Reaction Paper: Their Eyes Were Watching God The novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston is a great. The author, Zora Neale Hurston, is an African American novelist who has written many popular works. Her life is very similar to the protagonist in the novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God. On Hurston’s website, it says that she was born in 1891 and lived in Eatonville, which is where part of the novel is taken place. Throughout her life, she has written many different published works. One of her most famous works, Their Eyes Were Watching God, is a compelling story is about a young woman’s, Janie, quest for a fulfilling love throughout her life. Readers witness her handle four different accounts of love, with her grandmother
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To satisfy the woman she did love, she marries a man for apparent security, however, she quickly leaves him to be with her second husband. Janie’s second husband, Joe is very ambitious and Janie is quickly smitten by his demeanor. However, this man is very mentally abusive and oppressive of Janie. After many failed attempts of love, and also losing her identity in the process, Janie achieves that fulfillment of love she has always desired and deserved with her lover, Tea Cake. However, this long affair is short lived because Tea Cake falls sick and must be killed in order to sustain Janie’s own life. In the end, she returns home alone, but happy. In the novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, there are many diverse themes and symbols that are prevalent throughout the novel, such as love and relationships, loss of identity, and the …show more content…
In the article, Self-Realization in a Restricted World: Janie's Early Discovery in Zora Neale Hurston 's Their Eyes Were Watching God by DeLisa D. Hawkes, the author says,
“Nanny prioritizes physical and financial security over love through the enforcement and practice of African-American male dominance in order to protect Janie from sexual assault by white men and low-class womanhood… As a former slave, Nanny has big dreams for Janie to thrive in property and prosperity—things not formerly available to Nanny in her younger years because of her social status as a slave”
To satisfy the woman she did love, she marries a man for apparent security, however, she quickly leaves him to be with her second husband. Janie’s second husband, Joe is very ambitious and Janie is quickly smitten by his demeanor. However, this man is very mentally abusive and oppressive of Janie. After many failed attempts of love, and also losing her identity in the process, Janie achieves that fulfillment of love she has always desired and deserved with her lover, Tea Cake. However, this long affair is short lived because Tea Cake falls sick and must be killed in order to sustain Janie’s own life. In the end, she returns home alone, but happy. In the novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, there are many diverse themes and symbols that are prevalent throughout the novel, such as love and relationships, loss of identity, and the …show more content…
In the article, Self-Realization in a Restricted World: Janie's Early Discovery in Zora Neale Hurston 's Their Eyes Were Watching God by DeLisa D. Hawkes, the author says,
“Nanny prioritizes physical and financial security over love through the enforcement and practice of African-American male dominance in order to protect Janie from sexual assault by white men and low-class womanhood… As a former slave, Nanny has big dreams for Janie to thrive in property and prosperity—things not formerly available to Nanny in her younger years because of her social status as a slave”