ABSTRACT
African American expressive culture defies the simple sacred/profane binary. This chapter discusses how Celie's father-in-law articulates the perception and judgment of the rural Black community in Alice Walker's 1982 novel, The Color Purple. The novel is also about, how, through these romantic affairs and domestic arrangements, Shug represents bisexual nonmonogamy, an expression of sexual fluidity that is situated in the novel as a type of liberated selfhood. The absence of Christianity's narratives of restraint and guilt creates space for the exploration, affirmation even, of Celie's lesbian identity and Shug's nonmonogamous bisexuality. Shug's blueswoman theology insists that an appreciation of sensual pleasures is the foundational principle of humanity's relationship to God. The blueswoman evangelist is the center of the erotic vortex and benefits the most when her followers recognize her power, which is her deeply instilled sense of freedom. So through temporary moments of loss, they learn to love her without possession.
