Characters & Characterization: Joe (ch1-5)

Joe Starks, aka Jody, first appears in the novel on page 27. Janie describes him as a "cityfied, stylish dressed man" (27). Joe comes from Georgy and had been working for white people his whole life, but left to become a "big voice", which he cannot fulfill in a white city. That is why he is heading to Eatonville, a completely African American town. During their first encounters, Joe is trying to woe Janie, and convince her to leave Logan. Janie runs off with Joe and forms a coalition with him via their marriage. Once he sets his mind to winning over Janie, he does. This shows his perseverance, and how if there is something that Joe wants, he will strive until he is successful in achieving it. This aspect of his personality can be seen later in Their Eyes Were Watching God when he becomes mayor of Eatonville. He shows up in Eatonville when it is mayor-less, then slowly gains the support of the people living there so that he is voted mayor. Joe also keeps bringing up the fact that the town is in dire need of a mayor, which is his way of constantly hinting at it until the citizens finally elect him to the job. While Joe is determined to achieve the things he wants in life, once he obtains his goals, he tends to push those achievements off to the side and move onto other things. That seems to be how he treats Janie. Once he has married her, he stops being so loving and considerate and focuses on becoming mayor.

The townspeople see Joe's actions as his was of ingratiating to them, then using them and their town to gain more power and money. They would inveigh Joe behind his back constantly. This is because Joe is an extremely controlling person, and he treats everyone like dirt. He controls Janie by forcing her to work in the store, and he disregards her concern about their dwindling relationship. He also controls the town from his position as mayor. One person says that "he loves obedience out of everybody under de sound of his voice" (49) which shows he want for control. He holds himself higher than the towns people by building his luxurious house and making the citizens do all the dirty work, for example digging the ditch around the store while he is off recruiting people to move to Eatonville.

Despite all these negative personality traits of Joe, he is an extremely erudite man. By growing up with white people, he received a good education. The citizens of Eatonville often comment on his higher level of education in comparison to their own. Granted, they look at it in a slightly negative way in the sense that Joe should not hold himself so far above the rest of them, even though he is more educated. They think that "he talks tuh unlettered folks wid books in his jaws, showin' off his learnin'" (49).

Joe's role has been of slight importance so far in the novel, but I believe that the importance of his role will soon elevate.