Did Alice Walker's childhood and personal history effect her book The Color Purple in any way?

Question

Were any characters based on real people or was she raped or abused like the main character in the book?

Answer 1

Some characters like Adam and Albert are based on real people but many others are fictional.

Adam
Adam is Celie's son who was adopted by the missionary, Reverend Samuel, and his wife, Corrine. When the Reverend and his family return to America, Celie is reunited with her grown son.

Albert
Albert is the widower with four children who buys Celie from her stepfather. Albert treats Celie with cruelty, using her to satisfy his sexual needs and to take care of his children. He really loves Shug Avery, who later comes to live with Albert and Celie when she is sick. Celie appreciates Shug's presence in the house, because Albert treats her better when Shug is around.

Read what she told some students here:

http://www.sfgate.com/cgi-bin/article.cgi?f=/c/a/2007/09/15/BA73S6FUV.DTL


good luck

Answer 2

Yes, that is why she doesn't have exact names for people...based on real-life.