essay about their eyes were watching god

Their Eyes Were Watching God

By zora neale hurston, their eyes were watching god essay questions.

Analyze Hurston's personification of Death and of Doubt. Why does she capitalize these two abstract concepts?

Consider Janie's three husbands seperately. What distinguishes them from one another? What do characteristics do they share?

How does the mule's treatment in Eatonville reflect the condition of the black female? Does Joe's gesture of buying him have symbolic value?

How does the porch work as a personified symbol? Trace its use throughout the novel.

Does this novel have a moral? What attitudes does Hurston prescribe towards race? Money? Family?

Is Nanny a sympathetic character? Is Janie's abandonment of her justified?

At what point does the division between men's activities and women's activities break down? Which activities where formerly designated as male activities?

Why did Hurston include Mrs. Turner in the novel? Were Tea Cake and his friends' attack on her cafe justified?

Who does the pronoun in the title refer to? Janie and Tea Cake? African-Americans in general? Explain how the title relates to the content of the novel.

Is Hurston's vision of God religious or secular? Do her characters view him as merciful or vengeful?

Their Eyes Were Watching God Questions and Answers

The Question and Answer section for Their Eyes Were Watching God is a great resource to ask questions, find answers, and discuss the novel.

Nature, in the form of buzzards, is able to articulate Janie's rage, and speak for the mule. The chief buzzard is seems like a religious figure; Hurston refers to him as the Parson. When the Parson asks what killed the mule, the other buzzard's...

What is the difference between men and women, according to the text,

I would say the closest is:

• Men are often secretly scared and self-doubting, whereas women are bold and brave

What kind of death has Janie witnessed?

Janie sees Joe's death. He died from kidney failure.

Study Guide for Their Eyes Were Watching God

Their Eyes Were Watching God study guide contains a biography of Zora Neale Hurston, literature essays, quiz questions, major themes, characters, and a full summary and analysis.

• About Their Eyes Were Watching God
• Their Eyes Were Watching God Summary
• Character List

Essays for Their Eyes Were Watching God

Their Eyes Were Watching God literature essays are academic essays for citation. These papers were written primarily by students and provide critical analysis of Their Eyes Were Watching God.

• The Importance of Dreams
• Getting in Touch with the Feminine Side
• Living for Yourself in Their Eyes Were Watching God
• Their Eyes Were Watching God: Double Consciousness as an Indicator of Growth
• A Voice of Abandonment

Lesson Plan for Their Eyes Were Watching God

• About the Author
• Study Objectives
• Common Core Standards
• Introduction to Their Eyes Were Watching God
• Relationship to Other Books
• Bringing in Technology
• Notes to the Teacher
• Related Links
• Their Eyes Were Watching God Bibliography

Wikipedia Entries for Their Eyes Were Watching God

• Introduction
• Plot synopsis
• Inspirations and influences

Their Eyes Were Watching God

55 pages • 1 hour read

A modern alternative to SparkNotes and CliffsNotes, SuperSummary offers high-quality Study Guides with detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, and more. For select classroom titles, we also provide Teaching Guides with discussion and quiz questions to prompt student engagement.

Chapter Summaries & Analyses

Chapters 1-4

Chapters 5-8

Chapters 9-13

Chapters 14-17

Chapters 18-20

Character Analysis

Symbols & Motifs

Important Quotes

Essay Topics

Discussion Questions

Compare Janie’s three marriages. How does each relationship shape her understanding of herself? How does each advance her quest for the love she envisioned beneath the pear tree?

Discuss the different types of discourse in the novel. How do these versions of English add to characterization and play off each other?

Consider the novel’s structure. Why does Hurston relate Janie’s story in an embedded narrative? What does the narrative frame add to the reader’s experience of the novel?

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84 Their Eyes Were Watching God Essay Topic Ideas & Examples

🏆 best their eyes were watching god topic ideas & essay examples, 📌 most interesting their eyes were watching god topics to write about, 👍 good research topics about their eyes were watching god, ❓ their eyes were watching god essay questions.

