The Impact of Marriage

Throughout the course of the first few chapters of Their Eyes Were Watching God, the struggle for independence among women is already an apparent theme. The women seem to be strictly defined by the men who they are associated with or marry. Because both Janie’s mother and grandmother were left alone with their children without husbands, Janie is told she must marry to ensure security. For women, marriage is labeled as a necessity for safety--which Janie’s grandmother craves and hopes she can attain. She tells her granddaughter, “Mah daily prayer now is tuh let dese golden moments rolls on a few days longer till Ah see you safe in life” (15). Janie’s grandmother is insinuating in her statements the only way for Janie to be successful and secure in her life, is by getting “married right away” (13).
Love is an obscure, rare, and an unimportant aspect of marriage to the society in the novel. Janie is confused by the sudden demands for marriage by her grandmother because she barely knows any men. “Who Ah’m goin’ tuh marry off-hand lak dat? Ah don’t know nobody” (13). Janie’s grandmother dismisses her questions because she feels as if the man her granddaughter marries does not have to be anyone special--just someone who can care for her. Janie eventually gives in to her grandmother’s requests and unhappily marries a man she barely knows, let alone loves. This depicts the sacrifices women, including Janie, make to keep their families and society content. “She [Janie] knew now that marriage did not make love” (25).

This picture represents the opposite form of advice and influence Janie receives from her grandmother.