Traditions pertaining to gender and class greatly affect the the characters in Their Eyes Were Watching God and The Kite Runner; both Janie and Amir better themselves by rebelling against traditional roles in their cultures. Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston is a book which follows Janie Starks through three marriages. Their Eyes Were Watching God examines how African-American women were greatly oppressed during the early twentieth century. The story is set in Florida during the early 1900s. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini follows an Afghan man named Amir from childhood to adulthood. The book deals with many dark subjects such as rape and terrorism. The Kite Runner allows the reader to see how Amir’s living in war-torn …show more content…
Afghanistan affects not only his childhood in Afghanistan, but also his adulthood in the United States of America. Both Janie and Amir live in societies where everyone is expected to maintain tradition.
Janie’s society and Amir’s society looks down upon those who are nonconformists; however, Janie and Amir do not follow the traditions that are placed upon them. Traditions pertaining to gender and class greatly affect the the characters in Their Eyes Were Watching God and The Kite Runner; both Janie and Amir better themselves by rebelling against traditional roles in their cultures. In Their Eyes Were Watching God women are expected to be married as soon as possible; in The Kite Runner men are expected to be strong, powerful figures.The traditions of African-American Southern United States and Afghanistan place strong expectations on both men and women; this is shown clearly in Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston and The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini. At the beginning of Their Eyes Were Watching God, Nanny makes it clear to Janie that she wants Janie to be married: “”Ah wants to see you married right away” (Hurston 12). Nanny is forcing the traditional role of women on Janie by telling Janie that she must get married as soon as possible. Janie clearly does not love Logan Killicks, but Janie marries Logan anyway because of
tradition. Although Janie is told she is supposed to love Logan, Janie cannot love him, “‘Cause you told me Ah must gointer love him, and, and Ah don’t” (Hurston 23). Women in Their Eyes Were Watching God are also oppressed and treated poorly. Men think that women cannot think for themselves, and Jody expressed this while speaking to Janie, “Aw naw they don’t. They just think they’s thinkin’. When Ah see one thing Ah understands ten. You see ten things and don’t understand one” (Hurston 71). Women in Their Eyes Were Watching God were also expected to submit to men in every way. “Time came when she fought back with her tongue as best as 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 like he had it” (Hurston 71). Despite the oppression Janie felt while married to Logan and Joe, Janie ran away from her abusive husbands. Janie’s rejection of societal norms allows her to become a much happier person with Tea Cake. Therefore, Janie’s rejection of the traditional expectations led to her fulfillment as an individual. However, The Kite Runner placed more emphasis on the expectations that men are subjected to because of Afghan tradition. Amir longed to be as strong and respected as his Baba. In Amir’s eyes, Baba was a perfect man: respected, kind, and powerful. Afghan men are expected to be fiercely independent as well. The strong urge to remain independent is shown when Baba refuses to take food stamps. “‘Thank you but I don't want,’ Baba said. ‘I work always. In Afghanistan I work, in America I work. Thank you very much, Mrs. Dobbins, but I don't like it free money’" (Hosseini 130). Unlike Janie in Their Eyes Were Watching God, Amir does not rebel against the gender traditions of his country. Instead, Amir uses the traditional gender roles to aid in his fulfillment as a person. Amir portrays tradition by being very strong and assertive when trying to get Sohrab out of the orphanage. In chapter twenty-four, Amir pleads with Mr. Faisal for a long time to try to figure out a way to get Sohrab into America. This dedication shows how Amir is still following the Afghan tradition for men to be stern and strong-willed. Despite Janie’s rejection of traditions regarding gender and Amir’s acceptance and following of traditions regarding gender, both use tradition to shape themselves. Traditions within certain classes/races also greatly affects the fulfillment of Janie in Their Eyes Were Watching God and Amir in The Kite Runner. Janie is born into a poor, African-American community, however, Amir is born into a wealthy Pashtun household. Janie is constantly surrounded with African-American culture and tradition because Janie is raised in Eatonville, Florida. Eatonville, Florida is a real town and Eatonville was the first all-black town in the United States of America. Janie is a biracial woman; Janie’s mother was African-American and her father was white. Janie’s race is made clear to her at the age of six. Prior to the age of six, Janie thought she was white like the other children she played with. The realization that she was different came by looking at a photograph: “So when we looked at de picture and everybody got pointed out there wasn’t nobody left except a real dark little girl with long hair standing by Eleanor. Dat’s where Ah wuz s’posed to be, but Ah couldn’t recognize dat dark chile as me. So, Ah ast, ‘where is me? Ah don’t see me.’ . . . Ah looked at de picture a long time and seen it was mah dress and mah hair so Ah said: ‘Aw, aw! Ah’m colored!’” (Hurston 9). Janie’s being different from these white children changed the way Janie thought about herself. As a black woman, Janie was not only oppressed because of her sex, but Janie was also oppressed because of her race. Black people in the American South had different traditions than the white people who lived there. Janie also went from one class to another. When Janie was married to the mayor, she was of a higher class; when Janie was married to Tea Cake, she was of a lower class. This switch from high class to low class made the town judge Janie. "What she doin coming back here in dem overhalls? Can’t she find no dress to put on?