Their Eyes Were Watching God Self-Revelation
Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston, is a novel about one woman’s self-revelation. It began when this woman was a very young girl. At first she was being pushed, then she was being chosen, and finally, she was able to choose.
Born a victim of circumstance, Janie, the main character, was subject to her position in life. She was raised to uphold the standards of the early African-American generation. From the beginning, she was taught to be passive and subject to whatever life gave her. As she grew older, she began to realize that she must give in to her desires and not suppress them.
Janie was set up for her journey of self-discovery by her grandmother. Nanny set a goal for Janie’s life by saying, “Ah wanted you to look upon yo’ self. Ah don’t want yo’ feathers always crumpled by folks throwin’ up things in yo’ face.” ***SITE THIS?*** Janie’s grandmother pushed Janie into a marriage, which she considered a “safe” place for Janie. Though hesitant, Janie agreed to marry Logan Killicks. He was a farmer who married Janie shortly after she completed school.
Killicks was the first antagonist that Janie encountered in the story. He was there for one purpose, to destroy Janie’s new sense of self-awarenes. Logan demanded things of Janie that she did not wish to do and tried to push her into his mold of a perfect wife. Janie did not love Logan, nor did he love her. She did not know what she wanted, but she was sure that she did not want Logan Killicks.
Joe Starks appeared in Janie’s yard one afternoon. He said the sweet things that Janie wanted to hear. Though Janie hardly knew the man, being young and gullible, she was taken by his words. She took another step in her journey, leaving Logan the next day and travelling to Eatonville with Joe Starks. Aspiring to be the mayor of Eatonville, Joe Starks was a man concerned with little except power. He wanted it, and he was going to use Janie to get it. She wore nice dresses during this marriage because Joe wanted her to stand out from the rest of the town. He used her as an icon of his prosperity and power. He was cruel to Janie and stomped out all of her free will. He built his town of Eatonville and became the mayor, crushing all in his path. He, in turn, made many enemies along the way, including Janie. During the period that she was married to Joe Starks, Janie was not allowed to talk and act as herself. Nonetheless, she began to think for herself—never revealing to Joe how she felt until just before he died. Playing with the hand she dealt herself, she did what he told her to do, and refrained from leaving Joe Starks physically until after his death. In her heart, however, she had left him long before.
Shortly after Joe’s death, Janie became the figurehead of her personal ship. Over time, she had learned of a growing feeling inside her that something was missing—possibly her lack of self-confidence. She chose a new path, seeking her dreams and her identity. Being previously the mayor’s wife, Janie encountered many suitors after Joe’s death. She believed that they were in it for her wealth and was very skeptical of the men that confronted her.
Tea Cake offered Janie a new direction and did not seem to care about her material wealth. He showed her a good time. Not only did she desire a marriage, but a friendship also, and she found this with Tea Cake. They were married, and he took her to live in the Everglades. She began to wear blue and the things that Tea Cake liked to see her in. She spoke her mind and acted on her instincts, never holding her feelings back. Therefore, she became what she had set out to be in her marriage to Tea Cake. Janie returned to Eatonville after Tea Cake left her in a coffin. ***TEA CAKE DID NOT LEAVE JANIE IN A COFFIN!*** The book ends where it began, with Janie finishing her dialogue with her friend Pheoby. She walked back into town, with her head high upon her shoulders. She was truly her own person—proud and sure of herself and her place. Though confronted with compelling desires for others to make her a “proper woman,” Janie became independent and free-willed by the end of the novel. She overcame the standards of the early African-American generation, which upheld having no opinions or inner-initiative. Partner sites: Rottweiler, Spanish immersion program Spain, and Free Death of a Salesman Essays