the pretty sister which helped.

[@raichutoyou]

@@andiman44 Can we just stop denying colorism, please? Dark skin girls are not made happier because the other dark girl may have been called pretty. You're still getting treated badly. She's probably getting treated badly too, just as Nettie was in the story. Thanks.

[@andiman44]

@@raichutoyou No one is denying anything. Far too often dark skinned black women and girls are explicitly depicted as the least attractive person in the cast and Nettie was the one time a dark skinned girl was portrayed as explicitly beautiful (which I still rarely see to this day). Didn’t say colorism didn’t exist because of it or even that pretty dark skinned people don’t deal with it. Learn to read.

[@stangingkiller]

the stage musical covered their relationship and it's depth a lot better than the film, or even the film musical. I was dissapointed by the recent film since the mash-up of musica really threw the timing and depth of the story off for me

[@saraa.4295]

I remember seeing this movie for the first time, back in the time of ad breaks... My brst friend and me called each other during every break and cried together.. But afterwards, we dug into history and learned do much (we're both european, so those times weren't the focus of our edeucation)😊

[@thesealky6445]

Great video! I've been looking forward to it ever since the last video you made about The Color Purple. I think the discussion around the portrayal of black men is interesting. I haven't seen either adaptations but a couple years ago I read the book and I thought the way the black men were portrayed was actually rather complex. Celie and Mister eventually form a sort of courteous relationship after she leaves him, and Harpo is shown to be a product of his environment than an actually bad man. That and in Nettie's part of the story in Africa there are multiple black men that are good people, as well as some more that aren't. Of course, I have not seen the movies so I have no idea how any of this translated to the adaptations, but I just thought it was interesting. I guess I understand sort of way black men would be upset since there were very few positive portrayals of black men at the time, but it still comes from the fact that they refuse to acknowledge that sometimes black men abuse black women.

[@availanila]

Oh my god your hair in this!! I've only ever seen you done up with colored hair and done up face... I love this soft glow.

[@theman9048]

How did people not see the lesbian relationship between shug and celie

[@TheLeslieMichelle]

I believe that there's a fear of female sexuality in general. It isn't just Hetero anymore and I believe that's where the problem lies. As women, we now have options in who we choose, if we want and that's scary to men now.

[@WonderChia]

I did not watch The Color Purple until last month. I knew about it very vaguely, that Oprah was in it and that it was a hard watch, but knew nothing about the relationship between Celie and Sug. It's interesting to me that that part is always left out when talking about the movie or the story in general. It was a tough movie to get through in certain parts, but I'm glad I watched it as an adult. Looking forward to watching the movie musical

[@edwardlegend1564]

it's a good beginning to really look into the fetishization of lesbianism under the straight male gaze

[@Godzooky]

The black men felt attacked by seeing themselves inflicting violence through someone else’s eyes?? Omg. I can’t even believe it.

[@naut_nigel]

I lost braincells listening to the Boosie response. How can he be so.. dumb..

[@ws6778]

I hope to not be the only one who noticed that there are just so many parallels between the story of Celie from the "Color Purple" and the story of Anthy from "Revolutionary Girl Utena" ("Shoujo Kakumei Utena") as both dehumanized sapphic women with dark skin who face many types of abuse finding strenght after falling in love with empowered women in gay intimate relationships censored in their stories in which all guys happen to be toxic if not abusive.

[@sinfulAesthetics]

Holy heck, I was just having the same thoughts! You're not the only one!

[@j.h.6081]

I'm a queer white woman and this is my favorite novel. I read it as a teenager and it helped me gain insight into stuff that happened with my dad. I'm so grateful for that.

[@meow-sr2bl]

when watching the movie i definitely thought celie was in love with avery its so obvious!

[@HuntingViolets]

Yes, I thought so too.

[@FUEGOSTARR]

I always thought that movie was about enslaved black women. I was so so so young when I watched it and I wasn’t aware of these things. This is insightful

[@danishamcclendon]

The original movie may still be on Netflix. That's where I saw it years ago.