– Where’s dat blue satin dress she left here in?–Where all dat money her husband took and died and left her?. . .What he done wid all her money?–Betcha he off wid some gal so young she ain’t even got no hairs–Why she don’t stay in her class?" (Hurston 2) However, Janie rejected that traditional thought that one should be in a high class. Janie was happiest while married to Tea Cake, who was a very poor man. While Janie was married to the mayor, she was not happy. The rejection of tradition placed upon Janie by her race and class allowed Janie to become a happier person, thus aiding in Janie’s fulfilment as a character. The Kite Runner by Khaled Hosseini also allows the reader to see how Amir uses tradition to aid in his fulfillment as a person. In Afghan culture and tradition, the Hazara people and the Pashtun people do not get along well. The Pashtun, who are Sunni Muslims, look down upon the Hazara, who are Shi’a Muslims (Hosseini 9). In The Kite Runner, Amir is Pashtun, but his servant Hassan is Hazara. Despite the tradition that Hazara and Pashtun are not friends, Amir and Hassan are great friends throughout childhood. The relationship between Amir and Hassan is the backbone of The Kite Runner. Amir’s ignoring of the traditional relationship between Hazaras and Pashtuns allows himself to become a much better person. If Amir had not become close friends with Hassan during childhood, Amir would not have adopted Sohrab and saved Sohrab from a life of sexual abuse. Hassan and Amir are also in different socioeconomic classes. Hassan is the son of a servant, Amir is the son of a wealthy philanthropist and businessman. In Afghan culture, the rich are not expected to socialize with the poor. However, Amir changes his life by becoming best friends with his servant’s son. Janie in Their Eyes Are Watching God and Amir in The Kite Runner both desert some traditional stereotypes regarding class and race. Amir and Janie evolve as people and characters because of the desertion of the aspects of tradition. Finally, following tradition can lead to both positive and negative outcomes. However, Janie and Amir both thrive when not following traditions. Traditions help shape these characters because Janie and Amir rebel against the traditions of the African-American South and Afghanistan, respectively. Although Janie and Amir rebel against tradition in different ways, both Janie and Amir see positive results from rebellion. Although Janie and Amir receive much condemnation for the rejection of traditional values, Janie and Amir are ultimately happy with the decision to abandon tradition. For some to be truly happy, he or she must shun tradition, despite the criticism from his or her society,
Zora Neale Hurston’s, Their Eyes Were Watching God tells about the life of Janie Crawford. Janie’s mother, who suffers a tragic moment in her life, resulting in a mental breakdown, is left for her grandmother to take care of her. Throughout Janie’s life, she comes across several different men, all of which end in a horrible way. All the men that Janie married had a different perception of marriage. After the third husband, Janie finally returns to her home. It is at a belief that Janie is seeking someone who she can truly love, and not someone her grandmother chooses for her. Although Janie eventually lives a humble life, Janie’s quest is questionable.
Zora Hurston’s novel “Their Eyes Were Watching God” depicts the journey of a young woman named Janie Crawford’s journey to finding real love. Her life begins with a romantic and ideal view on love. After Janie’s grandmother, Nanny, soon grows fearful of Janie’s newfound sexuality and quickly marries Janie off to Logan Killicks, an older land owner with his own farm. Janie quickly grows tired of Logan and how he works her like a slave instead of treating her as a wife and runs away with Joe Starks. Joe is older than Janie but younger than Logan and sweet talks Janie into marring him and soon Joe becomes the mayor of an all African American town called Eatonville. Soon Joe begins to force Janie to hide not only her
The book, Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston is about Janie Crawford and her quest for self-independence and real love. She finds herself in three marriages, one she escapes from, and the other two end tragically. And throughout her journey, she learns a lot about love, and herself. Janie’s three marriages were all different, each one brought her in for a different reason, and each one had something different to teach her, she was forced into marrying Logan Killicks and hated it. So, she left him for Joe Starks who promised to treat her the way a lady should be treated, but he also made her the way he thought a lady should be. After Joe died she found Tea Cake, a romantic man who loved Janie the way she was, and worked hard to provide for her.
In, Their Eyes Were Watching God, the author takes you on the journey of a woman, Janie, and her search for love, independence, and the pursuit of happiness. This pursuit seems to constantly be disregarded, yet Janie continues to hold on to the potential of grasping all that she desires. In, Their Eyes Were Watching God, the author, Zora Hurston illustrates the ambiguity of Janie’s voice; the submissiveness of her silence and the independence she reclaims when regaining her voice. The reclaiming of Janie's independence, in the novel, correlates with the development and maturation Janie undergoes during her self discovery.
Every novel has a protagonist and an antagonist of the story. There has to be a "good guy" and "bad guy" in order for there to be some sort of an interesting plot. In Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, my most and least favorite characters happen to be the protagonist, Janie, and the antagonist, Jody Starks. There are many things that symbolize these characters that are both comparable and contradictory of my personality. Symbols, objects or characters that are used to represent abstract ideas or concepts, play a major role in this novel. Janie is represented by her hair and Jody by his power, wealth and status of the town. Janie Jody and the symbolic representations are the three most appealing fundamentals of the story.
