African American literature conveys elements that reflect on the experiences and injustices that African Americans faced in the United States. African American writers gravitate towards themes of slavery, racism, and social inequality. Amongst the most well-known writers of this type literature is Zora Neale Hurston, who wrote works through a feminist perspective and brought to light the discrimination African Americans faced. During the Harlem Renaissance time period, from the early 1920’s to the mid-1930’s, Hurston provided a feminine voice and boosted how women were perceived in the public eye. Her novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, published in 1937 portrays elements of social and gender inequality though the female protagonist, Janie …show more content…
The foundation of Hurston’s novel is built upon social inequality. Janie’s grandmother, Nanny, was raped by her slave owner and experienced barbaric treatment after, because the wife of the slave owner became enraged that Nanny’s children were light skinned and threatened to have her whipped. The hardships Nanny faced created fears, fears that Nanny embedded into raising Janie. She encouraged Janie to marry a man, Logan Killicks, who could provide her with security and a social status. Janie married Mr. Killicks despite not loving him, because that was ideal that was raised with. In a conversation with Nanny about her potential husband, her grandmother encourages her to seek money so that her fate could different than …show more content…
Throughout the novel, Janie faces poor treatment and is submissive to all three of her husbands. Therefore, all the hardships and insults that Janie endures in the story allow her to break free and her grandmother’s ideal, that wealth and a social status should be a priority and overcome all other aspects, such as love. Janie returns to Eatonville a new woman; she doesn't care for the opinions of others and continues her way through the town. This shows that Janie at the end of the novel is headstrong and has finally found her independence in a male dominated society. Considering that she was a black woman during the time that the story took place, Janie constructs a comfortable life for herself. Thus, Hurston makes Janie’s character undergo several harsh experiences, abandonment by her mother and she endures abuse from all of husbands, however, not without making her prevail at the end of the novel as she frees herself from the men in her
What is one’s idea of the perfect marriage? In Zora Neal Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, Janie has a total of three marriages and her best marriage was to Tea Cake. Janie’s worst and longest marriage was to Joe Starks where she lost her dream and was never happy. The key to a strong marriage is equality between each other because in Janie’s marriage to Joe she was not treated equally, lost apart of herself and was emotionally abused, but her and Tea Cake's marriage was based on equality and she was able to fully be herself.
In the beginning years of Janie’s life, there were two people who she is dependent on. Her grandmother is Nanny, and her first husband is named Logan Killicks. In Their Eyes Were Watching God, “Janie, an attractive woman with long hair, born without benefit of clergy, is her heroine” (Forrest). Janie’s grandmother felt that Janie needs someone to depend on before she dies and Janie could no longer depend on her. In the beginning, Janie is very against the marriage. Nanny replied with, “’Tain’t Logan Killicks Ah wants you to have, baby, its protection. ...He done spared me...a few days longer till Ah see you safe in life” (Hurston 18). Nanny is sure to remind Janie that she needs a man in her life for safety, thus making Janie go through life with that thought process.
As Janie is growing up she has to learn to accept her Nanny’s belief of how a woman is supposed to live in society. Nanny grew up in slavery so she believes that the role of men is to support his wife financially. Nanny thinks Janie should marry a man according to how successful he is and Janie should keep up the household responsibilities. Janie’s grandmother said, “Ah been waitin’ a long time, Janie, but nothin’ Ah I
The novel Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston explores the life of an African American woman from the south who is trying to find herself. The protagonist of this novel is Janie Crawford. She is trying to defy what people expect of her, and she lives her life searching to have a better life. Zora Neale Hurston’s life experiences influence the book in many ways, including language, personality, and life experiences.
These beliefs include how women should act in society and in marriage. Nanny and her daughter, Janie's mother, were both raped and left with bastard children, this experience is the catalyst for Nanny’s desire to see Janie be married to a well-to-do gentleman. She desires to see Janie married to a well-to-do gentleman because she wants to see that Janie is well cared for throughout her life. As a result of Nanny’s desire to see Janie married to wealth, she forces Janie to marry Logan Killocks, an older black farmer who owns 60 acres and a mule. Janie does not love Logan but because Nanny pushes her into the marriage she believes love will follow marriage, but Nanny quickly says “You come head wid yo’ mouf full uh foolishness on uh busy day.
“There are years that ask questions and years that answer.” From the moment one is born, one begins to form their identity through moments and experiences that occur throughout the years. In Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, Janie’s identity of independence arises through her past marriages through the words and actions of her husbands.
When thinking about the novels that are read in high school, To Kill A Mockingbird and The Great Gatsby come to mind for most people. The novel Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston usually is not thought of. Throughout the years, critics believed Hurston’s novel to be just fiction and that it pose no meaning. In spite of the novel not having much politics, it does contain many social issues from the past that are still somewhat relevant today. Above all, Their Eyes Were Watching God deals with the way people are unequally treated in society based on their gender, race, or anything that makes them diverse from others. It is probable that Hurston brings up the controversial issues of her time era in the hope to cause a transformation in the world.
