Theme: Follow Your Heart

One of the central themes presented in this novel is that the only way to live a fulfilling life is by following one's own heart. Janie's journey through life definitely had its ups and downs, but she was only ever truly happy when she could follow her own dreams and do what she wanted.

As a kid, Janie had enjoyed her freedom immensely. In her free time, she would go outside and sit under the blossoming pear tree in her backyard, thinking about the wonders of the world. Her curiosity was insatiable, as she was always "looking, waiting, breathing short with impatience. Waiting for the world to be made" (11). However, Nanny was always there to watch her every move, making sure Janie followed the rules and didn't do anything too reckless. When Janie kisses Johnny Taylor, for example, Nanny reproves her for behaving like an immature child, and tells her that she is a woman now. She marries Logan because Nanny tells her that having a life filled with security is more important than one filled with adventure and spontaneity. Essentially, as a child, Janie threw away her dreams of a fun and carefree life in exchange for Nanny's dreams. Because of this, her marriage to Logan was doomed to fail. Janie needed to follow her own dreams in order to be fulfilled, and being the independent woman that she was, Janie ultimately wouldn't sacrifice her own happiness just to live out Nanny's dreams.

After running away with Joe Starks, Janie thinks she is on her way to a better life, but as it turns out, Joe is rude and oppressive, only using Janie as a trophy wife. He makes her tend the store, and he forces her to cover the beautiful hair that defines who she is. But Janie decides to put up with Joe rather than leave him, and in the twenty years she wastes married Joe, Janie is never happy with her life. Instead, she feels trapped with nowhere to go. Only after Joe dies does Janie feel free again. She admits to Pheoby, "'Tain't dat Ah worries over Joe's death, Pheoby. Ah jus' loves dis freedom'" (93). Janie's unhappy marriage to Joe enforces the fact that one must follow one's heart and do what he or she wants in order to live a fulfilling life.

Janie finally finds happiness and self-fulfillment when she meets Tea Cake. They are happy together because he allows her to be herself and treats her as an equal. He teaches her how to play checkers, something no one else had ever bothered to do before, and Janie "found herself glowing inside. Somebody wanted her to play. Somebody thought it natural for her to play" (96). As a woman who values independence and freedom, Janie really needed a guy like Tea Cake, someone who allowed her to break away from the norms of society and go down her own path. Tea Cake doesn't hold Janie back, but rather pushes her to explore more of the world. Because he allowed Janie to follow her own heart and do her own thing, she was able to live with him happily.