Their Eyes Were Watching God, By Zora Neale Hurston

In her article “Tuh de Horzion and Back: The Female Quest in Their Eyes Were Watching God”, Missy Dehn Kubitschek argues against her fellow critics’ common misconception of Janie as “a passive prize” (109), in favor of, recognizing the “the independence and strength” (109) within her. Kubitschek showcases the independence and strength of Janie through outlining her heroine’s quest throughout, Their Eyes Were Watching God, according to the five qualifications, “answering the call to adventure, crossing the threshold into the unknown, facing various trials, finding the reward (either concrete or symbolic), and returning to the community” (110), provided by Joseph Campbell’s The Hero With a Thousand Faces. In doing so, Kubitschek expertly contradicts
Hurston alludes to this comparison when she has Janie defend the mule against its baiters saying, “They oughta be shamed uh theyselves! Teasing dat poor brute beast lake they is! …Wisht Ah had mah way wid’em ali”(56). Janie’s reaction to seeing the mule being teased brought out a sort of sympathy within her towards the mule because she could relate; she similarly was defenseless against Jody’s emotional cruelty. Kubitschek comments on this sympathy concluding its “in one sense a reaction to her own plight, for Nanny has identified the black woman as the mule of the world”(112) reflecting the idea of Janie seeing herself inside the mule. Moreover, Hurston has the narrator further convey this state of defenselessness inside Janie saying, “A little war of defense was going on inside her. People ought to have some regard for helpless things. She wanted to fight about it”(57). Hurston description of Janie’s conveys the lack of confidence of Janie to fight against the smothering of her identity within her marriage to Jody. Furthermore, Janie later in the novel describes her time in Eatonville, “Ah wuz fumblin’ round and God opened de door” (159) conveying a lack of sentimentality towards her time in Eatonville. She saw Jody’s death as an opportunity to seek something past the boundaries society set up for her; it
Furthermore, Janie’s love for Tea Cake becomes a crucial element in pushing her towards the ability to express her individuality. Hurston showcases this with Janie’s willingness to fight for her relationship shown in her violent reaction to Tea Cake flirting with Nunkie, “she cut him short with a blow” (137). Janie’s willingness to express herself violently against Tea Cake shows her progression toward a person willing to fight for what she believes; a complete reversal of her mind state during her relationship with Jody. In this moment, Janie projects her desire for love through a ferocious strength to protect the relationship containing the love she desired. In fact, Janie’s relationship with Tea Cake breaks the structure of her two previous marriages conveyed through Tea Cake’s description of Nunkie, “She ain’t good for nothin’ exceptin’ tuh set up in uh corner by de kitchen stove and break wood over her head. You’se something tuh make uh man forgit tuh git old and forgit tuh die”(138). Tea Cake’s description of Nunkie ironically was Janie’s position in her previous marriages; she was background scenery for her husbands to showcase. However, Janie seems to challenge Tea Cake with a strength no other women could match provided by the element of her individuality. She’s truly unlike anyone else in the eyes of Tea Cake achieving a sort of