Their Eyes Were Watching God Theme

In “Their Eyes Were Watching God”, by Zora Neale Hurston, Janie recalls her story as a wilful woman shaped by love and loss. Due to her unrealistic standards of love, she was unable to fully let herself be one of two in a loving marriage. She wanted to think for herself, but she also expected the perfect marriage stereotypical to the time. Men, It wasn’t until her second marriage had ended, she had accepted a hard life, and finally addressed her mother’s and more importantly her grandmother’s negative effects on her life in love, did she let go of other’s expectations and let her own experiences shape her expectations. Seen through her relationships with her mother and Nanny, her husbands, and society, Janie’s story can only be described

She wanted to be her own person, but she also wished for the perfect marriage stereotypical to the time. “Did marriage end the cosmic loneliness of the unmated? Did marriage compel love like the sun the day?” (3.21). With these ideas going into her first marriage, Janie had set herself up for failure. Those were her questions about what marriage was, finding out they weren’t true were the deterrent to her marriage with Logan ending well. By viewing love as a union between two people who loved each other, not having love may have lead to Janie not even trying to make the marriage work. Being as young as she was, and having little to no experience with the topic, Janie never gave the marriage as much effort as she likely should have. Going into her second marriage, she met a man who spoke rhymes to her and gave her what it was she now thought a marriage needed, but he did not show her signs of what she needed out of love. “Janie pulled back a long time because he did not represent sun-up and pollen and blooming trees, but he spoke for far horizon.” (4.29). Janie's youth and little understanding of love should have made her listen to what she saw as love, the pear tree with its bee. Without her idea of love present in her budding relationship with Jody, Janie again set herself up for failure. Without feeling a connection to Jody, besides “newness” and

Somebody wanted her to play. Somebody thought it natural for her to play. That was even nice. She looked him over and got little thrills from one of his good points. Those full, lazy eyes with the lashes curling sharply away like drawn scimitars. The lean, over-padded shoulders and narrow waist. Even nice!” (10.25).

Janie wanted to be treated as a lady, but not to the point where that meant a man would control who she was and what she did. Janie’s marriage to Tea Cake had just that.

“"T ain't no boogerman got me tuh study ‘bout. Maybe you think Ah ain’t treatin’ yuh right and you watchin’ me."

"Naw, naw, Janie. Ah know better’n dat. But since you got dat in yo’ head, Ah’ll have tuh tell yuh de real truth, so yuh can know. Janie, Ah gits lonesome out dere all day ‘thout yuh. After dis, you betta come git uh job uh work out dere lak de rest uh de women—so Ah won’t be losin’ time comin’ home."

"Tea Cake, you’se uh mess! Can’t do ‘thout me dat lil time."

"Taint no lil time. It’s near ‘bout all day.”

So the very next morning Janie got ready to pick beans along with Tea Cake.”