[@ormoffat]

Love this breakdown of history and media! I learned a lot about the original movie adaptation I didn't know before.

[@deaddiscodancer6066]

Great video Kat! The historical breakdown was really helpful for contextualizing The Color Purple's place in the culture. As a black lesbian & survivor of abuse myself, I've always been hesitant to read The Color Purple due to the subject matter, but this video has me really interested giving it a shot. Excited to see more on this channel!

[@queenmotherhane4374]

In my opinion, the 2015 Broadway revival of “The Color Purple” was sheer perfection, and I was disappointed that so few songs from it were used in the new film version. And to all the men whining about how “negatively” the male characters were portrayed: Honey, *it isn’t all about you*. The same complaint was lodged against the movie “Steel Magnolias”-which was based on a play containing absolutely no male characters. I was so looking forward to the all-star Black remake of “Steel Magnolias,” but was disappointed at how the makers felt obligated to cram in lots of air time for all the tangential, unimportant male characters. Again, guts, *it isn’t all about you*.

[@obara7366]

The actress who was homophobic seems to be Nigerian from her name, Yoruba to be precise. Which, as a Nigerian, doesn't surprise me in the least cuz our culture is deadly anti-lgbt, and I mean deadly literally. Her name should be pronounced "Shay-yee Aw-maw-aw-bah", tho.

[@ThatsJustMyBabyDaddy]

The remake should have been directed by a Black American queer woman. End of story.

[@zekewalker1350]

In talking about Alice Walker feeling very comfortable with Steven Spielberg directing the original film. I thought his adaptation is better than the most recent adaptation if for no other reason than the direction of the performances and casting. I get that they wanted Halle Bailey to play Nettie, but that means they had to age up Celie and that actress was literally 30. I thought that really lessened the impact of the abuse she was facing. Watching a little girl be abused is very different from watching a 30 year old pretend to play a child who gets abused. SNS

[@TheDawnofVanlife]

As much as I wanted to love the remake and thought it did some things well, every musical number honestly pulled me out. I get it is an adaptation of a stage musical but I think the moments it was straight film between the musical numbers were pretty good. But every song, except those actually ‘in story’ (like shug singing in the Juke Joint) made me disconnect from the story.

[@lone6718]

I remember reading “The Color Purple” in high school. This book, “Of Mice and Men”, “To Kill A Mockingbird”, “A Time To Kill”, and “East of eden” have always stayed with me.

[@antoinettechevalier2453]

Indeed! And I hope when u vote next November you - and so many others - remember the impact those texts had on you and, most importantly, how u were introduced to those novels in schools. All of the texts u mentioned are banned in many libraries thanks to Mothers for Liberty. Let’s not give power to folks who want to ban books.

[@CraigStanley]

This was SUCH a good video, the algorithm brought me to it today. Great work! Now, I told my mom (late 60s) about your video and the overarching point, and she did say that, despite the film's defocusing of the lesbianism to the extent featured in the book, that it was very clear for viewers how Celie felt, and what was going on with her and Shug. So, even though Spielberg expressed regret reducing alladat to a single kiss, maybe it was an appropriate and impactful choice for *that time period.* Anywaytho, great stuff!

[@thatcreativebeauty]

Yeah, I had no idea that Ciley was actually supposed to be a lesbian woman, trapped in a abusive marriage and a victim of the times. Because that was not depicted in the original movie which I know about the original movie because I was alive during that time when she kissed that woman in that one scene, I didn’t even think about it, but I guess that was his way of hinting or giving a nod to the relationship in the book 📚

[@HadassaMoon144]

I find that interesting that so many people didn't get it. I immediately did the first time I saw the movie. But then again, I'm a bisexual woman so I understand the nuanced. I didn't see any attraction or interest in men so it was easy for me to assume that she was a lesbian and truly attracted to and in love with Shug.