Path to Finding True Love “True love doesn't happen right away; it's an ever-growing process. It develops after you've gone through many ups and downs, when you've suffered together, cried together, laughed together.” This quote by Ricardo Montalban tells us that true love simply has to develop and it doesn’t happen right away. Janie is the main character from the book Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston and she struggled on the concept of true love. This quote explains exactly why Janie never found true love.
In Their Eyes Were Watching God by Lora Neale Hurston, the main character engages in three marriages that lead her towards a development of self. Through each endeavor, Janie learns the truths of life, love, and the path to finding her identity. Though suppressed because of her race and gender, Janie has a strong will to live her life the way she wills. But throughout her life, she encounters many people who attempt to change the way that she is and her beliefs. Each marriage that she undertakes, she finds a new realization and is on a never-ending quest to find her identity and true love. Logan Killicks, Joe Starks, and Tea Cake each help Janie progress to womanhood and find her identity.
In Zora Neale Hurston’s novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, the main character, Janie, struggles to find herself and her identity. Throughout the course of the novel she has many different people tell her who she should be and how she should behave, but none of these ideas quite fit Janie. The main people telling Janie who she should be is her grandmother and Janie’s 3 husbands. The people in Janie's life influence her search for identity by teaching her about marriage, hard work, class, society, love and happiness. Janie's outlook on life stems from the system of beliefs that her grandmother, Nanny, instils in her during her life.
Through her use of southern black language Zora Neale Hurston illustrates how to live and learn from life’s experiences. Janie, the main character in Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, is a woman who defies what people expect of her and lives her life searching to become a better person. Not easily satisfied with material gain, Janie quickly jumps into a search to find true happiness and love in life. She finally achieves what she has searched for with her third marriage.
The movie and the book of Their Eyes Were Watching God both tell the story of a young woman’s journey to finding love; however, the movie lacks the depth and meaning behind the importance of Janie’s desire for self-fulfillment. Oprah Winfrey’s version alters the idea from the book Zora Neale Hurston wrote, into a despairing love story for the movie. Winfrey changes Hurston’s story in various ways by omitting significant events and characters, which leads to a different theme than what the novel portrays. The symbolisms and metaphors emphasized throughout the book are almost non-existent in the movie, changing the overall essence of the story. While Zora Neale Hurston’s portrayal gives a more in depth view of Janie’s journey of self-discovery and need for fulfilling love, Oprah Winfrey’s version focuses mainly on a passionate love story between Janie and Tea Cake.
So many people in modern society have lost their voices. Laryngitis is not the cause of this sad situation-- they silence themselves, and have been doing so for decades. For many, not having a voice is acceptable socially and internally, because it frees them from the responsibility of having to maintain opinions. For Janie Crawford, it was not: she finds her voice among those lost within the pages of Zora Neale Hurston’s famed novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God. This dynamic character’s natural intelligence, talent for speaking, and uncommon insights made her the perfect candidate to develop into the outspoken, individual woman she has wanted to be all along.
Lee Coker - Lee Coker lives in Eatonville. He was one of the first people to meet Jody and Janie.
Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston is about a young woman that is lost in her own world. She longs to be a part of something and to have “a great journey to the horizons in search of people” (85). Janie Crawford’s journey to the horizon is told as a story to her best friend Phoebe. She experiences three marriages and three communities that “represent increasingly wide circles of experience and opportunities for expression of personal choice” (Crabtree). Their Eyes Were Watching God is an important fiction piece that explores relations throughout black communities and families. It also examines different issues such as, gender and class and these issues bring forth the theme of voice. In Janie’s attempt to find herself, she grows into a stronger woman through three marriages.
Throughout the movie of Their Eyes Were Watching God, Oprah Winfrey alternates Zora Neale Hurston’s story of a woman’s journey to the point where nobody even recognizes it. The change in the theme, the characters, and their relationships form a series of major differences between the book and the movie. Instead of teaching people the important lessons one needs to know to succeed in this precious thing called life, Oprah tells a meaningless love story for the gratification of her viewers. Her inaccurate interpretation of the story caused a dramatic affect in the atmosphere and a whole new attitude for the audience.
Zora Neale was an early 20th century American novelist, short story writer, folklorist, and anthropologist. In her best known novel Their eyes were watching God, Hurston integrated her own first-hand knowledge of African American oral culture into her characters dialogue and the novels descriptive passages. By combing folklore, folk language and traditional literary techniques; Hurston created a truly unique literary voice and viewpoint. Zora Neale Hurston's underlying theme of self-expression and search for one’s independence was truly revolutionary for its time. She explored marginal issues ahead of her time using the oral tradition to explore contentious debates. In this essay I will explore Hurston narrative in her depiction of biblical imagery, oppression of African women and her use of colloquial dialect.