| Alice Walker's concept of non-violent revolution involves a transformation predicated on personal growth and social change. Walker's protagonists learn to resist oppression through defiant speech acts; their coming to voice symbolizes the completion of their inner transformation and signals their outer rebellion. Walker belongs to a tradition of black feminist writers as she addresses class, race, and gender oppression in her writing, and she constructs a black matriarchal tradition by positioning Zora Neale Hurston as her literary fore-mother. Walker differs from other black feminists in her struggle to be a non-violent revolutionary through her use of popular culture as the site of her fight against racist patriarchal hegemony.; In The Third Life of Grange Copeland, Walker articulates her notion of revolution. The novel focuses on the misery of Grange's first life and, through the violent actions of his son, the results of such a life. Walker demonstrates the need for change, but the means of transformation remain unclear.; Meridian focuses on the process of a character's personal transformation as she comes to voice. Meridian's silent inner struggle produces outward change and her physical condition deteriorates. The spectacle of her transformation convinces her friends to examine their own lives. But after Meridian finally gains the courage to sing with a radical church congregation, the efficacy of her struggle remains ambiguous.; The Color Purple depicts the transformation of a cowed victim of rape to an independent woman who restructures her life. Forbidden to speak about her oppression, Celie records her struggle in letters. And by following Shug's example, she learns to speak out against her oppressors. As a popular work by a black woman(ist) writer, The Color Purple signifies the emergence of black women onto the scene of popular culture.; In The Temple of My Familiar, Walker traces the lives of several characters from a variety of class backgrounds undergoing personal transformations. In this novel, Walker's depiction of revolution begins with personal evaluation through autobiographical storytelling. |