[@birchwwolf]

34:15 strongly reminded of Madonna's 60 Minutes Australia interview with Richard Carleton re: her 1992 coffee table book Sex. Carleton mentioned the images of Madonna's self-pleasure made him upset but wanted to avoid the subject of _why_ they did so (partially because he was trying to keep the interview on the topic of Madonna) but she then questioned him about the _why_. Carleton was perfectly fine with Playboy spreads, where the male viewer was invited in, was made the subject of her lust; but when she directed it back at herself or at someone else in the scene, he wasn't having it. Coincidentally, also reminded of the tweet by @JoyceLinnet: "My favorite spirits are the ones who get a bad reputation for luring men to their deaths when really they usually just take the form of a beautiful woman standing alone and men think that, in and of itself, is an invitation so it's really on the men."

[@j.t.7671]

13:03 I mean the novel is about Celie and thus the story is told from Celie's point of view. It's not about Mister or any other man or from their point of view. If you want a story about a black man from his pov, read a different book.

[@Kkid54]

This was a great video Kat! I’ve never read the Color Purple but now I gotta. Thanks again!

[@kelei89]

It feels like the video just... Ended. It seemed like you were about to discuss Taraji P. Henson's pay dispute with the production and the video abruptly stopped.

[@KatBlaque]

Because that's the next video

[@treehouse318]

i thought the exact same thing.

[@jorieshouse]

It's so interesting that you felt the film was more empathetic of Black men than the novel, because I felt the exact opposite I way. The Celie and Mr's relationship is healed and reconciled in the book went a long way to reminding me that no person is just one thing, even if they've been abusive toward you; that we as Black people are all experiencing oppression that can malform our relationships in many ways; and that people (in this case Black men) can grown beyond being upholders of patriarchy and it is worth the time and energy to build life and relationships with such men. I felt that because that part of the story wasn't explored much (at all?) in the films, it left a more negative taste in my mouth in regards to intracommunity gender wars. I'll have to go back and reread to see how my perspective may change since it's been a few years since I've read the whole book.

[@javonjamayal]

Same thing i thought. The fact they reconciled at the end in the book and she forgave and he realized his wrong doing never seem to depicted in the movie. I listened to it on audible before the musical came out and was so surprised by the lesbian relationship in a good way. I think celie was attracted to suge independence, confidence and ability to stand up to men in a way she never women could. I also like how suge helped her adjust her relationship to god and spirituality. I think that aspect is something i wish people would talk about because it was such a beautiful view point. With how she taught her to not see god as simply as a man which would make a woman have a sympathy for men and she themselves less then men. And instead taught her that god is in her and god is everything. God is even as simply the beauty of the color purple. Thus the title of movie. The color is god.

[@m0dulegirl]

I’ve read the book and seen the Spielberg version. And I think that growth on Mr’s part is there in the movie - it just isn’t acknowledged by Celie because Mr isn’t doing it to be forgiven but to do right by this woman he mistreated her whole life. He’s the one who brings Nettie home to Celie. He knows what he’s done, how he’s brought the sisters back together and that’s enough. He knows he can’t expect or ask for Celie to forgive him so he doesn’t place that burden on her. He rights a major wrong he committed and that has to be enough. If he’d gone to Celie and told her what he’d done, she’d have every right to spit in his face and we would have cheered her. As it was we watched a horrible man do what little he could to make some effort at making amends. It humanized him without justifying or forgiving him in any way.

[@Lin10uson]

It's very weird to me that people who only saw the film are some of the most avid detractors for the portrayal of her sexuality because I too only have seen the film (to this day), and I vividly remember Shug & her sharing a kiss and Celie being in-love with her and being hurt when she was with someone else. That's obviously got a lot to do with the fact that I'm a Black transgender woman and was struggling with my sexuality at that age (9y.a. when I saw it), but it's just weird to think that straight' people skated right past it. It's less weird, though, to think about them just not wanting to acknowledge it.

