Analysis Of Janie In Their Eyes Were Watching God By Zora Neale Hurston

the protagonist is Janie, who comes back to her hometown unannounced and without her husband. When Janie comes back she is dressed in clothing women in that time period were not seen wearing, ‘“What she doin coming back here in dem overalls? Can’t she find no dress to put on?...”’ (Hurston 18). Janie goes against the status quos of the African-American woman during the Great Depression. When Janie comes back all the men were watching her walk to her house, “The men noticed her firm buttocks like she had grape fruits in her hip pockets; the great rope of black hair swinging to her waist and unraveling in the wind like a plume;...” (Hurston 18). Janie is very independent and does not care about what other people think or say about her. Pearl Stone is one of the woman who talked about Janie to the other women while she was walking home; Pearl does not like Janie and feels as if Janie being different is a bad thing.

She act like we done done something to her,” Pearl Stone complained. “She de one been doin’ wrong.”’ (Hurston 19). Janie’s individuality is seen as a threat to the other women in her town. Janie’s grandmother, nanny, raised her since she was a baby and cared for her like she was her daughter. Nanny loves Janie so much that it does not matter that she is not her daughter, ‘“ Ah couldn’t love yuh no more if Ah had uh felt yo’ birth pains mahself” (Hurston 32). Nanny is the one person Janie still has from her family but the love she receives from her is the same amount of love she would receive from an entire family. Love, family, and friendship is theme that it shown in the first two chapters that looks like it will continue into more. Janie is a different type of woman and everyone