- Man vs. Society: Throughout the story, Celie faces many conflicts with society. Every man in Celie's life beats her and rapes her leaving her with no confidence and no one to run to. For most of her life, she does not fight back anyone that molests her. At first, the man believed to be Celie's father, rapes her. He was Celie's stepfather. Later, Mr. _ beats her. And again, she does not fight back.
- Inner Conflicts: One inner conflict was when Celie believed that her sister, Nettie, was dead. If Nettie was alive, Celie was clueless to where Nettie was, if she was healthy, and how her children were doing. For years, Nettie wrote to Celie but Celie never received the letters because Mr. _ hid them from her. The letters contained information such as where Nettie and the children were, what they were doing, and how healthy they were.
- Gender Roles: In The Color Purple, the gender roles play a very important part because each character is unique. The women were the housekeepers in the novel and they ordered to everything the men asked of them. The men were the ones that held the power. Sophia and Shug were influences on Celie. Celie was inspired by Shug and wanted to be like her. Celie is fascinated by Shug's confidence and security. Celie presents herself as weak and insecure. Throughout the novel, Shug teaches Celie how to become and independent women. Celie becomes more confident and prideful. As Celie and Shug's relationship progressed daily, Celie learned how to stand up for herself. Celie showed the new side of her at dinner one night. She yelled at Mr. _ and told him she was leaving with Shug and not coming back. This proves that Celie has grown respect for herself. Mr. _ admits that the only reason he abuses her is because she is a woman.
- Discrimination Issues: The Color Purple is the first novel written by an African-American woman author. The author portrays homosexual, bisexual, and lesbian relationships in the novel. Shug and Celie show attraction towards each other. Shug is bisexual because she portrays relationships with both Celie and Mr. __.