[@kaleahcollins4567]

For a person who constantly was abused to see a woman standing there in her grace and her glory she she talks back she fights back she commands respect in the room Sealy fell in love with that she fell in love with the image of what she wanted in herself .

[@keetonlane]

your video's are so effortlessly smooth to watch, your writing, delivery, editing, its all there girl.

[@classycolas]

Engagement for the algorithm gods!!! Lol. Ill write a proper comment once ive finished the vid

[@beebee1794]

My introduction to the color purple was actually the musical put on by a performing arts school. Even in my young age, I was like "wait this is a black lesbian story??" Because nothing i have heard about it before even suggested that 😭 Its crazy how adaptions have derailed it so bad to the point where I thought people were just ignoring a large part of the plot

[@Just_One_Tree]

Excited for part two! I really appreciate your analysis

[@meander112]

Kat is awesome!

[@lolly9804]

Yeah I was around 10 years old when I first watched Spielberg adaptation. Maybe squij too young to appreciate the film. Haven't found it again on my local version of streaming platforms though.

[@stxrstrxckmxteo515]

I think it might be in Max (hbo max)

[@lolly9804]

@@stxrstrxckmxteo515 Thanks

[@buddha.b3416]

Somehow…some way… what I’ve watched for years on here has brought me to your treasure cove of a channel;and all i can think is gratefulness! Thank you for existing and creating a safe space for me to explore and learn more about the books and films i have grown to love. Bless your kind soul friend

[@kyndramb7050]

I grew up watching this film. I don't remember a time it wasnt in my life. It always seemed obvious to me that Celie was queer. And it helped me figure out I wasn't just attracted to boys, but girls as well. I have always had a huge crush on Shug. And never understood why people called Whoopie "ugly".

[@MaeveDX]

Excellent video! I'm super excited to see more literary/film analysis from you on this channel. I think the issues with how the men are portrayed in the film and downplaying Celie's sexuality go hand in hand with one another. The book is a scathing portrayal of how men behave towards lesbians - a woman who refuses to make herself sexually available to men is an aberration, unnatural, and a threat. Lesbians, especially during the time period this was set in, primarily experienced men as domineering and abusive precisely because of their sexuality, and I think downplaying that part of her character really dampens what the story is trying to say about the power and sexual dynamics between men and women. Also regarding the musical version: my introduction to The Color Purple was actually the musical when I saw it in an off-broadway production, and I can say the musical definitely managed its tone well - there are a lot of dialogue-heavy scenes for the more traumatic stuff, so it didnt feel overly upbeat and happy at all. It's been a few years since I saw it, but from what I remember they didn't pull punches in portraying the men as abusive and Celie as a lesbian.

[@jasmine2519]

This was such an interesting video! I've only read the book, not watched either of the film adaptations, so it was fascinating to learn more about both of them and the changes they made. Just a note, whilst I appreciate you having subtitles on this video, especially since this is the first video on a new channel, unfortunately there are so many mistakes in the subtitles it makes it hard to follow along. The most obvious one is that Celie's name is spelt multiple different ways. Sometimes it's Celie, but most often it's Sealey or Sealy. There's also other stuff like weird capitalisation, or words being just incorrect, and other characters/actors names being incorrect.

[@mikacoderre566]

As a white lesbian, the story of the Color Purple felt huge when I first heard it- and that was as the musical. This show having multiple love songs, sung by women to women, that are unabashedly sapphic and don’t diminish both the romantic love and sexual attraction between these two women… it feels important in a way that I honestly struggle to articulate. As a fan, now, of both the musical and the book, I think you’re right. The musical doesn’t show the most traumatic scenes in detail, and comes off as a happier story. But the musical doesn’t pretend those scenes don’t exist. It’s very clear, in the first song, that Celie is being raped, as a child, by her father. It’s just that it happens offscreen. I, personally, like that- it allows the trauma to addressed in the story, without forcing the audience to watch the triggering act itself.

