Were Watching God Sexism

During the early 1900’s in America, women and children had been thought of as lesser than men. Women had also been expected to be housewives and to stay home tending to all of the children and taking care of the chores that are gender specific. A relation that day consisted of a man picking a women that is suitable for himself and the highest ranking family member in the house agreeing to the offer or not. In the story Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, the main character Janie defies what society deems is right for her. The sexism and racism throughout the time period correlates to how Janie is treated within the novel. The early twentieth century was difficult for African Americans, during that time they faced difficulties

Since she was closely related to the Harlem Renaissance she stood as an idol to many writers to come. She had, “helped to remind the Renaissance--especially it’s more bourgeois members--of the richness in the racial heritage” (Radek). Hurston had lived in Harlem in the 1920’s and was very involved in the Renaissance itself. It has been said that “Hurston befriended the likes of Langston Hughes and Countee Cullen, among several others. Her apartment, according to some accounts, was a popular spot for social gatherings” (Radek). She had been an outstanding anthropologist and folklorist who worked to learn the stories and tails of multiple cultures including her own African-American heritage. Zora Neale Hurston had a very modern idea of an egalitarian society which is portrayed in the main character Janie throughout the

During that time it was likely for Janie to be in the kitchen and house preparing meals or cleaning but when her first husband asks her to work the farm with him she is taken back because women were not expected to work. “Women were for show while the men were for the real tasks in life” (Delany). She agrees, obeying her husband and does whatever task he tells her to fulfill. This is why when a suitor comes and dazzles her with false promises of never having to work again, she eagerly leaves without a second