Author's Biographical Information

So I have been wondering about how much the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God to not just Zora Neale Hurston but all people as well. Despite being written by a black woman during the Harlem Renaissance, the novel applies to elements of transcendentalism fairly well. Transcendentalism is a universal movement, so it applies to all people and not just Hurston. The character Janie represents all people in their pursuits throughout life. Janie undergoes adversity in many ways but always manages to endure. This is similar to Hurston's own life story in which she was incessantly rebuked by her peers for being a women, but she was better then them. This ingrained in Hurston and by extension a sense to prove herself. This attribute was obvious in Hurston, but it was much more subtle in Janie. Janie yearns to be free and loved. This need pushes her through life, ever searching for her happiness and a time when she is not judged for what she is not. Janie wants to live in a world of happiness, peace, and serenity with her lover Tea Cake.

All people share that dream with Janie, they simply wish to be happy and that is what propelles them through life. Through this we can see how Janie is like any other person. Her dreams, goals, and events in life push her towards certain paths of action. If anyone were placed in Janie's shoes, especially Hurston, that person would act in the same manner as Janie. In this respect Janie can be seen as more of a universal character than just an individual. Janie underwent changes in her body, thoughts, and emotions like all other people. Following this logic Janie can be compared to everyone looking to express themselves in a world of oppression and is not just similar to Zora Neale Hurston.

Language Appreciation& Interpretation

"The wind came back with triple fury, and put out the lights for the last time. They sat in company with the others in other shanties, their eyes straining against the crude walls and their souls asking if He meant to measure their puny might against His. They seemed to be staring at the dark, but their eyes were watching God." p. 160

Of the many noteworthy quotes in the novel, this quote stood out to me more than most, and not only because it contains the title. In this section of the story, Janie, Tea Cake, and friends are sitting in their little houses waiting out the hurricane. In this point of the novel the characters are truly frightened and facing death. What I most like about this quote is that I feel it can be applied to a lot of other moments, it is almost a universal description of real fear; the people are small and at the mercy of a higher power and can do nothing to stop it. If this quote were to stand alone the reader wouldn't know it was about a hurricane. Anyone who has ever been utterly afraid of something, not even a natural disaster but perhaps even an idea or something emotional, can relate to this. It captures the feeling of powerlessness and the darkness of something you feel you cannot prevent.

I also feel that this quote avidly represents Hurston's talent in writing. She manages to take something that could have been simply stated and makes it into nothing short of a poem. Her writing has rhythm, and her words are powerful so that they leave a mark in your mind when you read them. She is also able to accurately describe a scene without the reader feeling that she is simply describing a scene.

Theme (Blog 6)

Many of the themes in Hurston’s novel have transcendentalist views, and one of them is: One should not go along with society’s ways and should not care what others think of them when they do something that they believe to be right. Not only does Janie go against norms and stops wearing mourning clothes, but people condemn her for going out with Tea Cake, because she had just recently lost her husband. Not to mention the fact that Tea Cake was not of her class (I mean God forbid…) When Janie’s husband, Joe Starks, dies and she starts seeing T.C., this theme begins to develop.
People are aghast that Janie would ever think to wear bright clothes when she is in the midst of grieving. The people of Eatonville judge her for it, “…dressed in blue! It was a shame. Done took to high heel slippers and a ten dollar hat! Looking like some young girl…Poor Joe Starks. Bet he turns over in his grave every day” (110). It almost sounds as if Joe Starks himself were speaking. He has had that much impact on the town that they begin thinking like him, and they judge Janie on everything that she does that Joe would be against. But Janie doesn’t care, and she’ll do what she pleases, and as she tells Phoeby, “Ah ain’t grievin’ so why do Ah hafta mourn…De world picked out black and white for mournin’, Joe didn’t. So Ah wasn’t wearin’ it for him. Ah was wearin’ it for de rest of y’all” (113), she has only grieved for Joe because the town expected her too. She was pressured into the ‘norms’ of society and she decided to break it when she dressed in blue for T.C.