[@dyshaun08]

Is this a new channel ❤❤ love u Kat

[@lucha-vu8ms]

This has been on my mind for SUCH a long time thank u for speaking on this

[@rainbo777]

I’ve been off social media for two years now and I am more than happy to just hang out on KZbin ~ I make so much more artwork when I am not over consuming other peoples work all the time (and promptly forgetting it) I have not made a website tho, and I am really interested. I hope your journey goes beautifully and you keep gathering your people around you who love your work.

[@giabanks7629]

I had no idea that this movie was about sapphic love! My father is a movie buff and would always have black classic films on and sometimes I'd catch pieces of the original movie adaptation of the color purple. I still havent seen the movie (and I didnt know the book existed either) but from what I do remember about the film it was about black women's inner strength. I guess I need to read and watch the adaptation now!

[@kaleahcollins4567]

Fun fact Micheal jackson pulled the card for Oprah . Behind the scenes he called Steven Spielberg and insisted ( this is why he was angry he did him like that when he did the interview with her later on even janet was angry with her. Because they knew how Micheal helped her if you notice she was also in the video liberian girl ( co directed by micheal and Spielberg. See Ms. Katherine loved oprah and loved the book . Micheal did alot behind the scences for people who would later try to destroy him.

[@Purplefoxsoul]

Amazing video as usual

[@iwishihadseenthatlol]

Is the whole video not on youtube? This was great ❤️‍🔥

[@MadameGumbo]

Love your reviews and takes on series and films, thanks for this new channel.

[@EvitaGlez]

Love the concept of this new channel yay!!

[@Raddiebaddie]

TYSM for discussing this 💜

[@EmpressMiR]

I love your well thought out analysis and the time you took to research this

[@Ceares]

We were actually specifically assigned the Color Purple in my English class in high school. Not coincidentally, the only English class I had that was taught by a black teacher. Way back in the 80s when teachers actually had a little more control over their reading lists. Its funny because as an unwoke youngster and voracaious reader, I just read whatever they assigned. Looking back now though, I think about the choices each teacher made for us and how even in a predominantly black and latino high school she was the only one assigning us a diverse reading list. Even that young though, I never thought Celie was a lesbian because she was abused. I thought she was in love with Shug because Shug was all that and kind on top of it. Like why wouldn't you be in love with her. Of course, me not realizing I was bi until I was almost 30, probably had some impact on my thought process here cause I doubt I ever thought like a straight person.

[@salliekate]

I really appreciate this video. I will say the saloon music while talking about Lil Boosie made me cackle! I saw the Color Purple around the age of 11 in 2001 with my mom who had read the book and we talked a lot about autonomy and my mom shared with me about the SA she experienced. I’ve seen it several time since but it wasn’t until my 20’s that I fully understood what I was watching and Celie’s pain after being SA’d myself and struggling with my self worth and sexuality. I have not seen the new movie or read the book but I’m certainly will after seeing your video! Thank you!

[@Maesonjaeson]

Kat i wish i got to watch this film with you and discuss it right afterwards! I also read the book and watched the first adaptation before watching the musical. I had so si many feelings about both adaptions but ome if my biggest gripes with the musical is the introduction of Shug! They drop the "You sho is ugly!" Line and dont deptict her illness as the reason shes there for so long? Just that she got drunk and stayed for a while?? (If i remember right) Which felt so so weird! I'm excited to watch your next video about the subject too :)

[@sabdullah8076]

The new movie was a poor depiction of a lesbian relationship.. I didnt need sexual moments but more sensuality and obvious closeness would have been affirming. Fantasia and Taraji didn't really sell it

[@joshuamcdowell9745]

Fantasia and Taraji would have with a better script. I blame the director Blitz Bazawule. The film needed a black lesbian director. Dee Rees would have done a great job.

[@thomashester2]

Love this new channel Kat