Analysis Of Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God

One foot forward, yet two steps back. The words, no, the screaming, echo off the walls in my head. Still, the faint touch of your body rips at my skin. My mind pleaded for help, for security, for shelter, but my heart insisted to stay. “We need to leave” it whispered, fearing he would hear us. “What if this is love” I called back. I ached in a silent cry for freedom. None of this was what I expected; none of this is what I wanted. Love did not equal confinement. It did not mean giving up on lifelong dreams, yet my body ached in defeat. The air was suffocating, but, nevertheless, I had to keep moving. Only God knows if I could get back up after yet another beating. Silence is not an option. These were the painful feelings that raced through
Racine correctly proclaims that in “Their Eyes Were Watching God”, Zora Neale Hurston’s character Janie and her voice were greatly influenced by four men in her life with the use of passion/control in her relationships; however she inaccurately states that Johnny Taylor was a catalyst in Janie’s development with her voice and was the most important relationship Janie
Starks, at the beginning, tried to suppress Janie’s voice with his, but in the end, it was Janie who came out on top. Even on Jody’s deathbed, she stood up for herself and kept pushing forward, despite his desperate attempts to drag her down. The strength inside of her grew, as well as the love for herself and her voice to empower herself and make Janie’s life hers. This was the second appearance of control in Janie’s life. Furthermore, Tea Cake Woods was different from the last two men. He was the closest embodiment of her life long dreams of marriage; he was the passion Janie had longed for. Tea Cake was loving, kind, and carefree. Not to mention, Janie was, for once, ready for him physically and mentally, and they both flourish in love from the heart and mind. Tea Cake yearned for Janie to be whatever she wanted; he didn’t want to use her to make himself look good or to act a certain way. Even in his worst times, Janie truly grows in this positive environment, and we watch her voice become bigger, more confident, and more independent. The readers see the self love Janie worked and persevered on all throughout the book when Tea Cake was shot and dying