Diction & "Showing the Story"

Readers reading the literary novel “Their Eyes Were Watching God” within the first four chapters learn swiftly of the importance of diction used by the author Hurtson. Not only does Hurtson use it to accurately portray the post-slavery Southern speaking style of English endemic of the average education-deprived African American, but she also does so in order to get the reader to painstakingly and meticulously pay more attention to the content of the story.

Such an example can be found early in the story, during the genesis of the story in chapter 1. Hurtson as the author of the story uses the diction of an important character in the story thus far, Pheoby, to emphasize the simplicity and unpolished nature of the way the impoverished Negro blacks in Western Florida are historically depicted as. When Janie tells Pheoby as her dear friend about the whereabouts of her man, Pheoby exclaims “Tea Cake gone?” in complete disbelief and shock (Hurston 7). This one question said by Pheoby, which can be assumed to be said in a brief but strong interjectory tone, is directly contrastable with the flowery, elegant and robust verbiage of Hurston’s narration. The line before Pheoby’s remark says that Pheoby “dilated all over with eagerness”. Not only is the contrast between the sophistication of Hurston’s 3rd person omniscient narration and Pheoby’s rustic dialogue intriguing to the reader, but it successfully emphasizes just how unique and expressive the way Pheoby and Janie speak as characters. This same thinking can be applied to rest of the characters previous mentioned in the story such as Lulu, Mrs. Sumpkins, Pearl Stone, Sam (Hurston 3-4), and later characters mentioned by Janie’s backstory such as Johnny Taylor and her strict disciplinarian grandmother Nanny (Hurston 11-12). When they speak, the reader must pay attention to the content of what they say closer

http://www.mememaker.net/static/images/memes/4187648.jpg

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Rhetorical Strategies

     "Their eyes are watching God," is a book that has various rhetorical strategies being constantly used, this became evident within the first few pages, the title in it's self is even a metaphor, or maybe it's hyperbole? Though some things just shouldn't be argued.  The novel starts with a metaphor, "Ships at a distance have every man's wish on board."(page 1) This line is followed by a string of sentences, with a plethora of similes and metaphors that establish a forthright tone.
     The forthright tone mimics the character of Janie, who is very blunt in speech. Janie is honest - believing that there is no real point in lying or making up any stories, even though she is the mystery who blew back in to town. Everyone else "sat in judgment,"(page 1) but she just overlooks it all with the belief that on actual "Judgment"(page 6) day, she won't have had any withheld secrets and/or guilts"to be made known." Everything she says holds a candid truth and everything she does is straightforward and unconcealed.
     The whole novel is like a book of metaphor examples. And similes, just like in that last sentence. Zora Neale Hurston, makes use of these two prevalent rhethorical strategies, not just to set a foundation for the tone, but to  emphasize the setting. "Nanny's head and face looked like the standing roots of some old tree that had been torn away by storm,"(page 11) in modern day a simile such as "Nanny's face looked like it had been sucked into a blender" would have been more relatable, but this time period maintained a much different way of life. This novel is set in the south during the late 1930's, the metaphors and similes give an idea of what the characters did, and how they viewed certain things, and how they spoke, bringing up another strategy used: colloquialism.
      Every spoken sentence is some sort of slang, however the narrator does not speak in slang. What this does is show a contrast in how the characters speak and how the reader's speak in there own voices, not necessarily how the narrator may speak. In this case, every spoken line is like being in the shoes of Janie or Pheoby or Joe or really any character who is speaking, making the story an enjoyable read thus far.  Also, by changing the spelling of the words and terms, such as I to "ah" and look here to "looka heah" and these to "dese," Hurston makes it easier to figure out how they are actually speaking, and to mentally form an accent.
       Hurston drags all readers into the deep South, where Tea Cake is a person and dead dreams lead to womanhood and similes are as common as metaphors.
       