• Tea Cake and Janie in Their Eyes Were Watching God – an Integral Character The role of Tea Cake remains to be crucial in the story as well as in the whole life of Janie as his passion, creativity, and desire to create the best living conditions promote safety […]
• The Life of Zora Neale Hurston As Hurston later glorifies in her literary works, the town was the first to offer African Americans the chance to live freely and independent of the Whites, as they desired.
• Zora Neale Hurston: Their Eyes Were Watching God One of the peculiar features of the work is the form chosen by the author. Just like a mule, Janie is forced to work in the field with her husband.
• Jody Sparks in Hurston’s “Their Eyes Were Watching God” Joe’s entry into Janie’s life is at an appropriate moment, since Janie is on the verge of breaking up with her former husband due to mistreatment, and Joe creates the opportunity that Janie has been […]
• One Woman’s Search for her Self-Identity. A Review of Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston Janie’s maturity of voice is a direct indicator of her inner growth, and the activities at the courtroom may be plotted too much as to draw the parallels in her inner self.
• Review of “Their Eyes Were Watching God” Book The paper will discuss how Hurston exemplifies the Harlem movement in her book.’Their Eyes Were Watching God is an award-winning novel first published in the late 1930s and is considered one of the classics of […]
• Identity in Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God In the story, the author offered a comprehensive discussion of identity, its elements, importance, and relation to modernism. These two elements contribute to the fact that a person has a particular position in society, and […]
• Janie’s Search for Her Freedom and Independence in Their Eyes Were Watching God by Z. N. Hurston Though Janie does not feel her duty to clear out herself, she explains the story of her life to her friend. The reader observes the development of Janie’s character and the changes in her attitude […]
• African American Studies. “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Hurston Janie’s appreciation of her independence is depicted when she refuses to be bound to Logan for the rest of her life because of material things.
• “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora N. Hurston When Janie decides to move in with Tea Cake, she secretly conceals two hundred dollars in her shirt pocket, and fears to reveal the secret to Tea Cake. Tea Cake’s role in the novel is […]
• The Use of Symbolism and Metaphors in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Hurston
• The Use of Silence to Gain Power, and Power to Gain Voice in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• True Love in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• The Transformation of Janie in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• The Significance of the Blue Dress in Hurston’s “Their Eyes Were Watching God” and “Seraph on the Suwa”
• The Struggle for Fulfillment in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• Woman’s Search for Identity in Hurston’s “Seraph on the Suwanee” and “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• The Sentiment of Oprah, Not Hurston in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• The Love and Relationship Dynamic in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• The Life of American Women in Zora Neale Hurston’s “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• The Dilemma of Control in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” and “Stranger in a Strange Land”
• The Life and Education of Zora Neale Hurston and Her Literary Work “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• The Theme of the Individuality and Strength of Women in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” and “The Woman Warrior”
• What It Was Like to Live as a Black Woman in Zora Neale Hurston’s “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• The Harlem Renaissance in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• The Use of Motifs of Settings, Language, and Symbols in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• The Problem of the Female: Marriage and “Sistergirl” Relationships in Zora Neale Hurston’s “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• The Use of Southern Language and Dialect in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• The Unimportance of Riches in a Relationship, Portrayed in Zora Neale Hurston’s “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• The Literary Symbols of Racial Health in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• The Meaning of Love and Marriage in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• The Issue of Domestic Violence in Zora Neale Hurston’s Novel “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• The Three Marriages and Three Lessons in Hurston’s Book “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• Voice and Language in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• The Role of Female as Explored in “The House of Mirth” and “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• The Discrimination of Blacks by Whites in the Novel “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• Zora Hurston’s “Their Eyes Were Watching God” as a Creation Story
• The Depiction of Marriage in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• Tone Analysis From a Passage in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• The Concept of Idea in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• The Value of Silence in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• The Maturity of Janie Through Her Marriage to Logan Killicks in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• The Use of Clothing in the Novel “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• The Theme of Friendship in Hurston’s “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• Universal Themes of Womanhood Nora Zeale Hurston’s “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• Women’s Inferiority to Men in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• Use of Metaphors in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Hurston
• The Effects of Attitudes in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• The Human Nature’s Quest for Happiness in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• Wright’s Critiques on Hurston’s “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• The Need for Power and Recognition of Joe in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• The Imagery of Creation Myths in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston
• Using Vernacular to Reflect Self Image in Zora Neale Hurston’s “Their Eyes Were Watching God”
• In What Ways Does Janie Violate Typical Gender Boundaries in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• How Does Janie Develop Her Ideas of Love in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• Why Do People Today Love “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• How Does Love Influence Our Lives in the Story of “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• What Are Traditional Stereotypes of Men and Women in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• In What Ways Does Janie Fit the Typical Feminine Stereotype in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• Is “Their Eyes Were Watching God” Primarily an Anti-Racism Novel?
• How Does Janie’s Identity Vacillate Between White and Black Factions in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• To What Extent Is Janie’s Life Already Determined at Birth in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• How Did Slaves’ Positions as a Sub-Class, Those Not Considered Human at All, Affect Nanny’s Outlook on Life?
• Does Joe Succeed in Achieving His Goals in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• Why Does Janie Feel So Trapped in Her First Two Marriages in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• How Is Race Generally Linked to Class in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• Why Is Janie Happy Living With the Lowest of the Low Social Classes – The Migrant Workers in the Everglades?
• What Is the Significance of the Title “Their Eyes Were Watching God” to the Novel?
• Does Tea Cake Free Janie or Is It Just the Escape From Her First Two Husbands in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• Why Did Hurston Include Mrs. Turner in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• How Is Death Associated With Freedom, Especially in Janie’s Last Two Marriages in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• What Does the Idea of the Horizon Symbolize for Janie in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• How Does Janie’s Experience Under the Pear Tree Set Up Her Dreams in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• What Role Does Mrs. Turner Play in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• How Do Janie’s Visions and Hopes for Her Future Differ From the Hopes of Her Peers in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• What Is the Role of the Porch Sitters in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• How Does the Mule’s Treatment in Eatonville Reflect the Condition of the Black Female in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• Is There a Moral in the Novel “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• How Does the Porch Work as a Personified Symbol in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• Is Nanny a Sympathetic Character in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• At What Point Does the Division Between Men’s Activities and Women’s Activities Break Down in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• Who Does the Pronoun in the Title Refer to in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
• Is Hurston’s Vision of God Religious or Secular in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”?
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IvyPanda. (2023, December 11). 84 Their Eyes Were Watching God Essay Topic Ideas & Examples. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/their-eyes-were-watching-god-essay-examples/