During her marriage to Joe, Janie reflects on how Nanny’s strict upbringing has influenced her life and concludes that “Nanny had taken the biggest thing God ever made, the horizon-- for no matter how far a person can go the horizon is still a little way beyond you, and pinned it in...” (89). Hurston emphasizes the vastness of the horizon as a way of alluding to the countless possibilities it holds. In saying that Nanny “pinned it in”, Hurston argues that Nanny was too narrow-minded to appreciate the opportunity held by the horizon, scared of the freedom it held. Nanny breeds this fear in Janie by imposing her own values on her without allowing Janie to discover what was important for her. Clogging the horizon provided the control she inherently craved, a desire implanted in her by the materialistic beliefs she held. A smaller horizon made Nanny feel as though she was closer to achieving her dreams, but in reality, all it did was narrow her options. By clogging the horizon and its limitless possibilities, Nanny clogged her “veil” as well, making it more difficult to sift through (what she valued in life?) good and
The Harlem Renaissance was all about freedom of expression and the search for one's identity. Zora Neale Hurston’s, Their Eyes Were Watching God, shows these goals through the main character Janie and her neighbors. Janie freely expressed what she wanted and searched for her identity with her different husbands. Even though Janie was criticized by everyone except her friends, she continued to pursue. She lost everything, but ultimately found her identity. Hurston's writing is both a reflection and a departure from the idea of the Harlem Renaissance.
Of least significance to Janie is her first husband, Logan Killicks. Hurston uses pathos to show that Janie and her first husband are not meant to be even though society thinks otherwise. Nanny thinks that Logan is really made for Janie, but Janie doesn’t love Logan. Janie tells Nanny, “Cause you told me Ah
In some of the other literature in this course and others, black women are written as strong characters, but many of them don't live the life that Janie lived. She appeared to have more choices than most and she acted upon her feelings rather than suffering in many cases. She falls in love with her last two husbands without feeling as if she were being raped or forced to do unnecessary things. Unlike her mother, grandmother and other black women, particularly slaves, she is given the chance to be feminine and complete her duties as a wife without subtle forms of torture. I feel that Hurston is using her imagination to "get back" at white women in a sense because she shapes Arvay's character as the one who is slightly oppressed.
As the novel opens Janie creates a visual demonstration which lets us know that there is a large difference between her and the other women in the novel (n.p.). She becomes one with her sexuality after lying under a pear tree. Hurston stated, "Janie saw her life like a great tree in leaf with the things suffered, things enjoyed, things done and undone. Dawn and doom was in the branches" (pg.8).This leads to her eventually kissing a young man by the name of Johnny Taylor. Nanny sees her kiss him, and says that Janie is now a woman. (pg. 12) She wants her to marry now and suggests that Janie marry Logan Killicks because he has shown an interest in Janie by always coming around their house. (pg. 13) Janie does not want to marry Logan because she feels he's unattractive and he does not resemble her image of a blooming pear tree. With this being said, Nanny leads Janie to believe no matter who she marrys, she will eventually learn to love them (Kubitschek 23). Janie hated Nanny because of the choices she made for her (pg.85). Thereafter, Nanny arranged for Janie to marry Logan Killicks. She felt that getting married to him will protect Janie from the burdens of being a black woman. Janie did nothing but obey.
In Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, the protagonist Janie faces many struggles in her life. As the offspring of rape in the south, she never really had a choice in who she was or wanted to be. She became trapped within the social ladder where she, as a black woman, hung at the very bottom. Also, her aspirations are shaped by her grandmother, Nannie, who only wanted her to have a life of money, security, and protection, a life she never got to have. However, as Janie moves from one marriage to the next, she begins to discover her independence, voice, and conscience as she moves from one marriage to the next.
Their Eyes Were Watching God, an intriguing novel written by Zora Neale Hurston tells the story of a young girl and journey in her early years of womanhood. The language used in this novel send a specific message to the audience which has received many positive and negative responses. People such as Richard Wright harshly criticized the book whereas people like Alain LeRoy Locke admired the writing of Zora Neale Hurston. Critics like Richard Wright, who bash Hurston’s novel, fail to see the brilliance of the style and portrayal of the African-American culture.
... Janie is free-spirited and unconcerned about what others think of her. When she returns to Eatonville after Tea Cake’s death, she shows no shame for what she has done or where she has been, because she is finally able to live the life she always wanted to lead. Hurston’s own struggles in life for individuality and an outlet for her suppressed spirit clearly contribute to the development of Janie’s character. Just as Hurston struggled for recognition, equality, and purpose in the literary world during the Harlem Renaissance, Janie’s struggle for the recognition, equality, and purpose in her relationships.