The Bloom

Just after the beginning of chapter 2, Hurston performs perfect sequencing as she uses Janie's recounts of her first childhood kiss to expound upon the single idea of pear tree and the fruit of which it bears.

The kiss occurs just outside of Nanny’s house while Janie believes that her grandmother is asleep. To her surprise, Nanny catches Janie and Johnny Taylor kissing over the gatepost but before this event takes place, Janie is depicted lounging in her backyard. For three days, Janie is described spending most of her time beneath a blossoming pear tree behind Nanny’s house. Captivated by the intriguing performance of the flowers, Janie finds herself consumed by her insatiable curiosity regarding the bloom of the flowers, as “It had called her to come and gaze on a mystery”  (Hurston 10).

Perhaps the pear tree and the blooming flowers function as Janie’s first taste of self-revelation. By spending so much time under tree in the backyard, Janie is introduced to the details of life and at this very moment, begins her quest for a purpose. Essentially, she was tired of “Waiting for the world to be made,” so Janie begins her search for the instruction manual (Hurston 11). “She had glossy leaves and bursting buds and she wanted to struggle with life but it seemed to elude her” (Hurston 11). Janie’s glossy leaves and bursting buds serve as her light-bulb moment, her own personal ‘Eureka!’ The first step of self-revelation is acknowledging the existence of a purpose. The next step however, is determining what the ‘Purpose’ is.

Stylistic Choices

In Their Eyes Were Watching God Hurston uses a very specific choice of structure and diction. The novel begins at the end of the story. Janie is already old at this point so it allows for the Janie’s journey to be told as a flashback to Pheoby, who had been a “kissin’-friend for twenty years” (Hurston 7). The outside opinions of the other women on the porch in the beginning of the novel also play an important role. Their curiosity helps to build emotions for the reader and add anticipation to the story of what really happened to Janie. Pheoby tells Janie about the women and says that “an envious heart makes a treacherous ear” (Hurston 5). This foreshadowing implies that whatever happened to Janie was significant enough for the women to be envious of her.

Diction is an obvious element in Hurston’s novel. Using direct dialogue helps to set the scene and also helps the reader better understand the characters. The dialogue also helps to express that the story is an act of telling rather than writing. The novel opens in a very intellectual and literary third-person point of view. The narrator uses figurative language to clearly show the distinction between Janie and the narrator. There is many times where Hurston chooses to have long periods of uninterrupted dialogue such as when Pheoby brings supper to Janie. The narrator takes a “break” so that the characters can really tell the story. It is clear that Hurston chose to use poor English on purpose. The poor English that the characters use shows a lack of control in their language which appears to be a common theme. 

Hurston's Structure

   "So the beginning of this was a woman and she had come back from burying the dead." (Hurston 1) Zora Neale Hurston introduces  Janie in the beginning of the novel, which we later find out is the just the end of her journey.  The novel starts out with a narrative, third person voice and later on shifts to Janie telling her story to Phoebe. Hurston goes from writing a story to using a character to tell it in a more omniscient light.
   Hurston's style in dialogue also contributes to setting the time period and the characters' personalities. This specific style in dialogue represents the level of education people had back in the earlier 1900s. It also adds a level of interest to the reader because they are able to imagine what these characters would sound like as they read words like "chillun" instead of children or "useter" rather than used to.  The reader gets a deeper insight into the characters and their culture. "Nigger, whuts yo baby doin wid gray eyes and yaller hair? She begin tuh slap mah jaws ever which a way." (Hurston 17) Hurston uses such a heavy style of Ebonics, almost making it hard to understand at first, making her novel stand out like the work of Shakespeare.
   The novel goes back and forth from narration to storytelling, emphasizing the fact that Janie was currently telling her story to Pheobe. It makes it seem as if we are there as Phoebe listens as well.  The novel goes on with Janie continuing her story of events which we wil later learn leads to what was the beginning of the novel, her return home.

