Their Eyes Were Watching God Analysis

Their Eyes Were Watching God, written by Zora Neale Hurston, follows the life of a mixed black woman’s search for love. The speaker of the novel, Janie Crawford, tells her story to a friend upon returning to Eatonville, Florida. When published, the novel didn’t receive much positive feedback; instead it was heavily criticized for portraying a black community in such a way that opens up more discrimination from the white men surrounding them. However, Hurston presents the black community in a way that she observed and further uses it to represent humanity as a whole. The stories of love and ambition surrounding Janie aren’t only associated with the black community, but with everyone. Throughout Janie’s life, she attempts to find love through

The readers learn from Janie’s unhappy comments that he is an old, unattractive man; the opposite of her desires. Despite Janie’s protests, Nanny believes he is a perfect match because of the financial security that he can provide. Logan owns sixty acres of land and makes a living for himself. As a farmer, his routine controls his life and is always out working in the fields. He plans for his future as well and doesn’t live so much in the past or the present. This is apparent when he decides he will get a gentle mule that “even a woman kin handle” (27). Because he is so concerned with the future, he does not take time to enjoy the present and constantly works to secure his future; this is what Nanny liked about him. Logan does his household chores because he feels that it is his responsibility and keeps “both water buckets full” and the wood chopped for Janie as acts of love (23). Unfortunately, Janie does not see them as such. She wants love that doesn’t include “toe-nails [that] look lak mule foots” and clean feet in bed (24). Janie’s idea of marriage includes her husband “talking in rhymes” and providing her with the experience she witnessed with the pear tree (26). Logan Killicks also criticizes Janie for growing up with white folks because it made her spoiled and unwilling to do her work. He believes that he can “take and make somethin’ outa [Janie]” because she thinks she is one of the

She meets him on the side of the road and eventually runs away with him. Unlike Logan, Jody has been working for white people all his life. He has aspirations to be a big voice in the world so when he learned about the making of “a town all outa colored folks” he made plans to head there (28). He never had a voice because the white people around him called all the shots but now, Jody realizes that if he gets to the town while it is first being created, he will have his chance to have a voice. Unlike Logan, Jody believes that Janie shouldn’t be in behind a plow or working in the fields but rather “sittin’ on de front porch” while fanning herself (29). Janie assesses that Jody’s dreams are for “far horizon” and out of reach but that doesn’t stop her from running away from him (29). Jody becomes a self-made man, creating a name for himself in his new town and assuming the role of mayor. Though he successfully runs the town, the townspeople begin to like him less and less because of his possessive ways. They comment about the ways he “rears and pitches” at Janie and his controlling behavior (50). Jody is possessive when it comes to Janie. He demonstrates his possessiveness when he forces Janie to keep her hair tied up after catching someone touching it. Jody also doesn’t allow Janie to associate with the townspeople because, as the mayor’s wife, she is better than the rest of the town’s