Janie Crawford's Difficulties

Earth Harape

3/1/15

Period 6 LoBello

AP Literature

Janie Crawford’s Difficulties

Feminism is the advocacy of equality between all genders by erasing social norms and expectations. In the novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, Zora Neale Hurston writes a story that takes place in the early 20th century, where women fought for equality with men.The protagonist, Janie, experiences hardships that symbolizes what the feminist movement fights against. Due to the sexism Janie experiences from her three husbands, Janie feels a lack of voice and individuality in the beginning of the novel, but through realizing her own worth she is able to steer away from following the stereotypical women's’ roles.

Janie’s lack of voice is a symbol of women who are unable

to speak for themselves due to the fact that men saw women as inferior. When Janie meets Jody Starks, her second husband, she falls in love with a simple politician. However, when Jody becomes mayor of Eatonville, he treats Janie as an object. Janie is a social woman who “loved the conversation and sometimes she thought up good stories on the mule, but Joe had forbidden her to indulge. He didn't want her talking after such trashy people" (53). Jody does not allow Janie to tell stories to the people on the porch because he thinks they are in the lower class. In contrast, Janie does not want to be seen as better than the people in the town because she is the mayor’s wife. She wants the townspeople to see her as an equal. As Janie becomes more frustrated, “she fought back with her tongue as best she could, but it didn't do her any good. It just made Joe do more. He wanted her submission and he'd keep on fighting until he felt he had it. So gradually, she pressed her teeth together and learned to hush" (71). She remains quiet and keeps her thoughts to herself because she recognizes that Jody had power over her. As Jody is dying, Janie finally finds her voice. She tells Jody that “it’s so easy to make yo’self out God Almighty when you ain’t got nothin’ tuh strain against but women and chickens” (88). Janie has had enough of Jody’s bullying and tells him that he just because he is mayor does not mean that he is God. She establishes the power Jody had over her was subjective and that being her husband does not mean he could control her life. By showing how unfairly Jody treats Janie because she is his wife, Janie helps the readers realize that they should not conform to the stereotypes that forces them into submission.
Janie’s discovery of her individuality is reflected through her husbands.

Nanny arranges Janie’s marriage to her first husband, Logan, resulting in Janie feeling as if she had no say in what her life. Nanny thinks that marrying a white male would protect her granddaughter from racism. However, the opposite happens. Logan treats Janie like a mule whose only job was to work on the farm. Logan believes all women should be dominated by their husbands and “ain’t got no particular place. It’s wherever Ah need yuh” (31). In a sense, Logan tells Janie that she has no individuality or freedom except for being his wife. She is his object and has to follow his orders. Janie feels worthless and eventually leaves Logan to seek out her identity and dreams. In addition, Jody takes away Janie’s individuality by making her wear a rag over her long hair. He wants to ensure she knew she is inferior to him but “this business of the head-rag irked [Janie] endlessly. But Jody was set on it… it didn’t seem sensible at all (55).” The rag is an example of the constraints on Janie’s identity as her hair is beautiful to men. Jody feels jealous and does not allow Janie to take off the rag in public. When Jody dies, Janie takes off the rag because the man has no power over her. The readers realize the benefits of not following forced expectations when the suppression on Jody’s individuality disappears as Janie leaves the negative people in her

life
Janie’s experiences steers away from the stereotypical women.

By gaining the ability to do whatever she wants and ignoring social norms, she experiences true feminism. In the beginning, Janie cannot break away from expectations and her Nanna forces her to marry Logan. Eventually, Janie leaves Logan for treating her poorly and gains the confidence to stand up to the man; breaking the norm that women are inferior to men. Janie realizes that she should find the person who sees her as equal. When Janie meets Jody, she falls in love with him because he gave her affection. Soon, she discovers his animosity against free women when he does not allow her to talk to the townspeople and forces her to wear a rag over her hair. Due to the fact that Janie experiences hardships from her first two husbands, she realizes her worth when she is unhappy with her conditions. She feels the discrimination against her because of her gender and learns that she deserves better. When Janie remarries she shows independence because she does not staying with the man for financial security or because the man has power over her; Janie chooses to marry her third husband because he respects her. By experiencing Janie’s character development, readers learn that they are only able to experience true freedom when they refuse to follow social norms and make decisions based on their own individual

wants.

Work Cited
Hurston, Zora N. Their Eyes Were Watching God. New York, NY: HarperCollins Publishers, 2006. Print.