Throughout "The Color Purple," it is evident that Celie lives in a society in which even the preacher at her church is not averse to harshly judging others, as he damns Shug Avery for being a "slut, hussy, heifer and streetcleaner." Yet, from the very moment that Celie jots down "Dear God" at the beginning of her first letter the reader realizes she is unwilling to judge others herself. Instead, she passes that task onto the supreme judge, Almighty God. As she does so, however, she loses control over her thoughts as well as her own will.
             The fact is that men make most of her decisions in her life, deciding whether she works, goes out or has sexual intercourse. The impression given in the novels is that black men are like gods who govern the existence of women. In some of her early letters, Celie refers to Alphonso as "He," capitalizing the letter H in a manner that is usually reserved for God himself. Furthermore, in reference to the Olinka tribe, Nettie states that "men have life and death power over a wife," even though many of them act like "grown children."
             While all this is occurring, Celie realizes that her God is a passive one, blind to her troubles and "glorifying in being deef." This idea of passivity can even be traced back to the aforementioned first letter, in which Alphonso tells Celie that she "better not never tell nobody but God" about what he has done. In that context, it is almost as if he is aware that there will be no revolt from a heavenly force who is probably as unconcerned with Celie as he is.
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