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Their Eyes Were Watching God Analysis

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Their Eyes Were Watching God Analysis
Sara Beth Englade
Mrs. Cain
EN II H/5
12/16/12

“Joe Starks”

Being in high school you meet a lot of people, some you like, some you do not like, some enjoyable, and then some like Joe Starks from the book “Their Eyes Were Watching God”, by Hora Neale Hurtson. Joe Starks is the husband of the main character Janie, they meet while Janie is married to Logan Killicks. Janie runs off with Joe because he promises her a better life. For the first seven years, their marriage is great! Joe turns bitter as the years go on. Joe is jealous, confident, and cold hearted, Joe is like this because he never found true love and depended on his money for happiness, this paper seeks to evaluate the traits of Joe Starks. Joe is jealous of Janie because she’s an attractive young lady and all the men flirt with her and “droll” over her. “Maybe he makes her do it. Maybe he skeered de rest of us mens might touch it round dat store.”(p.50) One day Janie was working in the store that Joe and her own, she had her hair dangling down when Joe saw one of the men playing in Janie’s hair so Joe ordered Janie to wear a hair wrap. One day Joe called Janie off the croquet grounds and said to her,”Dat’s somethin’ for de young
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On his death bed he has a chance to make things a little better with Janie but instead they end up bickering, Joe yells at her saying, “Shut up! Ah wish thunder and lightnin’ would kill yuh!”(p.86) Joe would call Janie an old woman to make himself feel better with his own looks. Joe’s cold hearted nature RUINS his and Janie’s relationship; it also hurt his relationship with other people. Joe’s cold heartedness satisfies him; he will put Janie down to make himself feel better. Joe changes for the worst, in the beginning he was pleasant, and then turned nasty towards the end. Joe could have had a loving wife if he had not have been so cold towards

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