Distinct Dialogue

Upon beginning this novel the southern twang of the characters stood out to me tremendously. The dialect of the characters was a distinct—and great—style choice by Hurston. If any reader missed the fact that this story takes place in the deep south (Eatonville, Florida to be specific) the reader was quickly reminded by the dialogue. For example, one of the ladies gossiping about Janie said, “Humph! Y’all let her worry yuh. You ain’t like me.” (Hurston 3) The lady’s distinct words demonstrate that the population that surround Janie upon her return probably don't have a great deal of education (they do not enunciate their word the way a scholar would) and they have very brassy, carping mannerisms. I believe this foreshadows the shame Janie will feel because she has returned without Tea Cake.

Another distinct quality of the initial setting of the book is that most of the people neighborhood go to church. Yet, many of these church goers still insist on heckling Janie and her past. These ladies actually remind me of Nora from the short story, “First Confession” because “most of ‘em goes to church”  yet they still “wastes up too much time puttin’ they mouth on things they don’t know nothin’ about.” (Hurston 6) In other words, like Nora, they play the part, but they aren’t truly holy. This shows what the ladies are expected to do (because of their church-going culture) but it also further shows that Janie will have a hard time assimilating back in the neighborhood. 

Both the dialect and the motives within the dialogue give great insight to the culture in Eatonville. I believe recognizing and comprehending this dialogue to the fullest will help the reader grasp the full, true meaning of the text.

Conflict

In the beginning of the novel, the reader comes upon a conflict between Nanny and Janie. The conflict arises in a story that Janie tells about the time she kisses Johnny Taylor. The conflict of the story is when Nanny catches Janie kissing Johnny and tells Janie that she is now in her womanhood and she also told Janie, “Ah wants to see you married right away” (Hurston 12). The reason that there is a conflict between the characters is ultimately because of the love that Nanny has for Janie and how Nanny just wants to protect Jannie.

After Nanny explains to Janie that she is in her womanhood now and wants her to marry, Nanny slaps Janie for not looking at her when she speaks but cannot come to do it again when she raises her hand to swing it another time because she sees the pain that lies in Janie’s eyes. Nanny, “with her uplifted hand for the second blow she saw the huge tear that welled up from Janie’s heart and stood in each eye...instead she brushed back the heavy hair from Janie’s face” (Hurston 14). Nanny must succumb to Janie’s aching heart and “weep internally” for the both of them (Hurston 14). Later, Nanny tells Janie “Every tear you drop, squeezes a cup uh blood outa mah heart” (Hurston 15), showing her love and care that she has for Janie.

The conflict is solved when Nanny tells Janie the story about her daughter was raped at seventeen(Hurston 19) and mainly tells Janie how she does not want people “makin’ a spit cup outa you [Janie]” (Hurston 20).

The picture relates to the conflict because Nanny learns a great lesson through the painful memory of what had happened to her daughter.

Journey?

            I believe that Janie is on a journey. Three of the five qualifications of a journey are displayed within the first thirty pages.

            The quester is Janie. Immediately people (society) are resenting her even before she makes it to the gates of her house. They are gossiping and judging everything about her; “what she doin coming back here in dem overall?” (2). Societies’ standard would be for Janie to be in a satin dress.

            The way people are judging her ties into the challenges she face. The setting - the South and the time period, post Civil War - oppress who she really wants to be. Janie and other women, especially African American women, are treated as “de mule uh de world…” (14). Janie’s existence has no meaning if she does not have a husband; her “rank” is too low for men to treat her as an equal. Being independent and a woman is not typical during this time. On top of that, there are rumors about Janie and Tea Cake because he is younger than her, portraying her as a cougar. These ideas tie in with the concept of gender in-equality and racism, and my guess would be; this is what she will try to overcome.

The third qualification fulfilled is reason. Her reason for returning is “…Tea Cake is gone… Ah ain’t got nothing to make me happy no more where Ah was at,” (7). These first few chapters are the basis for the story. Between the chapters a lot of time had passed, now she is telling the story to Pheoby and reflecting on her experiences, by the end of the book I believe that we will discover the real reason why Janie returned home.

