Examples Of Identity In Their Eyes Were Watching God

Eventually, Janie decided to leave Logan for another man she met names Joe Starks, and her quest for love continued with her new marriage. Janie was instantly attracted to Joe’s innate power because he gave her hope that she could reach the “horizon” (page 36). Joe took over as mayor of Eatonville and his influence increased dramatically with his improved confidence. He made decisions for Janie, just as her grandmother had, and forbid her from living like every other townsperson. For example, Janie was not allowed to associate with any customers in the store she helped Joe run, she could not wear her hair down in the store, and she had to dress a particular way because of Joe’s raging jealousy.

He is the man who fills the voids of loneliness and love, and continues her development as a woman. Joe’s impact on Janie’s emotional growth is that he emotionally abused her to the point where she wouldn’t talk anymore and he only wanted a pretty wife/show wife because he was the mayor of Eatonville. She felt like she had lost her identity because the people would call her Mrs. Mayor Starks and would never use her real name. She also feels like she lost her identity because she always listened to what Joe had to say about her appearance and whatever he suggested she would do it. Joe also had an impact on Janie’s physical growth is that he also physically abused her when every should would do the slightest thing wrong.

Janie, after her horrible life with Logan, desires to return back to the people. She has for a long time been isolated and alone. Now she wants to be free. But Joe is not allowing this wish to come true. Joe, on the other hand, is actually doing two things.

Joe was charismatic towards Janie, and they end up moving in together. Jody became mayor, and Janie was asked to give a speech at the committee meeting. Jody started speaking before she could even begin. He said, “Thank yuh fuh yo’ compliments, but mah wife don’t know nothin’ ‘bout no speech-makin’. Ah never married her for nothin’ lak dat.

After Janie leaves Logan and runs off with Joe, they head to Eatonville and Joe quickly becomes the mayor. The people of Eatonville ask for a word from the mayor's wife where Joe says, “Mah wife don’t know nothin’ bout no speech makin” (Hurston 78). At the very early start of Janie and Joe’s relationship, he continues to strip Janie more and more of her voice. Janie has been stripped so much of her voice that she does not even know who she is as a person anymore. ” The years took all the fight out of Janie’s face.

Janie tells Joe “And now you got tuh die tuh find out dat you got tuh pacify somebody besides yo’self if you wants any love and any sympathy in dis world. You ain’t tried tuh pacify nobody but yo’self. Too busy listening tuh yo’ own big voice.” (Pg 87) Janie thinks very little of Joe.

(46). Joe believes that he is doing Janie a favor by providing her with the life he thinks she wants, and this causes her to feel isolated. Although she is still unsure of herself, she knows that her vague idea of the life she expects does not align with Joe’s vision. Despite their conflicting viewpoints, she chooses to suffer in silence because of her fear and reliance on Joe for financial security. Janie allows him to create an uneven power dynamic in which she becomes simply a part of Joe’s image for the public eye.

Joe seen Janie as a trophy wife or someone he could show people off to, but Janie was taken by his charms and believed that he would be the one to give her the love she was looking for. She soon realized that it was nothing like that, “And one night he had caught Walter standing behind Janie and brushing the back of his hand back and forth across the loose end of her braid ever so lightly so as to enjoy the feel of it without Janie knowing what he was doing. Joe was at the back of the store and Walter didn’t see him. He felt like rushing forth with the meat knife and chopping off the offending hand. That night he ordered Janie to tie up her hair around the store” (Chapter 5).

In the entirety of their marriage, up until Joe’s death, his attitude demoralized and objectified Janie as a person- failing to treat her as an equal. Following her husband's death, Janie sought out her independence by slowly departing herself from the authority Joe left behind,

Additionally, she begins to realize that she resents her grandmother for the ideal system she raised Junie on. In Hurston’s novel Janie states “She hated the old woman who had twisted her so in the name of love. Most humans didn’t love one another nohow, and this mislove was so strong that even common blood couldn’t overcome it all the time.” Pg. 65.

At the beginning of the story, Janie always wants to discover the outside world and has an ambitious attitude towards chasing her goals in life, and she often would “search as much of the world as she could”(11), showing how curious and confident Janie is to put herself out there. Additionally, enthusiastic and lively attributes are embodied by Janie’s character at first, as well as her aspirations because she has “glossy leaves and bursting buds”(11), wanting to achieve the chance to live life. Lastly, before Janie met Joe, she was happy and eager to get out and know the outside world and often “looked up the road towards way off”(25), longing for the adventure of that long road and not feeling discouraged or controlled to stay in one place. Although Janie was free and optimistic at first, when Joe came into the picture that attitude changed as he was restraining and controlling over Janie. With Joe wanting to be a big voice it ended up restraining Janie to just staying in the market place and having no value, which further lead her to putting “up a drape over her dreams”(72), showing how shattered and invaluable she felt in the position Joe gave her, not even

Finding her identity was a very difficult and powerful process and Janie is deemed as a strong independent woman because of it. Janie shows this when the novel states that “She was looking for the kiss of life. She was searching for something that was inside herself, and always had been” (Hurston 9). This proves Janie’s quest to find herself and who she is because she knows she has a purpose and that her life has meaning. Janie’s determination shows how she’s trying to fight the expectations for her and doesn’t want to die just being a normal woman.

Jody controlled major aspects of Janie’s life, such as her appearance, when he forces her to keep her hair up. Janie does not like that Jody feels the need to control her: “This business of the head-rag irked her endlessly. But Jody was set on it... that was because Joe never told Janie how jealous he was” (Hurston 55).

However, many times in the book, many of the characters have told Joe that Janie is too good for him. That she should leave him and get another man. Which would anger an insecure man, who feels that he needs to have all material things to have a good life. In this quote, “He didn’t really hate Janie, but he wanted her to think so” (81). It shows that he thinks that guilting people into thinking that he’s the victim, that people will start respecting him again.

Janie holds anger for her grandma because of the grandmother’s decision, but eventually, after she matures, Janie realizes that Nanny was merely doing it