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Their Eyes Were Watching God By Zora Neale Hurston Essay

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“Janie saw her life like a great tree in leaf with the things suffered, things enjoyed, things done and undone.” (8) This powerful quote and many others are found in Zora Neale Hurston’s African American Literature Novel Their Eyes Were Watching God. Hurston writes of a young, light skinned, African American female named Janie who journeys through life trying to find the “perfect” relationship. As Janie goes through her life, she, along with her search, has taken turns for the worse and for the better. Janie has endured many conflicts through her relationships with Logan Killicks, Jody Starks, and Tea Cake. Throughout Janie’s relationships with men, she discovered that she did not want to live a marriage life full of fear, unhappiness, and sorrow. Her ability to dream and to act on her instincts allowed her to truly find her happiness within her last relationship.
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When Janie runs off with Jody, she feels as if she is finding her own identity, (32) when in reality, she is just running around a hamster wheel to say the least, not really heading in the direction of finding her identity. While with Jody, the conflict continues to prosper in Janie’s life, as she was forced to tie her hair back in a rag because Jody becomes jealous of other men and her Caucasian ancestry. Jody states in chapter six that: “Her hair was NOT going to show in the store. It didn’t seem sensible at all.” (55) Here, this quote suggests that Jody views Janie as an object, and does not want other men to see Janie’s beautiful hair. The reader can see how Janie has become stronger throughout her marriage with Jody when she stands up against Jody when he makes insults toward her in front of townspeople. (79) Janie is now beginning to stand upon her own two feet, stepping forward into gaining her

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