Racism is an evil that continues to exist between and within countless groups, regardless of location, belief, or culture. Often times if there is not homogeneity in a group, there are internal disputes. For example,while the African American community faces some of the most intense and widespread intolerance, there exists similar discrimination amongst the group due to the variety of skin tones. In Their Eyes Were Watching God, Zora Neale Hurston provides a window into these complex dynamics of the African American structure through the perspective of her main character Janie, a mixed race woman struggling to find her identity. The bias experienced between biracial and darker African Americans in Their Eyes Were Watching God demonstrates the internal racism amongst the black community.
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While Hurston states that Janie’s husband Joe showcases her so that “nobody else’s wife [would] rank her,” it is Joe who does not want to be outranked (41). Joe uses the notion that whiter African Americans are more superior than those who are darker to his advantage. He understands that being married to a biracial woman and showcasing her in white clothing will exert his dominance over the townspeople because he will seem more white himself. Additionally, the black townswomen try to mimic white culture to receive attention like Janie does. A woman named Daisy is described as “the piece of string out of a ham” because although she is black, she wears white clothes. Therefore she is “not ham at all..but [has] the flavor” (Hurston 68). Daisy is able to attract the townsmen through her use of playing “dress up” as a white woman. This concept in which lighter skinned African Americans are more desirable because they are closer to being white continues throughout the entire
While Hurston states that Janie’s husband Joe showcases her so that “nobody else’s wife [would] rank her,” it is Joe who does not want to be outranked (41). Joe uses the notion that whiter African Americans are more superior than those who are darker to his advantage. He understands that being married to a biracial woman and showcasing her in white clothing will exert his dominance over the townspeople because he will seem more white himself. Additionally, the black townswomen try to mimic white culture to receive attention like Janie does. A woman named Daisy is described as “the piece of string out of a ham” because although she is black, she wears white clothes. Therefore she is “not ham at all..but [has] the flavor” (Hurston 68). Daisy is able to attract the townsmen through her use of playing “dress up” as a white woman. This concept in which lighter skinned African Americans are more desirable because they are closer to being white continues throughout the entire