book

Their Eyes Were Watching God - A Life-Changing Journey

21 Pages 621 Words 1557 Views

“Oh to be a pear tree- any tree in bloom! With kissing bees singing of the beginning of the world! She was sixteen. She had glossy leaves and bursting buds and she wanted to struggle with life but it seemed to elude her. Where were the singing bees for her?” (11) Nature has the capability to affect an individual’s perception of the world. Zora Neale Hurston intertwines this with Janie by having environments impact her ideals and needs. In result, Hurston unveils meaning through nature while utilizing symbolism as Janie searches for change, realization, and satisfaction. The first idea expressed through symbolism is change. Janie seeks “a bloom time, and a green time and an orange time” that will make her life experiences sporadic and different (25). Hurston describes these ‘blooms’ in relevance to types of natural sprouting through a variation of color. Janie’s Nanny wants her to marry for substantial support. Janie “knew that marriage did not make love” and that Nanny’s perception of marriage was not something Janie wanted to abide by (25). This tenacity Janie acquires is provoked through the significances of difference in nature, and she interprets these differences to decide her life is not to be completely filled with just a single color of ‘blooms,’ but to be filled with a mixed bag of of colors. Another concept denoted is realization. Following many years of being married to Jody, Janie begins to lose hope in her dreams after she understands that Jody does not romantically satisfy her. When Janie one day “sits under a shady tree, with the wind blowing through her hair and clothes,” she notices for the first time that Jody is no longer young (77). The ‘shady tree’ is the cloud of fog that pushes against Janie’s ambition on finding true love. The ‘wind’ that blows against her is the clearing that allows Janie to become aware of the differences between herself and Jody. Together, the two ai

Read Full Essay