Not only do the townspeople find it offensive to not wear mourning colors, they find it wrong to be seeing another man when her husband died so recently. They think things like, “Another thing, Joe Starks hadn’t been dead but nine months and here she goes sashaying off to a picnic in pink linen” (110). They think it’s too soon for her to be seeing other men…especially if it’s, “Tea Cake and Mrs. Mayor Starks! All the men that she could get, and fooling with somebody like Tea Cake!” (110), and they believe T.C. will desecrate her reputation. Just the fact that she is seeing T.C. annoys them and disgusts them. All they can think about is how T.C. is poor and how he has nothing to offer Janie, but they got it all wrong. Money has nothing to do with it. What he has to offer is love, companionship, passion, honesty, integrity, and life. That is what Janie is searching for, but their minds continue to revolve around money and they try to cajole her to stay away from him, “Dat long-legged Tea Cake ain’t got doodly squat. He ain’t got no business makin’ hissef familiar wid nobody lak you. Ah said Ah wuz goin’ to tell yuh so yuh could know” (102-103). Janie’s response to Hezekiah’s statement was, “Oh dat’s all right…thank yuh mighty much” (103), and she ends it there. She will hear all they have to say, but she will not follow any of their advice or agree with any of their opinions. She does what she wants and goes out with T.C. People say things such as, “You better sense her intuh things then ‘cause Tea Cake can’t do nothin’ but help her spend whut she got” (111), and “De men wuz talkin’ ‘bout it de grove tuhday and givin’ her and Tea Cake both de devil” (111). The are so against Janie being with T.C., but she ends up marrying him anyways (girl power!) and she says to Phoeby, “…Tea Cake ain’t draggin’ me off no where Ah don’t want tuh go. Ah always did want tuh git round uh whole heap…” (112). Besides the fact that Janie doesn’t care about T.C.’s wealth, she is following her heart and doing what SHE wants to do and not what anybody else tells her. She was told by Nanny to marry Logan Killicks and she did. She was ordered around by Joe Starks for twenty miserable years and she did what he asked. And now? She is doing what SHE wants, and she marries T.C. Now that’s what I call transcendentalist. You go Jay & T.C.

Theme: An Aspect of Transcendentalism

Throughout the novel, Janie is constantly at odds with society's expectations. At first, society is represented by Nanny. She represents society's misconception that a woman's future is in the hands of fate. She hopes Janie will "land on soft ground," as if waiting to do so is the only option. Janie submits to her grandmother's authority, and marries Logan Killicks. Janie has just given in to the expectations of society, and as a result of her capitulation, she is unhappy. Had she been true to herself, she would have refused to marry a stump and been much happier.

Another example of lack of self truth leading to unhappiness is how long Janie stays with Joe. She realizes she does not like the way Joe treats her long before she does anything about it. When she finally does, it has been twenty years and Joe is on his deathbed. Twenty years of staying in her "woman's sphere", which we know Janie doesn't like from her comments about how Joe treats her in the store and how he denies her the right to speak in public. Had Janie been true to herself and not submitted to his expectations, she would not have suffered for twenty years.

After Joe dies, Janie begins seeing Tea Cake, and people are shocked at her behavior. She is expected to be mourning her loss and wearing black. But this time Janie doesn't care what other people think. She wears the flamboyant dresses Tea Cake buys her, and goes out with him all the time. For Janie, this is fulfilling. Why? Because she is being true to herself, which always brings fulfillment and happiness.

So there you have it. The transcendentalist aspect of being true to yourself is in Their Eyes Were Watching God. Not that I think Hurston did it on purpose...

Reaction to Peer Post: Annie

After reading Annie's post on a potential theme for the novel, I wanted to support her ideas on fate since she appeared to be somewhat undecided. Death plays a major role in this novel what with the death of Nanny, the mule, Joe, and Tea Cake. Janie's character is affected by each death and she continues to discover more of her indivduality. To expand upon Annie's comment about how "death will come when it is supposed to" I would like to add something about how there is a finality to death, and yet within the novel those who are dead appear to live on for Janie. This connects directly to the idea of fate because the fact the dead are, to some extent, living for Janie eludes to the possibility of a higher power, or fate. The novel also is deeply steeped with divinity and conflicts and illusions to God or the biblical world. One such example is simply within the title, "Their Eyes Were Watching God." This title is connected to the quote that, "...their eyes straining against crude walls and their souls asking if He meant to measure their puny might against His. They seemed to be staring at the dark, but their eyes were watching God" (160). This scene occurs when Janie and Tea Cake are in the midst of the hurricane. All that Janie can do is to give herself up to nature and believe in fate itself, the idea that whatever happens will happen and she can not do anything about her circumstances or to change events that will take place. This is a direct illusion to Janie's belief in fate and the fact that fate has played a large role in the actions that she takes. Janie is a free spirited woman who is led by her whims and emotions; essentially she is led by a belief in fate.

