Ones upbringing greatly affects their levels of both individuality and independence later in life. In Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, Zora illustrates the importance of relationships throughout ones’ life. Through two very different relationships with two very different people, Janie’s self can be determined. When learning about individuality, it is a bare essential to look at their background. Janie’s and my individuality and independence are influenced by both our surroundings our relationships with the people around us. Through analyzing Janie’s relationship with Logan Killicks and Jody Starks, it is clear that her individuality is questioned and influenced by who she is with. Killicks was chosen by Nanny to become Janie’s first husband primarily due to his enticing financial stability. Janie soon realizes that “marriage did not make love.”(25). She “wants to want him sometimes. [She] don’t want him to do all de wantin.”(23). Logan says to Janie, “Ah’ll take holt uh dat ax and come in dere and kill yuh!” (31). Janie has finally had enough of being used and bei...
& nbsp;   ; Second, Janie sees Logan Killicks' perception of marriage. In the beginning it appears to Janie that Logan is a very nice gentleman, who is. constantly treating her well. However, as time goes on, Janie sees Logan's the "true colors" of the.
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.
Janie sees Logan Killicks' perception of marriage. In the beginning, it seems like that Logan is a very nice man, who is always treating her well. “Janie felt glad of the thought, fo...
Their Eyes Were Watching God is written by Zora Neale Hurston in the year of 1937. In the novel, the main character is Janie Crawford. Janie has been treated differently by others during her life because of how she was raised and the choices she has made throughout her life. The community is quick to judge her actions and listen to any gossip about Janie in the town. Janie is known to be “classed off” from other members in her community in various ways. “Classed off” means to be separate or isolated from other people.
In, Their Eyes Were Watching God, the author takes you on the journey of a woman, Janie, and her search for love, independence, and the pursuit of happiness. This pursuit seems to constantly be disregarded, yet Janie continues to hold on to the potential of grasping all that she desires. In, Their Eyes Were Watching God, the author, Zora Hurston illustrates the ambiguity of Janie’s voice; the submissiveness of her silence and the independence she reclaims when regaining her voice. The reclaiming of Janie's independence, in the novel, correlates with the development and maturation Janie undergoes during her self discovery.
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.
In Conclusion Zora Hurston’s novel Their Eyes Were Watching God, Janie uses marriage to find her identity, but ultimately she finds independence and self worth on her own. I went into detail about my thesis statement and showed what Janie went through to find independence, happiness, and identity. Hurston is important to the American Literary tradition by being the first African American to write books in her community. Her novels tell interesting stories. People should continue to read her books because they are interesting and will keep you interested and will entertain you.
Throughout Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, nature is used to tell and help visualize Janie’s story. Each of the objects symbolizes certain aspects of Janie’s life and connects to her experiences. These ideas are portrayed through nature: the pear tree, the bee and flower, and the sun and horizon are all examples in the story. While all of these show the beauty in nature, the destruction it can cause is shown through the hurricane. Nature is shown as both a beautiful and destructive force to convey the connection it has with life.
Janie's first marriage to Logan Killicks represents the "foolish marriage of an old man and a young girl" (Ferguson 185). Janie views this union as a way for her to be safe and secure from the dangers of the world that Nanny warns her about. Logan looks at Janie as another pair of hands to help work on the land. Logan Killicks maintains the slave mentality of the past about the value of hard work and the ownership of land. He believes that a man's hard work and dedication to his land form his identity. Logan Killicks, a very practical man, does not put any emphasis o...
The book, Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston is about Janie Crawford and her quest for self-independence and real love. She finds herself in three marriages, one she escapes from, and the other two end tragically. And throughout her journey, she learns a lot about love, and herself. Janie’s three marriages were all different, each one brought her in for a different reason, and each one had something different to teach her, she was forced into marrying Logan Killicks and hated it. So, she left him for Joe Starks who promised to treat her the way a lady should be treated, but he also made her the way he thought a lady should be. After Joe died she found Tea Cake, a romantic man who loved Janie the way she was, and worked hard to provide for her.
In Zora Neale Hurston’s, Their Eyes Were Watching God (1937), the story highlights the main character’s journey towards finding love. The protagonist, Janie Crawford, chases true love throughout the course of three marriages. Initially, Hurston establishes the tone of the novel through the sexualization of the act of pollination. Among the beginning scenes, the relationship between an insect and a flower entrances Janie. The imagery in this scene suggests Janie’s forthcoming obsession with love. However, her marriages fail to bring her true love, therefore, creating an alternative theme of self identity. During the novel, Hurston develops a theme of self actualization through the trials and errors of Janie’s marriages.
The Harlem Renaissance was a period of time when African Americans formed their identity by stressing their true character and creating their music and literature. Zora Neale Hurston contributed to this evolution with her unique works that inspire subsequent authors. However, From Their Eyes Were Watching God can be considered one of her most prominent works because it has a captivating story, an in-depth analyses, and one’s personal reaction.
In this world, everyone aspires to be someone and everyone sets out on the ultimate journey of trying to find themselves within the chaos. Hurston beings the novel by says one’s dreams are ‘ships in the distance” and she goes on to say how for some, their dreams will forever sail in the distance and for some the swim is worth the work to reach their dreams. In “Their Eyes Were Watching God”, Zora Neale Hurston uses this symbolic image of dreams along with several others to convey the abrupt truth that achieving our dreams is not always going to be easy and she uses Janie Stark’s several marriages to convey the truth that one's identity comes from inside oneself and the difficulty that comes with deciding who is here to hinder the discovery
Most believe finding love is more valuable than their own independence. In most cases that could be true, but if the one you are seeking and expecting love from is not treating you with respect, how is love more important? The journey of finding love could be a great one but if deep down inside you are aware of your unhappiness, then YOUR independence should be what matters. Zora Neale Hurston’s message with the theme of Love & Relationships vs. Independence is to never rush into finding love until you are ready. Your independence may bring you happiness that you may not be able to have while in a relationship.
“Death is the greatest gift you never want to receive. It is the great equalizer of mankind. For death knows no name, no race, no social class or status. It is the only way man to enjoy a meaningful existence. For if there were no death, there would be no meaning” by Dan McDaniel. In the book Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, Death is consistent throughout the book. Death is found throughout the book as an equalizer, it shows that despite people's thoughts that they are better than one another, or that they will not die until they believe that they are ready, however, that is wrong. Death, in this book, does not discriminate, does not wait, and does not care about human-made hierarchies.