"84 Their Eyes Were Watching God Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." IvyPanda , 11 Dec. 2023, ivypanda.com/essays/topic/their-eyes-were-watching-god-essay-examples/.

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IvyPanda . 2023. "84 Their Eyes Were Watching God Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." December 11, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/their-eyes-were-watching-god-essay-examples/.

1. IvyPanda . "84 Their Eyes Were Watching God Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." December 11, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/their-eyes-were-watching-god-essay-examples/.

Bibliography

IvyPanda . "84 Their Eyes Were Watching God Essay Topic Ideas & Examples." December 11, 2023. https://ivypanda.com/essays/topic/their-eyes-were-watching-god-essay-examples/.

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Their Eyes Were Watching God, Essay Example

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Their Eyes Were Watching God: Janie’s Character Development

Even though Zora Neale Hurston’s novel “Their Eyes Were Watching God” spins around the relationships of Janie with her three husbands, the one and the most important plot of it is the search of a woman for a strong sense of self identity and the spiritual enlightenment. The first and the last time that Janie appears in the book, she is alone. Janie constantly struggles with the society for personal self identification. She challenges the stereotypical black woman by insisting on independence. The main character of the novel significantly changes both externally and internally throughout the story due to her grandmother’s influence, her relationships with the men and her quest for self identity. The story is not just a simple quest of a female for a good partner but more of a self quest for a secure feeling of completeness.

Being a female of mixed heritage, Janie is the result of a poor, black girl being raped by a white schoolteacher and the nurturing of her tough grandmother whose life views were shaped up by the dramatic Civil War. Girl’s innocent sensuality and idealistic quest for love make her a target for men. Janie goes through three relationships, all of which teach her about different sides of love. Her heritage is a bit dubious and does not promise well for her future, namely her future of beautiful and romantic love. Janie comes from the generations of unmarried women. Her mother was raped at an early age and later abandoned her child. Her grandmother was also in a forced relationship with the white master during slavery which resulted into the birth of Janie’s mother. But since she was the woman who raised Janie, she became a very influential person in girl’s life. Regardless of these generations of unmarried females, Janie was not very concerned about becoming the first genuine wife in the family, but more about finding her true love.