Childhood Innocence and Jealousy

Children are naive to the world and it’s harshness until some adult brings their attention to the negativity. Children often learn from the environments they are surrounded by and the important people in their lives. A prime example of childhood innocence can be found  the character of Janie in the novel  Their Eyes Were Watching God.

In chapter two Janie recalls of her childhood innocence stating “ Ah didn’t know Ah wuzn’t white till Ah was round six years old” (Hurston 8). “ Wouldn’t have found it out then, but a man come long takin’ pictures. Janie was not treated like an outsider or aware that she was different from the Wasburns until someone brough it to her attention. It ruined her innocence because she did not see herself as being a different race since she was never treated differently by her white friends and liked the same things the white children liked.

It is similar to times of civil rights in the United States in the 1950’s and 1960’s. White children back in those days were naive about colored children and treated them as equals until they were told by their families that colored skin was not acceptable. It changed plenty of relationships between friends of different races because they did not want to be disobedient to their parents.

Another issue brought up in the second chapter of the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God was jealousy. “Dere wuz a knotty head gal name Mayrella dat useter git mad every time she look at me” (Hurston 9). The character Mayrella represents jealousy between children of the same race. Mayrella represents how children back then who were colored and treated poorly would envy another child of color who are treated better than they are by the whites. There was also jealousy if you were mixed because of if you had long hair or light skin and gorgeous eyes. There was not only prejudices brought on by the whites, but by people of the same race as well.

The link to the article I found below goes into detail about childhood innocence and what it is to be innocent.

http://www.theguardian.com/lifeandstyle/2013/may/10/what-is-childhood-innocence

Two Voices Intertwining

Zora Neale Hurston’s choice of style in Their Eyes Were Watching God helps to reinforce the importance of language in this novel. Rather than mask the true way Janie and the rest of characters speak Hurston chooses to embrace it. This southern African American vernacular language captivates the audience plunging them into the story as if they are a part of it. It is as if the reader is “sitting on the steps of the back porch” with Janie herself listening to her life story (Hurston 4). By using this specific southern dialect Hurston is able to celebrate African American culture at its finest regardless of it not being proper english.

Along with this cultural language Hurston also uses a literary language as the voice of the narrator. It is filled with insightful bits of information along with the use of figurative language such as imagery and metaphors. The voice of the narrator not only helps transition the parts of dialogue but also adds bits of foreshadowing and commentary as to what might happen next. The narrator mentions that the “dawn and doom were in the branches” and by the end of the chapter the reader is able to see what in Janie’s life resembled this (Hurston 8). This stylistic choice of having two intertwining voices makes the story what it is. It helps to show the beauty in a language most often criticized.

This picture below represents the two voices of the story coming together to make this novel the masterpiece that it is.

Janie's Character

The beauty of childhood is the innocence of not knowing the corruption of the world. Janie’s character is very naïve in the beginning of the novel “Their Eyes Were Watching God.” She admits that “Ah didn’t know Ah wuzn’t white till Ah was round six years old.” (pg. 8)  Janie saw a photograph of herself with other white children and she couldn’t pick out which one she was. She exclaimed “Aw, aw! Ah’m colored!” (pg. 9) when she discovered that she was the only colored one in the photo. Her character at this point is pure, not tampered by the racism and judgment of the world.

Janie loses her innocence after kissing Johnny Taylor and getting caught by her Nanny. Janie just wanted to experience love like when she sees the bee pollinating the flower. But Nanny desires Janie to be a wife, not to love. So Janie marries Logan Killicks to please her Nanny but she also hopes of finding herself, her future, and her love in him. She never loved him to begin with, but in her heart she hoped she would grow into loving him like the bee pollinating the flower. Unfortunately, Janie learned that “marriage did not make love” (pg. 25). Her innocence that originally had been there slowly disappeared until she accepted that her “dream was dead” and she “became a woman” (page 25.) Her character lost innocence when she compromised her dream for her Nanny's expectation. Janie grew into womanhood through her failed marriage.

