What was the moral of their eyes were watching God?
Zora Neale Hurston 's Janie, in Their Eyes Were Watching God, spends the majority of the book searching for meaning and happiness. For much of the story, she is looking for a spiritual connection to something or someone outside of herself, and she has a strong moral sense of what she wants and deserves out of life.
What is the plot of their eyes were watching God?
Their Eyes Were Watching God tells the story of Janie’s passage from repression to spiritual fulfillment as she clashes with the expectations thrust upon her by others.
Who said their eyes were watching God?
To sum up, In Their Eyes Were Watching God, Zora Neale Hurston uses literary techniques, such as imagery, symbolism, and similes. Hurston uses literary techniques to convey meaning as well as bring clarity and richness to the story. Hurston uses imagery to help the reader get a visual of the characters, settings, or plot in the story.
What is the main conflict in their eyes were watching God?
The main conflict in Their Eyes Were Watching God is between Janie and her grandmother, Nanny Crawford. Nanny has been raising Janie since birth. She treats Janie as if she were her own. Nanny and Janie love each other, but through the years, they have shared differences of opinion.
How old is Janie at the start of Chapter 7?
By Zora Neale Hurston Janie considers running away but feels trapped. She even realizes that she's been with Joe half her life—she married him at 17 and is now 35. She learns to imagine herself sitting underneath the comfort of a tree in summertime while she does her work and outwardly submits to Joe.
How old is Janie when she tells her story?
She is simply "Nanny" to Janie because that is what the white children that she takes care of call her. Born into slavery, Nanny tells Janie her life story when the girl is sixteen. Her experiences make her sadly aware of what can happen to an attractive woman.
How old is Janie when Joe dies?
After Joe dies, when Janie is in her late 30s and economically secure and free, Tea Cake Woods comes strolling down the road with his guitar and his fun-loving ways.
How old is Janie in Their Eyes Were Watching God Chapter 2?
16 years oldWe flash forward, and Janie is now 16 years old and discovering the phenomenon of sex for the first time. While lying out under a blossoming pear tree, Janie witnesses a bee pollinating a pear blossom and describes it as a sexual experience.
How old was Janie when she was not white?
Janie played with Mrs. Washburn's white grandchildren, and it was not until she saw herself in a group picture, when she was six years old, that she discovered that she was not white.
What is Tea Cake's real name?
Vergible WoodsQuick Reference. Vergible Woods, known as Tea Cake, is the third husband of Janie Crawford, the protagonist of Zora Neale Hurston's novel Their Eyes Were Watching God (1937).
How did Joe abuse Janie?
About seven years into their marriage, Joe hits Janie for not preparing his dinner properly. After that, Janie falls out of love. She realizes she is saving herself up for some other man. While Joe is growing old, he insults Janie to deflect people from noticing his age, but Janie won't take it.
What did Janie do after Joe died?
In her first act of freedom following Joe's death, Janie burns her headrags to symbolize her new independence from Joe's control. While many women who lose their husbands feel weak and insecure, Janie does not. Rather, Janie actually gains strength from Joe's death.
Why is Janie so attracted to Joe?
Why is Janie initially attracted to Jody Starks? She thinks he will help her realize her dreams. She is impressed by his wealth and power.
Was Janie's father white?
Because Janie's father is a white rapist and her mother the product of a white slave owner and a black slave woman, Janie's birth is a result of race victimization.
What happened to Janie's mother at age 17?
What happened to Janie's mother at age 17? What happened as a result? She was raped. Janie was born.
How long has Janie been away?
In the first few pages, Janie returns to her hometown of Eatonville, Florida, after nearly two years absence. Her neighbors are curious to know where she has been and what has happened to her.
How does Janie find her identity?
It has to do with her search for a name, and freedom for herself. As she goes through life her search takes many turns for the worse and a few for the better, but in the end, she finds her true identity. Through her marriages with Logan, Joe, then Tea Cake she figures out what is for her and how she wants to live.
How old is Janie when Logan married?
16 years oldThough Janie hopes that it will grow, there is never any gentleness or love between her and Logan. She is 15 or 16 years old when she is married off to Logan and later, she grows to resent her grandmother for selling her off, like a slave.
