Symbolism In Their Eyes Were Watching God

Zora Neale Hurston effectively used the symbol of the gate to display to the readers the beginning of a new outlook or change in Janie’s life. This symbol helped develop the character of Janie and clarifies the meaning of the story of Their Eyes Were Watching God which is about the self-discovery of women in the 1920s and

Firstly, Janie views the horizon as an opportunity for something great to happen in her life. For example, in the beginning paragraph in the novel, it illustrates how harboring ships give people hope for the ships to be carrying cargo that they need the most: “[s]hips at a distance have every man’s wish on board. For some they come in with the tide. For others they sail forever on the horizon, never out of sight, never

In the excerpt from Zora Neale Hurston's novel Their Eyes Were Watching God, the author uses personification to bring the scenery surrounding Janie to life in a surreal way. By using personification through the passage, the author helps put a vivid imagine in the reader's head.

Many literary works embody the concept and elements of symbolism. It can evoke striking feelings and communicate prominent ideas through its symbolic language. A profound author, Zora Neale Hurston, known for her use of symbolism in the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God, conveys symbols to communicate the experiences of a beautiful yet determined, black woman named Janie Crawford. Janie endeavors to find her euphoria and her perception of self-recognition and love. What comes with her journey of her womanhood is her undying struggle in discovering her aspirations from many marriages to realize her true love that completes her. In the novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, Hurston uses the horizon, the pear tree, and the bee and blossom as symbols

In Zora Neale Hurston's novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, the reader is taken on an expedition through the life and love of Janie, which provides the reader different levels of imagery and symbolism. “Hurston… use the journey motif to structure and enhance their heroines‘quests as well as lyrical image patterns to evoke and communicate the processes of growth, regeneration and intimations of the Divine within each character.” (Sullivan 1364) Through this expedition Janie strives to achieve her principles about what love was and how she should be living her life. Hurston chose to introduce the reader to the return of Janie as the opening of the book. “Janie’s existence will become a continuous struggle to bring her own experience into harmony with her initial vision of the pear tree” (Maroto 72) Janie was not focusing on what is wrong in her single life, but what was good in it. “Now, women forget all those things they don't want to remember, and

In Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, symbols are implemented to help the readers Identify and understand the leitmotif of the novel. One commonly found symbol is Janie’s hair, which represents her personality, individuality, and character. The state of her hair changes as the novel progresses and Jamie goes through different stages of life, struggling to find true love. Using Jamie’s hair to express her feelings and emotions throughout the novel, Hurston highlights the theme that finding true love and happiness requires one to be free and adventurous in life without letting any obstacles or events alter one’s character.

All novels contain symbolism in one shape or form, masking a deeper meaning beneath the words that are written on the page. Usually, there is an assortment of symbols disguised by a literal meaning that blend in with the scene. Symbols frequently come in the form of nature. Nature, generally being in the background of a scene, becomes more prominent when it is meant to be identified as a symbol. In Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, the symbolism in nature is recurrent throughout the novel. It is used to indicate turning points and track the growth of the main character, Janie’s, coming-of-age. This is portrayed through the changing of the seasons and various correspondents. In this way, it can be seen that not all events affect Janie in the same way, leading her in one direction. In Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, seasonal symbols are used to target experiences in Janie’s life and how they affect her overall development into adulthood.

In the re-designed cover of Their Eyes Were Watching God I used a road as a symbol of dreams. The road helps show that there are better things ahead with the possibility of change and improvement. “Ships have every man’s wish on board. For some they come in with the tide. For others they sail on forever on the horizon, never out of sight, never landing until the Watcher turns his eyes away in the resignation, his dreams mocked to death by Time. that is the life of men” (Hurston 1). People rely on their dreams to get them to where they want to go just as Janie relies on men to get her to where she wants to go.

Author Zora Neale Hurston weaves many powerful symbols into her acclaimed novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God. Hurston’s use of symbols enhances the reader’s understanding of the trials and tribulations along the road of self discovery for the story’s main character, Janie. Of the many symbols used throughout the novel, one in particular - Janie’s hair - is subtle yet striking as it gives us insight into Janie’s perceived social status, oppression, self identity, and her eventual independence through her self identity as a woman despite the social norms of the time period.

Zora Neale Hurston had an intriguing life, from surviving a hurricane in the Bahamas to having an affair with a man twenty years her junior. She used these experiences to write a bildungsroman novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, about the colorful life of Janie Mae Crawford. Though the book is guised as a quest for love, the dialogues between the characters demonstrate that it is actually about Janie’s journey to learn how to not adhere to societal expectation.

From the first sentences of the beginning of the novel we are lead to learn about the dreams of men. Starting with those first few paragraphs meant the audience needed to keep a look out for Janie’s dream. From the first moment we see her with the pear tree Janie’s dream seems obvious. Her dream is to find out what true love is. Using Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, Edwidge Danticat’s foreword, and my own annotations Janie’s dream will be explored.

Zora Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God follows protagonist Janie Mae Crawford’s journey into womanhood and her ultimate quest for self-discovery. Having to abruptly transition from childhood to adulthood at the age of sixteen, the story demonstrates Janie’s eternal struggle to find her own voice and realize her dreams through three marriages and a lifetime of hardships that come about from being a black woman in America in the early 20th century. Throughout the novel, Hurston uses powerful metaphors helping to “unify” (as Henry Louis Gates Jr. puts it) the novel’s themes and narrative; thus providing a greater understanding of Janie’s quest for selfhood. There are three significant metaphors in the novel that achieve this unity: the

Hurston uses small symbols such as the store to display how Janie has gained some independence. After Janie marries Joe they open up a store together. Being the only general store in the town they experience a lot of customers. Often Janie is found managing

The novel “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston is a story of a black woman in the 1930’s, struggling to accomplish her dreams. The main character Janie, dreams of being in a loving relationship, where there is mutual love and respect. Throughout the novel there is a consistent symbol relating to the horizon, which serves to represent a person’s dreams.

In Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes were Watching God, the story of a protagonist, Janie, trying to find love, reach self-fulfillment and define her identity is told. On this physical and emotional journey, symbols are effectively used to develop themes. Most prevalently, the symbols of Janie’s hair and the horizon establish the theme that true love preserves the identity of both unified individuals.