Their Eyes Were Watching God By Zora Hurston - 994 Words

Many different controversial topics like racism and sexism are seen throughout Zora Hurston’s novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God. For example, critics show that sexism is shown by rebellion in Janie s life. According to Caldwell, Janie rebels against her grandmother’s beliefs and wishes and leaves her chosen husband for someone who she thinks is going to give her a better life(2). According to Curren, Janie and Tea Cakes go through racism all through life until their last move towards the horizon. They move into a new community in Florida in the Everglades where color does not matter(1-2). Because the elements of sexism and racism are so strong throughout the work, many times the themes overshadow other themes. For instance, Tracy Bealer theorizes that Their Eyes Were Watching God represents the concerns of African American love(1). Surprisingly, she is not alone in her belief. Many critics are beginning to demonstrate how Hurston’s novel can be read as a work that explores different aspects of love: fake love ,abusive love, controlling love, and true love. The relationships between Janie and her husbands demonstrate this idea that love is a driving theme of the work. First and foremost, critics believe that love is first demonstrated through Janie’s first husband Logan Killicks. The question is what kind of love. Janie does not choose this husband, her grandmother chooses him for her, and it is clear that love is not authentic. The story points out, â€Å"SheShow MoreRelatedTheir Eyes Were Watching God By Zora Hurston Essay1233 Words   |  5 PagesHurston In the novel â€Å"Their Eyes Were Watching God† by Zora Neal Hurston is about a young woman named Janie Crawford who goes on a journey of self discovery to find her independence. The book touches on many themes like gender roles, relations, independence and racism however racism isn’t mainly focused upon in the book which some writers felt should have been. Some felt that the representation of black characters should have been better role models. Zora Hurston’s novel wasn’t like other black literatureRead MoreTheir Eyes Were Watching God, By Zora Hurston1119 Words   |  5 Pages Who has power? In the book Their Eyes Were Watching God, men have the upper hand. while the women did not and were seen more as an obeying pet. Throughout the book Zora Hurston show men dominating Janie (main character) through her three marriages. Janie s first husband, Logan Killicks, uses his power to use her as a worker. Janie s second husband, Joe Starks, uses his power on Janie to make her obey him and is not allowed to talk to other men. Now Janie s last Husband, Teacake, uses his powerRead MoreThe Eyes Were Watching God By Zora Neal Hurston930 Words   |  4 PagesZora Neal Hurston’s ‘Their Eyes Were Watching God’, was published in 1937 and is often celebrated for it’s realistic use of language and dialect of the black American south. However, as Wright pinpoints, there is a sense of Hurston catering to the white audience in her use of language, and prompts the question of whether ‘Their Eyes Were Watching God’ should be considered a à ¢â‚¬Ëœcommunity text’ or comparable to minstrelsy. This essay will explore the ways in which Hurston creates a community text throughRead MoreTheir Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston988 Words   |  4 PagesZora Hurston was an African American proto-feminist author who lived during a time when both African Americans and women were not treated equally. Hurston channeled her thirst for women’s dependence from men into her book Their Eyes Were Watching God. One of the many underlying themes in her book is feminism. Zora Hurston, the author of the book, uses Janie to represent aspects of feminism in her book as well as each relationship Janie had to represent her moving closer towards her independenceRead MoreTheir Eyes Were Watching God By Zora Neale Hurston Essay1339 Words   |  6 Pages In â€Å"Their Eyes Were Watching God† by Zora Neale Hurston, as well as in modern times, there are many struggles surrounding gender, social class, and race. Throughout the entirety of this novel, Hurston describes every aspect of Janie’s life, in an attempt to show how young girls are transformed into women. Hurston did not describe the physical transformation, but instead tackled the much more complicated mental transformation. At the beginning of the novel, the reader is greeted with a seeminglyRead MoreTheir Eyes Were Watching God By Zora Neale Hurston Essay1688 Words   |  7 PagesAfrican American women to have their own voice and independence has been an ongoing conflict. In Zora Neale Hurston’s novel Their Eyes Were Watching God Janie struggles a majority of her life discovering her own voice by challenging many traditional roles that are set by society during this time. Hongzhi Wu, the author of â€Å"Mules and Women: Identify and Rebel—Janie’s Identity Quest in ‘Their Eyes Were Watching God,’† recognizes the trend of African American women being suppressed by making a comparison betweenRead MoreTheir Eyes Were Watching God By Zora Neale Hurston1651 Words   |  7 Pagesgender has had their individual struggles. Zora Neale Hurston portrays this with exquisite clarity in the novel â€Å"Their Eyes Were Watching God† sometimes using the imagery of anim als to explain the hardships and adversity that African Americans had to overcome. She perfectly exemplifies how black woman in particular were treated as opposed to black men and what the expectations were that society had for them both. The novel their eyes were watching god takes place during the reconstruction era ofRead MoreTheir Eyes Were Watching god, by Zora Neale Hurston1054 Words   |  5 Pageswalk. Compare an idea to an image. Exaggerate a concept. Each person has a different poetic style, and each poetic style uses different poetic techniques: personification, simile, hyperbole, imagery, or irony. Zora Neale Hurston reveals her unique poetic style through Their Eyes Were Watching God, the story of Janie Crawford and her journey to finding unconditional, true love. Her journey begins with an arranged marriage to Logan Killicks, a physically unappealing man with a considerable house, to anRead MoreThe Eyes Were Watching God By Zora Neale Hurston925 Words   |  4 PagesMany times when I read a piece of literature, I immediately look for the first signs of symbolism. I analyze that particular symbol and how I believe it is to be presented throughout the narrative. In the case of Their Eyes Were Watching G od, I recognized that Janie’s hair would have a significant place in the themes of the novel. Within the opening paragraphs, Janie stares at herself in a picture and her identity arises from her hair â€Å"seen it was mah dress and mah hair† Her identity then shiftsRead MoreThe Eyes Were Watching God By Zora Neale Hurston1595 Words   |  7 PagesJanie the Feminist The novel â€Å"The Eyes Were Watching God† by Zora Neale Hurston takes place in the Harlem Renaissance period where African American culture exploded in the United States. Slavery has been abolished which gives more rights to black men, leaving women to fill the position as a modern slave. This was a period of such suppression of woman that they were treated as if they were brainless property, much like slaves. Janie refuses to succumb to society s standards of how woman should