When she was a young girl, Janie had some romantic bones in her body. Her miraculous experience beneath a blossoming pear tree has a deep effect on her. Girl parallels the pollination of tree blossoms with the essence of a romantic experience. Young girl becomes strongly inspired to seek love that results in her first kiss as well as the lifetime journey for true love. After the pear-tree episode Janie becomes related with flower and plant imagery, conceivably highlighting her natural beauty, innocence, gentle nature, and the maturity for romance.

Janie’s connection with her grandmother proves her need for love. She tries to please the woman and marries Logan Killicks whom she cannot love. From her first short marriage, Janie realizes that marriage does not necessarily involve love. She understands that being a legitimate wife, being dictated what to do is simply not for her. She cannot live a life without romance. Woman’s experience with Logan teaches her to oppose injustice and to treasure herself. Having firmly learnt this, Janie runs away in order to take her own future life into her hands.

At the time when Jody Starks appears in Janie’s life, he is the person who seems to offer her an ideal world compared to the practicality of her previous husband. Jody convinces woman that he will fulfill all her dreams and will make her satisfied. With time Janie learns that Jody’s exertion of power only suffocates her. The man married her not of true love but more because he saw her as an object that will serve a very useful purpose in his own life. Janie was an ideal of what the mayor’s wife should look like. Janie was unfulfilled by this relationship because he was held mute. Her language was silent. She was like a static object that could not grow. Woman was forced to even tie her hair the way her husband allowed. Even though Janie occasionally spoke her mind, she showed no real fight during this marriage. But her gentle nature did not allow her to rest while Joe was sick in his bed. She did all that she could for Jody, but at the end she felt triumphant at his death. She has finally won some freedom.

Throughout many years of life with Jody Starks, Janie loses a bit of self-consciousness that she acquired having run away from Logan. Woman was being told what to do and how to act. Even Janie’s hair serves as a symbol of her suppression in the novel. The way Janie wore her hair shows all her unconventional identity and power. It, first of all, represents woman’s independence of community standards. At the beginning of the story Janie is criticized by town for wearing her hair down. The refusal to bow down to the established norms of her society reflects the rebellious nature of Janie’s character and spirit. While being married to Jody, her braided hair represented masculine power that blurred gender lines and threatened her husband. Janie’s hair being straight also adds up being a symbol of so-called whiteness. It contributes to the white male power that she handles and helps to dislocate traditional power relationships such as whites over blacks or male over female. However, with Jody’s death woman begins to find her voice again. She disregards social refinements to be able to express her thoughts and feelings.

In her story Zora Neale Hurston uses a unique set of languages that shows her mastery of the rural Southern dialect among African Americans as well as its importance throughout Janie’s development. The use of language fundamentally parallels Janie’s personal quest to find her own voice. After her second husband Janie flourishes in a relationship with Tea Cake because he “teaches her the maiden language all over” (203). Janie’s control of speech takes a new level as she is learning to be silent when she wants. With her third husband Janie does not mind coming back to the poor life. She even truly enjoys the freedom to be able to be associated with everyone she wants as well as speak openly. Tea Cake did not try to tame or strangle Janie’s nature but encouraged her to try new things and experiences. The uniqueness of Janie and Tea Cake’s marriage was the communication they had. They openly spoke about troubles and continually reassured each other in the sincerity of their love. With Tea Cake Janie even learnt that love comes with the consequences, such as jealousy or mistakes.

The function of Tea Cake as her partner was a certain catalyst that drove Janie towards the achievement of her goals. In her life development he plays not a primary role but a supporting one. Just before him in her confrontation with Jody Starks, Janie has already shown that she started to acquire her personal voice within. Therefore, after the death of Tea Cake, it is worth to note the woman was not totally dependent on him. She was already half way through in her journey. Tea Cake dies but she remains a hopeful and a strong woman. He might have been the best of her husbands in terms of supporting her to find herself because if compared to her previous marriages, Janie was first treated like a farm animal by Logan and later silenced by Jody Starks. Tea Cake helped her not to lose her already going spiritual growth.

“Their Eyes Were Watching God” is a story of how woman acquires a strong feeling of self and comes to appreciate and understand her independence. However, as novel suggests the journey of Janie towards her personal enlightenment is not undertaken on her own. The gender differences that the author uses shows that women and men offer each other things that they need but do not have. Janie sees her relationships as based on mutual respect and reciprocal.