How long has Janie been away?
In the first few pages, Janie returns to her hometown of Eatonville, Florida, after nearly two years absence. Her neighbors are curious to know where she has been and what has happened to her.
What is Janie's situation at the beginning of the novel?
The main character is Janie Mae Crawford. What is her situation at the beginning of the novel? She is returning home after having been gone for some time.
How old is Janie Crawford?
Janie Sixteen-year-old Janie Crawford dreams of love and wonders whether love will come with marriage. Twenty-four years and three marriages later, Janie has experienced both love and personal growth.
Who are the porch sitters in the movie?
The Porch Sitters A group of men and a few women who sit on the porches of their homes , as well as on the porch of Joe Starks' crossroads store, and diligently mind everyone else's business, especially Janie's. The women who gossip about Janie as she trudges into the town are Pearl Stone, Mrs. Sumpkins, and Lulu Moss. Some of the men have minor speaking roles in this story, but for the most part, they simply represent the community, Joe and Janie's town. Among them are Lee Coker, Guv'nor Amos Hicks, Tony Taylor, Lige Moss, Hambo, Pearson, Brother Davis (the preacher), Sim Jones, Oscar Scott, Jeff Bruce, Matt Bonner, Walter Thomas, and Sam Watson. Hezekiah Potts helps Janie in the store after Joe's death.
Does Janie know Pheoby will be honest?
In either case, Janie knows that Pheoby will be honest. [ Note: Hurston spells Pheoby's name in a most unusual way. Usually, the name is spelled P-h-o-e-b-y. When taking a test or writing a paper about this novel, be sure to double-check the spelling of this character's name.]
What is Janie aware of?
In the coming weeks, Janie is aware of the simultaneous feelings of admiration and jealousy that the townspeople feel toward... (full context) Because Janie is kept silent by her husband, the townspeople can only speculate about why and how... (full context) Chapter 6.
What did Janie feel when she looked down on him?
He drifted off into sleep and Janie looked down on him and felt a self-crushing love. So her soul crawled out from its hiding place.
What does Nanny pray for after Janie leaves?
(full context) After Janie leaves, Nanny prays that God will take care of her granddaughter. Within a month, Nanny... (full context) Chapter 4.
Why did Janie pull back a long time?
Janie pulled back a long time because he did not represent sun-up and pollen and blooming trees, but he spoke for far horizon. Chapter 5 Quotes. "Thank yuh fuh yo' compliments, but mah wife don't know nothin' 'bout no speech-makin'. Ah never married her for nothin' lak dat. She's uh woman and her place is in de home.".
What does Janie feel about Nanny?
(full context) Despite Nanny's belief that "Uh woman by herself is uh pitiful thing," Janie feels remarkably happy in her new state of freedom – the only exception to her... (full context) Chapter 10.
What does Janie realize after asking the man how he plans to get home?
After asking the man how he plans to get home, Janie realizes that she doesn't know his name. The man responds that his name is Vergible... (full context)
When Janie protests against marrying Logan, does Nanny defend her decision?
When Janie protests against marrying Logan, Nanny defends her decision by describing her own difficult past. Nanny... (full context)
Why does Joe want Janie?
Joe, the third person in Janie's life, wants her because he sees that she has class. She is a physically attractive young woman, far above any other woman Joe has known. He takes her as a possession, a trophy he has captured and can display along with his other possessions: his town, his house, his store, and his position as mayor.
What does Logan see Janie as?
Logan sees her as a spoiled child who must learn to be a farm wife. It is quite evident that Janie is willing to perform the chores that she sees as rightfully and dutifully hers, but those chores do not include plowing a potato field, regardless of how gentle the mule is.
What is the character analysis of Janie Crawford?
Character Analysis Janie Crawford Killicks Starks Woods. An unwritten law in the little community in which Janie Crawford grew up stated that no girl would appear in school better dressed than the other girls, even those wearing second-hand clothes. Likewise, no 16-year-old should live in a neat little house with a yard on land owned by her ...
What does Nanny encourage in Janie?
Janie makes no friends at school. Nanny encourages this attitude of exceptionality in Janie. The old woman labors not for herself, but for this child whom she believes that God has sent to her.
