Research Paper On Alice Walker

Alice Walker: A New Kind of Feminist The American Voice, formally given its name during the 1900s, can be loosely defined as the way many people exercise their individual and democratic freedoms by vocalizing their opposition to societal norms and their hopes social reform. Many reform movements around the time of growing liberalism in 20th century America helped shape the American voice, including the civil rights and feminist movements. Many authors and intellectuals of the 20th century who spoke out against discrimination and the societal norms of the times helped contribute to the creation of the American voice. Similarly, Alice Walker’s innovative writing career contributed to the creation of an American voice by using her works to give
However, it was not until she lost sight in one eye during a BB gun accident as a child that Alice Walker “began keenly observing the world around her and started to read more and write her own poems” (“Alice Walker” 2). It is ironic how losing her sight allowed Walker to metaphorically open her eyes to the horrors of the world as well as begin to confidently address controversial issues such as discrimination and rape. Walker’s tenacity for societal change builds through her eye-opening writing style (similar to other liberal American authors of the times), furthering her contribution to the American voice. The influence of Alice Walker’s childhood can not only be seen in her writing style; many connections can be traced between that and her characters as well. For example, “Celie is a character that Alice Walker brings into fiction from real life, as Walker observed the way her parents were influenced by racism and how they were forced to work as sharecroppers on white men’s farms” (Sedehi 1). Sedehi includes this detail within her thematic analysis in order to emphasize the impact of Walker’s humble upbringing and personal accounts of discrimination on her realistic writing