Men played an important role in Janie’s development. However as it is considered that relationships are necessary to fulfill one’s life, Janie proves to be a fundamentally self-centered person. At the end of the novel woman is alone again but she seems to be totally content with herself. She has liberated herself from unpleasant relationships with Jody and Logan who hindered her journey and experienced the true enlightenment and fulfillment with Tea Cake. Woman becomes very secure in her own independence. Janie feels a strong connection with world around her and even more, she has a feeling that Tea Cake’s spirit is still with her. Thus, being physically alone, in her spiritual world Janie is not.

Janie’s life is a difficult story. She started her life journey being a naïve, innocent and an inexperienced young girl who faced complicated challenges with men and life. However, as a result of all sufferings and hardships, she became a self-confident, smart and a self-reliant woman. The experiences she went through were very painful but they allowed her to transform into a mature and a better individual. From Logan, Jody, and Tea Cake she learnt various life changing lessons and grew from experience.

In “Their Eyes Were Watching God” Zora Neale Hurston showed a story of a woman who was looking for the possibilities of life, love and passion. Her life starting from an unhappy seventeen year old wife to a grown wise woman in her forties was bittersweet. But the woman was able to move on with her dreams and second chances. Janie’s story is an emotional journey with the experiences and heart aches. She hoped. She dreamt. She laid everything she had before the world to be able to find herself.

Works Cited

Hurston, Zora Neale. “Their Eyes Were Watching God.” Harper Perennial Modern Classics. 30 May 2006: 203

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“Their Eyes were Watching God” Research Paper

How it works

In Zora Neale Hurston’s book Their Eyes Were Watching God there are a lot of hidden messages that one can take from the book. For instance, the book shows self-worth, significance of personal enjoyment of life, male dominance and, love. Hurston uses a lot of symbolic messages throughout the book that is overlooked. However, a lot of things that go on in the book happens in everyday life and may be common in someone else’s relationship. The book just shows us how Janie deals with her problems and overcome them.

In the book the main character Janie ultimate goal is to find true love and be happy. Janie a lot of times “battles against the commonly held view of love as unimportant and frivolous. Her vision of true love is associated with innocence, openness, understanding, and equality between the lovers. Sex and marriage don’t inherently lead to love…though they can be expressions of it. For Janie, love is also an essential part of life; without it, her spirit practically withers and dies. When love is restored, it’s like a fountain of youth. Having found love makes the Janie feel that she’s finally lived a full and satisfying life.” Janie feels that being in love completes her life so that’s why throughout the book she is consistently getting married and with somebody new. In he first marriage with Logan Killicks she was forced into by her grandmother she never really liked Logan so the first opportunity she got she left him Joe Starks. Janie was attracted to Joe because he made her promises that he was going to treat her like the lady she deserved to be treated like also Janie was attracted to Joe’s appearance “It was a cityfied, stylish dressed man with his hat set at an angle that didn’t belong in these parts. His coat was over his arm, but he didn’t need it to represent his clothes. The shirt with the silk sleeve holders was dazzling enough for the world. He whistled, mopped his face and walked like he knew where he was going. He was a seal-brown color, but he acted like Mr. Washburn or somebody like that to Janie.” However, that impression that Janie had of Joe did not last that much longer she soon realizes that Joe is a snob and he thinks that he has the say on moves into the town. She also realizes how he looks down on woman. Joe looks at woman as “objects” and feels as if men have the right to own them. Joe looked at Janie a first-place metal / a prize possession” This business of the head-rag irked her endlessly. But Jody was set on it. Her hair was NOT going to show in the store. It didn’t seem sensible at all. That was because Joe never told Janie how jealous he was. He never told her how often he had seen the other men figuratively wallowing in it as she went about things in the store. She was there in the store for him to look at, not those others.”