Does Nanny consult Janie?
Neither Nanny nor Joe ever consults Janie about what she wants in life; therefore, Janie is always yearning for something. The inner Janie is far from satisfied. Within the outwardly attractive woman called Janie Starks is a simple inner woman called Janie, and all she wants is to love and to be loved.
What is Janie's first and second marriage?
During her first and second marriages, she is reliant, dependent, and fearful of speaking her mind and expressing herself. However, near the end of her second marriage, she learns to defend herself. During and after her marriage to Tea Cake, Janie finds the true love that she has craved since adolescence.
Where does Janie meet Joe?
In this realization, Janie “becomes a woman,” as she has lost the innocent belief in love and marriage that her Nanny imposed on her. Janie then meets the charming Joe “Jody” Starks, and together they run off to Eatonville, Florida. Although loving at first, their marriage begins to deteriorate.
How long does Janie mourn Jody?
Janie mourns Jody for six months, but this is done perfunctorily. She feels liberated and happy now that Jody has died, she is moderately wealthy, and she can wear her hair as she pleases. Her newfound independence and happiness makes her attractive to suitors, but she prefers to be on her own.
Why is Janie chastised?
Janie is chastised for having expected her marriage to be a source of love (rather than simply security). A month after this disillusioning conversation, Nanny dies, at which point Janie and Logan have been married for three and a half months. Despite the passage of those months, the first season Janie must live through in the wake of Nanny's death is still springtime:
What chapter does Janie marry Logan?
Chapter 3 outlines the beginning of the marriage between Logan and Janie. After the events of the spring day on which she is compelled to marry, Janie has only a "few days to live before she went to Logan Killicks." In a conversation that takes place "two month and two weeks" after the wedding, Janie seeks Nanny's advice on the one-sided nature of her marriage to a man whom she wants to love, but doesn't:
Is Logan's marriage a loveless one?
This marriage to Logan was a loveless one, and the time it lasted was generally unhappy for Janie. We don't have a lot of time clues, but we do know a couple of things. Janie and her grandmother have their discussion about marrying Logan in the spring. The next clue is
What was Janie's view of love?
Janie’s view of love was of the pear tree. The perfect harmony between the pear tree and its surroundings was what she thought love was. Her marriages to Logan Killicks and Jody Starks failed to fulfill her vision of love. Tea Cake and Janie went together like the pear tree and its surroundings.
What did Janie finally find real love with?
The kiss of his memory made pictures of love and light against the wall.” (Pg. 193) Janie finally found real love with her marriage to Tea Cake. READ: The Mule in Their Eyes Were Watching God. Although at the beginning of the book Janie was naïve about love, she learned through her three marriages many lessons about love, ...
What did Janie learn from Tea Cake?
When Janie married Tea Cake, she realized true love could be found. Janie learned through her three marriages even though she had bad experiences with love; there was a thing as true love. Before her three marriages, Janie was very naïve about love. Zora Neale Hurston shows Janie’s view on marriage, “She saw a dust-bearing bee sink into sanctum ...
Why did Jody and Janie fall in love?
Janie fell in love with Jody because of his big plans and his success. Jody treated Janie as an accessory, a bonus to his success.
Why did Janie marry Logan Killicks?
Janie was forced be Nanny to marry Logan Killicks for her financial stability. She thought that she could love him after their marriage, “Yes, she would love Logan after they were married.” (Pg. 21) But after two months and two weeks, Janie visits Nanny pouting about her marriage.
Did Jody treat Janie as an equal?
You changes everything but nothin’ don’t change you – not even death. But Ah ain’t goin’ outa here and Ah ain’t gointuh hush.” (Pg. 86) Janie knew that Jody never treated her as an equal and she did not love him because of it.
Was Janie the bee naive?
Before her three marriages, Janie was very naïve about love. Zora Neale Hurston shows Janie’s view on marriage, “She saw a dust-bearing bee sink into sanctum of a bloom; the thousand sister-calyxes arch to meet the love embrace and the ecstatic shiver of the tree from the root to tiniest branch creaming in every blossom and frothing with delight. So this was marriage!” (pg. 11)