Characterization

Reading the first two chapters of  “Their Eyes Were Watching God” shows a close examination of what kind of character “Nanny” is. From the chapters read “Nanny” is a wise woman. After reading the first two chapters you can already tell Nanny’s experience as a slave, shaped who she is today and her views on the world. For example, “You know, honey, us colored folks is branches without roots and that makes things come round in queer ways. You in particular. Ah was born back due in slavery so pot wasn’t for me to fulfill my dreams of whut a woman oughta be and to do” (Hurston 16).

Nanny’s character tries to motivate Janie to stick to what one may call an “old way of thinking” which is being dependent on a man. Janie’s independence and desire to explore what the world has to offer clash with Nanny’s ideas of how a woman should act. The idea of gender roles is still present today. Many of the older generations believe men and women should have specific gender roles that enhance conservative views. For instance, “Yeah, Janie youse got yo’ womanhood on yuh. So ah mout ez well tell yuh wut Ah been savin’ up for uh spell. Ah wants to see you married right away”(Hurston 12). Both characters have strong personalities, which may clash further in the novel.  “You answer me when Ah speak. Don’t you set dere poutin’ wid me after all Ah done went through for you” (Hurston 14).

Who is Janie?

In “Their Eyes Were Watching God “, the main character Janie is lost between two worlds and multiple identities.  She is aimlessly wandering down the path of self-discovery. Confronted with internal conflict, Janie is unceasingly questioning her true identity and that of the one she’s been wearing for so long. At this point in the novel, Janie’s personal identity has continuously been up for debate, constantly being molded and/or altered by those involved in her life. Who was the real Janie?

 From the young age of six, Janie had viewed herself as being “just like de rest” (Hurston 9), believing to be white while her outer appearance proved otherwise. She soon discovered the truth about her appearance, but continued to live her life as if nothing had changed. Her grandmother “nanny’  (Hurston 8), had worked to shape her into the perfect wife and the perfect women. Instructing Janie to marry for status, love would soon follow. Nanny striped Janie of her dreams of love, in exchange for womanhood. Janie married the perfect husband, learning that “love did not make marriage. Her first dream was dead she became a woman” (Hurston 25). The exchanging of vows striped Janie of her old self. Janie’s second marriage seemed promising yet intoxicating. Jody silenced Janie and left her opinions and thoughts to simmer on the back burner. “She sho don’t talk much” (Hurston 50). Her voice was stripped the moment her beautiful hair was tied back.

The character Janie, is both compelling yet repulsive. From her grandmother to her husbands, each character that passes through her life adds a new piece to her already confusing puzzle. Stripping a layer off from her original self. 

Janie could relate to this picture because she too is questioning who she truly is. She is unable to see her true identity, and continues to wonder who she is. The question remains afloat, who is Janie?

Race Relations

            As the novel progresses, issues and events regarding race relations emerge frequently. Many characters are African Americans growing in a world where being of color was not acceptable or worthy of equal treatment. Nanny has experience with slavery from her childhood years, and attempts to teach Janie everything to keep her out of the brutal path society created for blacks. For example Nanny tells Janie, “Honey, de white man is de ruler of everything as fur as Ah been able tuh find out” (Hurston 14). Clearly Nanny has the insight African Americans eventually obtain over the course of their life; the white male or female is of higher class and dominates over the colored people. While slavery still persisted, African Americans including Nanny were forced to alter their lifestyle to accommodate for the whites.

            African Americans evidently never received equality when it was legally required. The novel takes place mainly in the 1900’s, slightly thirty years past the ratification of both the thirteenth and fourteenth amendments. These amendments abolished slavery and granted equal protection under the law, especially equality for African Americans. According to the novel, equal rights were not handed to the African Americans as the government had planned. The audience observes this in multiple situations, one in which Janie faces racist bullies in school. “They’d push me ‘way from de ring plays and make out they couldn’t play wid nobody dat lived on premises” (Hurston 9). Even when the African Americans were deserving of equal treatment, they were neglected. Granted, Nanny received harsh treatment during slavery, but afterwards her children and grandchildren received punishment of similar nature.     

