Many people believe that everything in life happens for a reason. That their breakup is an open door to another better relationship. Them getting fired from their job is a new opportunity to do something greater. Everything is in god’s plan. Then what is the objective of living? If everything is predetermined, and you are already fixed into your life. This isn’t everyone’s views; some people take their life into their own hands. They don’t pray to god for help, they go and fix it themselves. Jody Starks is the only character in Their Eyes Were Watching God to believe and act on free will. Even the title of the book Their Eyes Were Watching God indicates their powerlessness in the universe. Jody attempts to defy this way of life. He takes control …show more content…
Jody had to ask the towns people what the name of the town was. After discovering the lack of amenities offered in the town, Jody took it upon himself to turn this all black ghost town into a thriving town. He did this by boasting his masculinity, and using his self-determined power he built up the town and became mayor. This began after he discovered that Eatonville had no town. He immediately went to Captain Eaton to buy more land. “‘He sho did. Come off wid de papers in his pocket. He done called a meetin’ on his porch tomorrow’” (45). Immediately Jody takes a position of authority in the town. Not only does he buy land, build a store and promotes the town, he eventually is named the mayor of the town. One day after being named mayor he takes it upon himself to buy street lamps for the town. Dissatisfied that he cannot control when it will be light and when it will be dark. “Us poor weak humans can’t do nothin’ tuh hurry it up nor to slow it down. All we can do, if we want any light after de settin’ or befo’ de risin’, is tuh make some light ourselves” (53). Jody’s inability to let fate occur was one of his most attractive qualities, consequently it was also one of his most unappealing
“Relationship abuse is a pattern of abusive and coercive behaviors used to maintain power and control over a former or current intimate partner” (Center for Relationship Abuse Awareness). In Their Eyes Were Watching God, the lead character Janie goes through three marriages that all show characteristics of abusive relationships and domestic violence. There are key elements in her early life that make her susceptible to be and remain in a situation like what is stated above and Janie herself is changed and shaped as a person because of these relationships. The novel Their Eyes Were Watching God is claimed to be one of the boldest twentieth century works dealing with feminism and domestic violence in relationships for women. Displayed through jealousy, anger, coercion, and
The film Their Eyes Were Watching God, based off of the novel by author Zora Neale Hurston, is a story of a young woman named Janie who spends the film narrating her life story to a friend. Janie’s story is one of self-exploration, empowerment, and the ability to express her freedoms both as a maturing woman and African American, throughout her life experiences. As she navigates through sexism and racism to find herself it becomes more evident that it will be more difficult than she initially thought to reach a point of happiness.
People grow and develop at different rates. The factors that heavily influence a person's growth are heredity and environment. The people you meet and the experiences you have are very important in what makes a person who he/she is. Janie develops as a woman with the three marriages she has. In each marriage she learns precious lessons, has increasingly better relationships, and realizes how a person is to live his/her life. In Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston, Janie's marriages to Logan Killicks, Jody Starks, and Tea Cake are the most vital elements in her growth as a woman.
Though it is not one of the main themes in the novel, poverty and its effects on people can be seen abundantly in Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston. The demonstration of poverty that I chose to discuss is how wealth causes a person to act toward others. The most notable examples are Janie’s three husbands, Logan Killicks, Joe Starks, and Tea Cake, and the way they treat Janie. In the novel, the wealthier a man is, the more power he has over people and the more entitled he feels.
Janie Crawford is surrounded by outward influences that contradict her independence and personal development. These outward influences from society, her grandma, and even significant others contribute to her curiosity. Tension builds between outward conformity and inward questioning, allowing Zora Neal Hurston to illustrate the challenge of choice and accountability that Janie faces throughout the novel.
In Zora Neale Hurston’s novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, many critics have argued over whether or not the main character, Janie, finds her voice by the end of the novel. Yet many seem to be confused as to what her "voice" is. Her voice is her ability to express her thoughts and display her emotions verbally. Many relate the question of Janie’s voice to her amount of emotional strength (her ability to confront her problems or run away from the current situation rather than be isolated in it), yet these things are a completely different matter entirely. While Janie’s emotional strength varies throughout the novel, her voice is always there.
