The book “Their Eyes Were Watching God” by Zora Neale Hurston reflects gender issues, class status issues and relationship issues that existed in the African American community in early 1900s. The story revolves around Janie Crawford, an African American woman with a little bit of mixed ancestry. Abandoned by her mother, she is raised by her grandma who was a slave. Grandma or Nanny’s opinion about slavery was, "Honey, de white man is de ruler of everything as fur as Ah been able tuh find out” (14). Janie is searching for true love all her life. Janie is forced to marry an older guy at a young age because her grandma wanted security and shelter for Janie. Janie doesn't enjoy the marriage as she never felt loved like the way she thought what a marriage would feel like. The author says “She knew how marriage did not make love" (25).…
“Ships 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 landing until the Watcher turns his eyes away in resignation, his dreams mocked to death by Time. That is the life of men. Now, women forget all those things they don’t want to remember, and remember everything they don’t want to forget. The dream is the truth. Then they act and do things accordingly.”(1)…
Hurston uses dialect in her novels to enable the user to have a deeper insight into the culture in which the novels are set. Dialects are used to preserve oral traditions of a particular group. She uses dialect to preserve the African-American oral traditions to be passed on to the reader. The use of dialect makes the characters more interesting, especially to the African-American society. It is obvious that the book was meant for a black audience who read using the southern dialect among blacks to spice up the story.…
The novel, “Their Eyes Were Watching God”, focuses on a woman named Janie Crawford and her adventure for love and her struggle for independence. Since both of Janie’s parents were not in her life, she is forced to live with her grandmother. One day, Janie meets a boy and kisses him; this single action dictates where the rest of her life…
The Harlem Renaissance was a time during the roaring twenties when african american arts, and music became extremely popular in the country and was centralized in New York, Harlem. Zora Neale Hurston was a notable writer during this period, creating works that included the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God and the essay “How It Feels to Be Colored Me.”Hurston’s style both adheres to and departs from Harlem Renaissance values because of her usages of dialect that was apart of the new african american culture developing at the time, she shows the development of the “ New Negro “ through the eyes of janie furthermore, how she develops an identity during her travels with Janie’s Husbands Joe and Tea Cake.…
In Zora Neale Hurston's, Their Eyes Were Watching God, the concept of power is heavily emphasized throughout the novel. Although Joe “Jody” Starks, a man full of confidence and aspiration, became the mayor of the black town of Eatonville, he had an obsession for power and control that led to destruction.…
In the novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, the tone is mostly compassionate, sympathetic, and having tender feelings. The African American culture is very much focused on by the author. The author, Hurston, uses a plethora of conversations between friends and neighbors that use their cultural dialect. The book is more realistic, down-to-earth, and life-like because of the way Hurston wrote the book and it makes it more special.…
Nineteenth Amendment passes giving all white women the right to vote. Many women of colour are barred from voting like their…
Hurston’s novel was initially met with mixed reviews. While many lauded the book for its rich prose and complex characters, others, particularly her own Afro-American contemporaries, derided it, criticizing its lack of political commentary and her use of common vernacular. Fellow scholar and playwright Richard Wright gave a notably harsh review, claiming that the novels carries “no theme, no message, no thought,” then comparing the book to a minstrel show meant to appease the white audience. According to Wright, Hurston’s characters carry no political weight and instead “swing like a pendulum” in a “safe… orbit… between laughter and tears.” In her own lifetime, Hurston’s novels never sold well, and Their Eyes were Watching God, while noted by many initially for the story’s “warm, vibrant touch,” the public never took much interest in the book. When…
A lot of the content in Their Eyes is taken from Zora's own life. Hurston's familiarity of southern life allows her to accurately depict the unique dialect that makes Their Eyes Were Watching God so special. Throughout the novel, she uses an interesting narrative structure. Almost as if she split the presentation of the novel right down the middle, between high literary narrations using proper, refined speech and the southern drawl, the improper grammar and misspellings. Initial…
The text is a short story by Zora Neale Hurston describing a little girl filled with joy and is constantly doing things that she wants without letting the color of her skin hold her back from living her childhood days to the fullest. The short story was first published December of 1924 in an issue of Opportunity. The reader would most likely be someone who reads issues published from Opportunity or someone who was looking for articles, poems, and short stories related to African-American studies and literary pieces related to the Harlem Renaissance. The author is a prizewinner for her short story Drenched in Light. Hurston made her debut in the Harlem Renaissance with that same prize winning short story. Hurston was raised in Eatonville, which…
Historically speaking, men have been superior to women. It isn’t until recently that people have been concerned with equality. That being said, it isn’t surprising that the complex relationship between Janie and Jody isn’t any different. In Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, the author portrays the relationship between Janie and Jody as dominating.…
The novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, narrates the story of a woman’s pursuit of a meaningful life in the American South during the 1920’s. Janie desires sense of her own identity and a secure sense of independence. In the beginning of the book Janie is unsure of who she is or how she wants to live, until she has a revelation under the blossoming pear tree, where she observes perfect harmony of nature. Janie wants to achieve this type of love, which awakens an even deeper desire. Janie seeks a sense of enlightenment and oneness with the world around her.…
“‘Mules and other brutes had occupied their [Black] skins. But now, the sun and the [White] bossman were gone, so the skins felt powerful and human’” (186). Race, education, and social class are very closely intertwined in Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston. Social class, defined as a division of society based on social and economic status, can be related to the loss of humanity seen in the African Americans. The White men and women, as seen in the courtroom scene, seem to follow the “high” dialogue, meanwhile the Black men and women are all clumped together, speaking in “eye-dialect”. Underneath Hurston’s “high” and “low” dialogue, the reader can detect a difference in the life cycles—including jobs, relationships, and dreams—of…
another writer’s suggested that Hurston’s rural dialect might be more realistic (Thompson). Her excellent ear and her “skill at transcribing” (Young 220) made the language in her first novel something new…