I disagree with Annie about the innevitability of fate in that I believe that Janie's fate is inevitable because of the kind of character that she is. Janie is led by her emotions to enter into a relationship with Joe, it is not fate but her actions that lead her to flirt and draw his attention but it is Janie's fate in how her relationship ends. Janie could not perceive Joe's true character and therefore did not have control over his treatment of her. Janie yearns for love, so it is her fate that drives her to enter into numerous relationships because she continues to ceaselessly search for love and her independent freedom.

Fate also plays a large role with Janie's relationship with Tea Cake. Janie finds her true love, and yet she cannot control Fate's power to take people away. Janie's fate is to find everlasting love, no matter whether the person continues to live or not, therefore Tea Cake's death is fitting for her character.

I agree with Annie that fate plays a major role within this novel, although as for the uncertainty and inevitability I believe that there is evidence to the fact the Janie's fate was due to her type of character and personality.

Theme of spirituality/ religion

Earlier, Joanna said that God was an image frequently used in the book as a guiding light for the characters. I agree, and when I was reading the book, I also did not realize the importance of religion and spirituality in the book until I got to the chapters involving the storm. Even though the title is Their Eyes were Watching GOD, I forgot to look for the symbols showing the presence of a God (since the symbolism and theme of religion was not blazoned ) until I got to the line: "They seemed to be staring at the dark, but their eyes were watching God" on page 160.
The topic of religion was brought up in class today as a theme. I thought that made sense, since it was singled out as the title.
In the book, Hurston uses God as a decider of fate. God has the power to crush Janie's home and to send her fleeing. Janie, Tea Cake, and the rest of the characters are at the mercy of God, showing that Hurston believes that there are more powerful things in the universe that control them. And people should never forget that. Even though human beings such as Joe originally flaunted their power and control over other humans by throwing out God's name in the phrase, "I god!", they can never be forever in control. Instead, God will eventually remind them who is boss when he brings out nature's forces against the humans: "They sat in company with the others in other shanties, their eyes straining against crude walls and their souls, asking if He meant to measure their puny might against His" (160).
The theme that there are more powerful things that control people's lives, and that fate is settled by these powerful forces is expressed in the famous line: "They seemed to be staring at the dark, but their eyes were watching God." Janie and the others know that fate is a thing they cannot avoid. Humans are not strong enough to stop themselves from encountering fate, and in this quote they learn that they must accept life as it happens. Events such as natural disasters are reminders from God that the humans' lives are determined by Him, and only he can save them, and bring them back to the light. Even in the darkest hour when they seem to see nothing by darkness and despair, they must trust God. This shows Hurston's devout belief in spirituality and the existence of fate.

Reation to Peer Post: Barbara's Hero Journey One

I am reacting to Barbara's Hero Journey post and disagreeing with her and Krissy. I do not feel that Tea Cake is a hero/protagonist in the story and that Janie is the sole protagonist and the story is about her hero journey. My interpretation of a hero, in the sense of the monomyth, is the character who changes and learns something to better themselves throughout the novel. Tea Cake, though a major supporting character, does not change significantly thoughout the novel or better himself. From the begining Tea Cake loves Janie and is supportive of her so him dieing for her love did not change him because had already loved her. Janie on the other, does go through a big change and ultimately learns about herself by going through it. Her goal in live is to not be supressed, but also to be loved. Both of which she gains from Tea Cake. With Joe dieing, and her moving on from him to Tea Cake, she becomes englightened and fufilled. Her and Tea Cake's loving relationship is the ultimate product of her Hero Journey.