In Claire Crabtree’s journal article, “The Confluence of Folklore, Feminism and Black Self-Determination in Zora Neal Hurston’s ‘Their Eyes Were Watching God’”, it addresses the large role that folklore plays regarding Janie’s growth as a character. Moreover, it states how the influence of Folklore culture shaped Janie’s experiences as a Black woman in the South. Initially, Crabtree described the integration of folk material and how it developed Janie’s journey of identity. Folklore culture affected Janie’s perception in relationships, career aspirations, and her limited role as a woman. Nevertheless, Crabtree explains how folklore is merged to the themes of feminism and Black self-determination. Moreover, she discusses how the style of narration and the novel’s unique storytelling frame amplifies the authentic aspect of the text. She
Their Eyes Were Watching God is a story about a black woman in the 1930s, Janie’s, quest for real and fulfilling love and freedom. The story begins when her grandmother, Nanny, catches her kissing a boy she doesn’t approve of. Nanny is a former slave who is raising Janie as her own daughter, Janie’s mother, was raped at seventeen, began drinking, and ran away. Countless hardships were faced by Nanny and she was denied opportunities, like marriage, in order to care for Janie and her mother. Therefore, she pressures Janie to marry Logan Killicks before she dies of old age. Despite not wanting to take part in it, Janie obeys, and learns that marriage doesn’t create love as she had thought.
Quote for Frame: The foregoing generations beheld God and the nature face to face; we, through their eyes. Why should not we also enjoy an original relation to the universe. (“Nature” Emerson)
The novel Their Eyes Were Watching God follows the life of a beautiful female named Janie Crawford. Throughout the story, Janie demonstrates the struggle to escape being shaped into becoming a submissive woman. She encounters three men who each attempt to make her a submissive wife. In each of her relationships with these men, she is either obliged or pressured to follow their orders. Although Janie struggles to hold on to her independence, she manages to persevere every time. Janie is a strong independent woman who does not allow herself to be suppressed.
I enjoyed Their Eyes Were Watching God's grasp on imagination, imagery and phrasing. Janie's dialogue and vernacular managed to carry me along, slipping pieces of wisdom to me in such a manner that I hardly realize they are ingesting something deep and true. Their Eyes Were Watching God recognizes that there are problems to the human condition, such as the need to possess, the fear of the unknown and resulting stagnation. The book does not leave us with the hopelessness of Fitzgerald or Hemingway, rather, it extends a recognition and understanding of humanity's need to escape emptiness. "Dem meatskins is got tuh rattle tuh make out they's alive (183)" Her solution is simple: "Yuh got tuh go there tuh know there." Janie
Love and Marriage Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston is a novel about a Southern black woman and her experiences through life. Janie, the main character, is forced at a young age by her grandmother, into an arranged marriage with a man named Logan. Janie is told to learn to love Logan, but the love never comes for Logan in Janie's heart so she leaves him. She meets a man named Joe. Soon after they are married.
Janie, in Their Eyes were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, was a unique individual; as a half-white, half-black girl growing up in Florida in the early 1930's, a lifetime of trials and search for understanding was set for her from the start. As the main character she sought to finally find herself, true love, and have a meaningful life. Growing up, in itself, provides a perfect opportunity for finding that essential state of self-realization and ideal comfort. Michael G. Cooke reviews Their Eyes Were Watching God in his article "The Beginnings of Self-Realization"; within the article it is falsely criticized that every time Janie is negatively impacted she grows to become more
The story ‘their eyes were watching god’ is about Janie Crawford and her search for love in a world where women were denied everything including love and their voice. She is portrayed as a heroine, who undergoes through many disappointments in search of unconditional and fulfilling love. Moreover, she is a heroine following her desire to gain autonomy in a gender biased society. The novel also talks about the different types of love that Janie has experienced and how this has shaped her life as an independent woman. A lot of literary devices, including symbolism, the view of the narrator, and imagery are used to create a picture of Janie and her circumstances. Analysis of the book provides a picture of how women today struggle in search of true love amidst a distrustful society and the delicate balance between
Jody is complex. He represents a whole host of things, including the attempt of the black man to gain wealth and power, his effort to pattern success and failure after the model of the white man ("she was proud of what she saw. Kind of portly like white folks"), and the false sense of ownership that money brings.