 

The whites believe since laws were passed granting equality for African Americans, the issue should be settled. In the African American point of view the laws are helpful, but need to be enforced in society.  

Ebonics and the Use of Dialogue

Zora Neale Hurston uses a different style of dialogue, compared to other stories, within this novel. Each character has a unique “voice” whenever they are talking or discussing with one another. They all contain the “Southern Black slang” form of speech, also most commonly known as “ebonics”. This is considered one of the most interesting aspects of “Their Eyes Were Watching God”. Hurston’s use of transitioning from her Standard Written English to early century Southern black dialect provides a clearer understanding of the characters. The extended passages of dialogue portray the language of Southern blacks, presenting a type of authentic voice that is not often used or seen in other forms of literature. In addition to asserting the existence and abundance of Southern black culture, Hurston’s use of dialogue articulates particular concerns within the novel.

Towards the beginning of this novel, for example, a group of woman were discussing the appearance of Janie. Their dialogue with one another portrays the relationship they have with each other. Constant questions such as “Where all dat money her husband took and died and left her?”(Hurston 2) or “Where she left dat young lad of a boy she went off here wid?” (Hurston 2) were being asked within their conversations. During this specific part of the novel, a clear example of Southern Black speech is presented which also allows the story as well as the characters seem somewhat “real”. The use of this dialect makes the characters seem real; they are believable and not only that but the audience is also drawn into the action of the story. As the story progresses, this form of speech continues to be presented.

The picture depicts how Ebonics is commonly used by the African American race. Hurston uses this form of dialogue to bring the characters to life and allow the audience to gain a clearer example of specific events within the novel.

 

 

 

 

 

           

 

The Bee and the Pear Tree

            “Janie saw her life like a great tree in leaf with the things suffered, things enjoyed, things done and undone” (Hurston 8). Much of chapter two is a simile of Janie’s life compared to a pear tree, especially when she turns into a woman.

As most girls become young women, there is a lot of physical development. Women develop breast, they develop an hourglass figure. Their bodies are like “a tree in bloom” (Hurston 11). Most of the time, girls do not understand this process. They do not understand the features they possess. They do not see anything valuable about their “glossy leaves and bursting buds” (Hurston 11), until they have a revelation.

 Something “clicks”; they start thinking about love and boys in a way they never thought of before. They wonder where all the boys that should be chasing them are. Where are the “singing bees” (Hurston 11)? Then they begin to imagine the most important day of their lives- the day they get married.  For Janie this was when she sees the bee pollinating the flower on the tree. She witnesses matrimony; she witnesses two different forms of nature coming together. It is the realization that one cannot live without the other. The bee needs the flower just as the flower needs the bee. A man needs a woman just as a woman needs a man. They need each other for reproduction. They need each other for support through life’s challenges. The image below demonstrates this. With a male watering the female’s flowers and vice versa, it shows that one cannot grow and flourish without the other. This is what Janie is searching for. She is searching for the man that helps her thrive. She is searching for the bee to her flower.

http://i-am-ascension.tumblr.com/post/98713072994/do-for-others-we-are-not-one-without-the-other

 

Janie and Nanny

In the first few chapters of "Their Eyes Were Watching God", we meet two central characters of the story, Janie and Nanny. These two characters have complex characterizations.

