Essay about Janies Marriages in Their Eyes Were Watching God

Janies Marriages In Their Eyes Were Watching God by Lora Neale Hurston, the main character engages in three marriages that lead her towards a development of self. Through each endeavor, Janie learns the truths of life, love, and the path to finding her identity. Though suppressed because of her race and gender, Janie has a strong will to live her life the way she wills. But throughout her life, she encounters many people who attempt to change the way that she is and her beliefs. Each marriage that she undertakes, she finds a new realization and is on a never-ending quest to find her identity and true love. Logan Killicks, Joe Starks, and Tea Cake each help Janie progress to womanhood and find her identity. At age sixteen, Janie†¦show more content†¦So one day she meets Joe Starks and after spending some time together, Janie asks Logan what he would do if she ran away. Logan, rather than responding honestly, lies and hides his true feelings through insults. Janie learns that a marriag e does not always withhold love. Love is something that must come naturally without force or thought and Janie sees that she has no such feeling towards Logan. Hence Janie runs off with Joe Starks and Logan is never heard of again. Joe Starks is an admirable person. He promises Janie beautiful material things and happiness unlike Logan who only tried to control her and offered her no love. Janie is overwhelmed by this proposal and believes that Joe may be the bee that has come to fertilize her and make her happy, but she is proven wrong. After she runs away from Logan, Joe and Janie travel to a new town that is only occupied by African Americans. There, Joe becomes mayor and is well respected by all. He gains wealth and gives Janie the material things that he promised her, but forces her to work in his local store all day long. He does not allow her to attend parties or have any fun and makes negative comments about her constantly. He says, Janie, wheres dat last bill uh ladin?Â… If youd git yo mind out de streets and keep it on yo business maybe you could git somethin straight sometimes. Dats ‘cause you need tellin, it would be pitiful if Ah didnt. Somebody got to think for women and chillun andShow MoreRelatedJanies Three Marriages in Hurstons There Eyes Were Watching God 1075 Words   |  5 PagesThe book, Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston is about Janie Crawford and her quest for self-independence and real love. She finds herself in three marriages, one she escapes from, and the other two end tragically. And throughout her journey, she learns a lot about love, and herself. Janie’s three marriages were all different, each one brought her in for a different reason, and each one had something different to teach her, she was forced into marrying Logan Killicks and hated it.Read MoreTheir Eyes Were Watching God Analysis : Janies Journey Through Marriage2103 Words   |  9 PagesAnalysis : Janie’s Husbands amp; Marriages Part I: In the book â€Å"Their Eyes Were Watching God†, the main character, Janie Mae Crawford, explains her life story in a flashback to her best friend, Pheoby Watson. Throughout her flashback, she experiences life and marriage with three different men named Logan Killicks, Joe Starks, and Vergible Woods. These three marriages were all different in their own ways, but they all aid in Janie’s maturity and illustrate her quest for independence. In Janie’s marriageRead MoreThe Death Of Janie Crawford : Tragedy And The American Dream1196 Words   |  5 PagesInstitute states that the current divorce rate is around forty to fifty percent for first marriages and even higher for second and third marriages. The upward trend of divorce rates in America has many Americans concerned about the decreasing emphasis on commitment and family values that often results from divorce. In Zora Neale Hurstons’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, the protagonist, Janie, experiences three marriages, one of which ends in divorce and the other two in death. Many readers may questionRead MoreJanies Self-Discovery Essay1481 Words   |  6 PagesTheir Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston is about a young woman that is lost in her own world. She longs to be a part of something and to have â€Å"a great journey to the horizons in search of people† (85). Janie Crawford’s journey to the horizon is told as a story to h er best friend Phoebe. She experiences three marriages and three communities that â€Å"represent increasingly wide circles of experience and opportunities for expression of personal choice† (Crabtree). Their Eyes Were Watching GodRead MoreWhose eyes were watching God?1400 Words   |  6 PagesWhose eyes were watching God? In the movie Their Eyes Were Watching God, Oprah Winfrey manipulates events that happened in the book by Zora Neale Hurston. Oprah morphs many relationships in the movie Their Eyes Were Watching God. She changes the role of gender, and also makes changes in Janie’s character strength. Oprah also changes the symbolism in the movie to where some important symbols in the book change to less important roles. Oprah changes many important events in the book Their Eyes WereRead More Nature Themes in Hurston’s Novels, Their Eyes Were Watching God and Seraph on the Suwanee508 Words   |  3 PagesNature Themes in Hurston’s Novels, Their Eyes Were Watching God and Seraph on the Suwanee Nature themes resound throughout Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God and Seraph on the Suwanee. Perhaps two of the most notable instances where the lush Florida scenery augments the novels’ plot lines are the â€Å"tree scenes†, in which Janie kisses Johnny Taylor beneath the pear tree in Their Eyes Were Watching God (p. 10-12) and Arvey loses her virginity to Jim beneath the mulberry tree in Seraph on theRead More Powerful Symbols in Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston1407 Words   |  6 PagesPowerful Symbols in Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston       In 1937, upon the first publication of Their Eyes Were Watching God, the most influential black writer of his time, Richard Wright, stated that the novel carries no theme, no message, [and] no thought.   Wrights powerful critique epitomized a nations attitude toward Zora Neale Hurstons second novel. African-American critics read a book that they felt satisfied the white mans stereotype of African-American cultureRead MoreTheir Eyes Were Watching God By Zora Neale Hurston Essay1688 Words   |  7 Pagesto have their own voice and independence has been an ongoing conflict. In Zora Neale Hurston’s novel Their Eyes Were Watching God Janie struggles a majority of her life discovering her own voice by challenging many traditional roles that are set by society during this time. Hongzhi Wu, the author of â€Å"Mules and Women: Identify and Rebel—Janie’s Identity Quest in ‘Their Eyes Were Watching God,’† recognizes the trend of African American women being suppressed by making a comparison between animals throughoutRead More Essay on Janie in Their Eyes Were Watching God1123 Words   |  5 PagesThe Charater of Janie in Their Eyes Were Watching God      Ã‚  Ã‚   In Zora Neale Hurstons Their Eyes Were Watching God, Janie Crawford is the heroine. She helps women to deal with their own problems by dealing with hers. She deals with personal relationships as well as searches for self-awareness. Janie Crawford is more than a heroine, however, she is a woman who has overcome the restrictions placed on her by the oppressive forces and people in her life.    As a young woman, Janie had noRead MoreA Womens Search for Identity in Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God729 Words   |  3 PagesZora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, of a story of a women’s journey for self-identification. Through symbolic imagery, such as the pear tree, Janie’s hair, and the horizon, Hurston ultimately shows a women’s quest for her identity. As a young teenager, Janie becomes infatuated with the idea of an idealistic romance: â€Å"She saw a dust-bearing bee sink into the sanctum of a bloom; the thousand sister-calyxes arch to meet the love embrace†¦So this was a marriage!† (Hurston 11). This image