Throughout the story Janie realize that she has no voice or really no say when it come to Joe, he wants to be the head voice of the house hold at all times. Eventually Joe body shuts down and while he is laying the hospital bed Janie speaks out and tells him all his wrong doing and crimes but as usual Joe did not want to hear anything Janie had to say, and he ends up dying while cursing Janie out. Last but not least we have Janie last husband Teacake. Teacake and Janie hits it off good he treats her nothing like Joe and she had freedom of speak around Teacake and she loves that. Janie and Teacake ends up getting married one morning Janie woke up and Teacake was missing, and her money was gone. Teacakes comes back late at night and lies to Janie and says that he was using the money to plan a party. Teacakes try’s to win the money back and end up getting stabbed so Teacake and Janie moves to the everglades. Moving to the Everglades for them wasn’t the best idea either, they have a lot of people that tries to come in between their relationship such as Mrs. Turner and Nunkie. Eventually a hurricane hits Teacake gets him and Janie out safely, however Janie almost drowns during the hurricane and Tea Cake gets bitten by a rabid dog trying to save her. Overtime Teacake starts to show signs of rabies. Tea Cake eventually starts to jealous when Janie is out of his sight. One day Tea Cake becomes extremely angry and pulls out a gun on Janie. Janie and Teacake ends up facing off, with guns pointed at one another. The rabies is taking over him and he cannot control it, and Janie shoots him out of self-defense, and he ends up dying.

As you can see Janie love life does not go so well but her marriages did help her. She learns her self-worth throughout the book. In the book there are multiple characters that have their own view and mindset of what a woman should be. From the men that Janie married to the woman in Eatonville that judged Janie when she returned back home, but that didn’t change Janie mindset she walked back into town, with her head high upon her shoulders. She was truly her own person assure of herself and her place in society. Of course, people confronted her with what they thought made her a “proper woman,” Janie did not care she was her own person she was independent and free willed. She overcame the standards and restrictions that was put on the early African American generation.

Janie knew what made her happy even though she thought it was love and being married she soon realized that was not it. In The Natural (1952), Bernard Malamud wrote “We have two lives . . . the life we learn with and the life we live with after that. Suffering is what brings us toward happiness.” In Janie’s situation She has grown physically and mentally, struggled, and suffered. So after all that she has went through she feels like she is a new person. Even though Teacake is gone she still feels that his legacy lives within her because he is part of the new person she has become. She eventually becomes one and unite with nature. Although the forces of the world may be unknowable and at times painful Janie eventually form peace with them.

She starts to realize that death is a way of life and sometimes death is the right thing, so the person does not suffer anymore. Even though she did not want to kill her husband Teacakes she knew he would suffer even more pain staying alive. Janie knew she could help Teacake die in a less painful and a more honorable way. Janie decision was a mixture of self-defense and a peaceful death for Teacake. Janie shooting him shows her maturity it takes a lot to kill the love of your life. An also considering that’s what Janie was working for her whole life to find true love is sad when she has to kill him and be by herself. Even though she still deeply mourned about his death, she does not might be expected blame herself. Instead, Janie later starts extending her energy toward keeping his memory alive and making him happy. She does not blame herself she gets herself together and eventually goes home and tell people her story. In the end she thanks Teacake for giving her the opportunity to love, be herself and adventure new things and taking her far beyond her horizons. Teacake makes, Janie feel like that she has lived a full and satisfying life he also taught her that it is better to have loved and lost than never to have loved at all.

Hurston definitely had a lot of life hidden messages throughout the whole book. Janie literally went from a voiceless teenage girl to a strong woman who has the ability to control her own density and not to let anyone one else do it for her. Overall there are a lot of life lessons that can be taken from the book and applied to real life it was a great book and it definitely deserves a lot more recognition then it gets. It teaches you how to stand up for yourself and also let go of your love ones even when you don’t want to let go because letting go might be the best thing for you and them. Sometimes the littlest things in life makes you happy and it might just be in your backyard (peachtree).

Works cited

• Shmoop Editorial Team. “Their Eyes Were Watching God Theme of Love.” Shmoop, Shmoop University, 11 Nov. 2008, www.shmoop.com/eyes-were-watching-god/love-theme.html.
• Shmoop Editorial Team. “Joe Starks in Their Eyes Were Watching God.” Shmoop, Shmoop University, 11 Nov. 2008, www.shmoop.com/eyes-were-watching-god/joe-starks.html.
• Woman’s Self-Revelation in Their Eyes Were Watching God.” SchoolWorkHelper, schoolworkhelper.net/woman’s-self-revelation-in-their-eyes-were-watching-god/.
• SparkNotes, SparkNotes, www.sparknotes.com/lit/eyes/section12/.

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Their Eyes Were Watching God: a Journey into Womanhood

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