Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston (Quotations with Analysis)

This book, which I have read about three times already, is still in my “favorite books of all times” pile. Janie awakens to the possibilities of love, life, and passion but that doesn’t come easy. That’s really why I love this book so much. When grown women are depicted as wise and confident throughout an emotional journey, I literally fall in love. Their hopes, dreams, everything laid before the world. I could read stories like that forever.

Reader’s Journal- Graphic Organizer
          

Quotation	Situation	Importance to Plot or Character	Analysis
“Ships at a distance have every man’s wish on board. For some they come in with the tide. For others they sail forever in the horizon… never landing until the Watcher turns his eyes away in resignation… That is life of men. 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. ”  (page 1)	Janie’s grandmother forces Janie into a loveless marriage with Logan. However, Janie is an unhappy wife of seventeen. She finds herself in a situation of leaving her current old husband for Joe Starks who asks her to meet him on the road outside her house so that they can run away together. Janie considers the matter and leaves with Joe who appears to be the man who is going to make her feel “loved”.	Janie Crawford is depicted as an attractive, confident, and a woman who acts and does things accordingly. Her grandmother raised her, but her life as a slave and experience with Janie’s mother, has changed her mindset and her worldview. Janie is the only woman who cannot be silenced because of her strong will. She knows what she wants in life.	The book begins with a statement about differences between men and women. For some men, the ship comes in and the dream is realized instantly. For other men, the ship sails for a long time and once it gets back to them their dreams are finally worthless to them. Women are different. At least, Janie is. She belongs to the group that has dreams. She takes opportunities. She ends up doing what makes her happy and accomplishes what she always wanted; finding true love.

“Thank you 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.” –Joe Starks (page 40-41)

Once Janie runs away with her new husband Joe, they arrive to Eatonville, which results in complete disappointment. Joe demands to ask to the mayor, but fortunately there is no mayor. Very soon, the townspeople agree that Joe Starks should be the town’s mayor. The crowd asks Janie to speak, but Joe takes the podium instead and belittles her in front of the whole town.

Joe has now attained the power that he has always desired. With his political and economic conquest of the town, he finally starts flaunting his dominance publicly. Control in Janie’s voice and hair starts conflict in the married couple.  He orders his own wife to rap her hair up so nobody can have interest in her.

After Janie realizes Jody’s suppression on her beauty and voice, she obeys him. She puts her hair up, but she also acquires power and starts acknowledging Jody’s domineering nature by replying disrespectfully and not having intercourse with him at all. She identifies the refusal to be dominated by men. Her resentment builds, but dreams and emotions flourish inside of her.

“You wants be keerful ‘bout who you marry, Mis’ Starks. Dese strange men runnin’ heah tryin’ tuh take advantage of yo’ condition.” -Ike Green (page 86)

After Joe’s death, Janie mourns, but she also finds herself free and joyous. Soon, men begin approaching Janie because she is attractive and quite wealthy with everything that Joe has left her.

Janie’s new freedom makes her independent and gives her lots of time to think about herself. She begins to hate her grandma for raising her with such superficial goals such as wealth, security, and status.

There is a  paragraph in which Janie  reveals her happiness to  Pheobe. As her closest  friend, Pheobe warns her to never say that  out loud because  people will think that she was never sad  that her  husband died. These  chapters are basically full with her  voice and new desires. She  confronts feelings, such  as the belief  system that her grandmother  imposed on her. She no longer has to  keep bottled feelings in  order to survive with Jody.

“Sometimes Janie would think of the old days in the big white house and the store and laugh to herself. What if Eatonville could see her now in her blue denim overalls and heavy shoes? She was sorry for her friends back there and scornful of the others.” (page 127)

Their love and their true finally revealed during this chapter. Janie and Tea Cake finally move in together, but Janie has everybody’s assumptions in her head about Tea Cake wanting to seduce her for her money. Janie does not reveal her money, and Tea Cake does not reveal his friends. At the end of the chapter they are able to be more honest with one another.

Annie Tyler was left with a large sum of money, just like Janie. She sold her house and ran off with Who Flung, but all he did was leave her destitute. Annie returned home penniless and with a heavy broken heart. Although Janie heard the story of Annie Tyler as a warning, she still followed her heart and this resulted in her finding the love she always desired.

Janie’s life might seem as if it worsened along Tea Cake’s side, but it only gives her first look on what love really is. With him, she learns how to appreciate black culture and find true joy in an impoverished town that is known for muck. She does not miss Jody as the leader in Eatonville, because she is happy with Tea Cake being the leader in their new community. No one knows of Tea Cake’s encouragement to play in the fields and the laughter he brings in the fields. No one knows of the entertainment with his guitar and his good humor. That’s what makes Janie love her blue denim overalls and her new life where she works and learns.