 We see that Nanny has a very caring and loving attitude towards Janie. When Nanny tells Janie she wants her to marry off to a man named Logan Killicks, it’s because she wants her to have “protection” (Hurston, 15). Nanny says she won’t be around for Janie much longer and so she wants her to get married so she has someone to take care of her. During the time period in which this story takes place (the early 1900s), it was common for women to marry off young and start a family. Most of the time, this was for financial reasons. This shows Nanny’s caring and loving attitude because it proves that she just wants the best for Janie and wants to ensure she is taken care of before she can no longer be around, as she says “De day and de hour is hid from me, but it won’t be long” (Hurston, 15). Nanny likely has an intense desire for Janie’s welfare because of the fact that Janie’s parents were never around and so she has never experienced her childhood in a normal family structure.

This show of love conflicts with Janie’s attitude because she is very independent and confident. Janie doesn’t seem to mind being on her own and she shows this independence throughout the first few chapters in the book. Janie also does not care to stay within the expectations of her Nanny. When Nanny tells Janie that she wants her to marry Logan Killicks, Janie complains that she does not want to marry Killicks and she wants to be with Johnny Taylor. She says to Nanny, “Please don’t make me marry Mr. Killicks.” (Hurston, 15). This shows that Janie does not want to stay within the conformity of society, where it was common to have your elders pick your spouse for you. 

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.

Characterization of Nanny

     Every novel has a supporting character that brings humor, wit, and truth to the plot. In “Their Eyes Were Watching God”, it is Nanny. Nanny has had the chance to care for a child once again with Janie, and she does not take it for granted. When Janie’s interest in boys begins to blossom, at first we assume that Nanny is filled with malice, but it is only a cloak for her disappointment. “Ah don’t want no trashy nigger, no breath-and-britches, lak Johnny Taylor usin’ yo’ body to wipe his foot on” (Hurston 13).” Janie’s grandmother only wishes the best for her granddaughter. She does not wish for Janine to turn out the same way as Leaf.
     When Nanny slaps Janine all of her aggravation is left in the sting of her action. Nanny has worked long and hard to provide an education for Janine so she can “pick from a higher bush and a sweeter berry” (Hurston 13).But with Janine trying to skew away from the path already laid out for her Nanny must give her the stone cold truth. In the day an age of this novel, ”De nigger woman is de mule uh de world” (Hurston 14).
     Fortunately, Nanny is not the villain. She gives tough love with a dash of humor. Some may call her Suga Momma with her metaphor filled speeches and jokes that do not discriminate towards her age (“Mah ole head ain’t gray enough” (Hurston 14)). She will talk to Janine about “[getting] knocked up” (Hurston 22) one second to calling her out on how good her life is the next. She is like the modern-day Joan Rivers, who was not the face of Fashion Police for nothing. And with all of those characteristics, she is able to help Janine through her years into adulthood.

The Pear Tree🍃

     Chapter Two immediately introduces parallelism between Janie’s life and a pear tree. Janie is particular about how the bee penetrates the tree when it pollinates—a beautiful mutual connection in her eyes. The bee symbolizes a man and a woman explicitly when Janie wonders, “Where were the singing bees for her?” (Hurtson 11) The symbol shows how she fantasizes a relationship where the man and woman share equal satisfaction.  It also unifies Janie with a tree, describing how they are both flowering and inviting to a partner.

     It is most fitting she shares a kiss with Johnny Taylor under the same tree that fascinates her idea of love and marriage. The tree is a place where her womanhood blossoms and an escape from the reality of arranged marriages as well as male-dominant relationships. The images Janie daydreams about offers insight to how she will handle future relationships. At this point, the audience can predict her marriage with Logan Killicks will be unsuccessful because she views marriage based on harmonious mutual love.

     The pear tree in this novel is a comparable symbol to the pomegranate tree in The Kite Runner. Both trees represent growing up and show how people can share a special bond in a single place. As both Amir and Janie grow older, they see the tree in a new perspective. For Amir, he sees the old, shriveled tree with he and Hassan’s engraving as a symbol to his dead home in Afghanistan, but everlasting friendship with Hassan. As children, the tree is the place where the boys develop their friendship/brotherhood. Similarly, Janie shares a connection with Johnny under the pear tree.