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Their Eyes Were Watching God
Zora Neale Hurston
WITH RELATED READINGS
THE EMC MASTERPIECE SERIES
Access Editions
EMC/Paradigm Publishing
St. Paul, Minnesota
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Staff Credits
Laurie Skiba
Managing Editor
Shelley Clubb
Production Manager
Brenda Owens
Editor
Lisa Beller
Design and Production Specialist
Nichola Torbett
Associate Editor
Leslie Anderson
Cover Designer
Chris Lee
Associate Editor
Parkwood Composition
Compositor
Jennifer J. Anderson
Associate Editor
Sharon O’Donnell
Copy Editor
Paul Spencer
Art and Photo Researcher
Jane Hilken
Proofreader
Valerie Murphy
Editorial Assistant
Blythe Howard
Educational Writer
Their Eyes Were Watching God. Copyright © 1937 by Zora Neale Hurston.
Renewed 1965 by John C. Hurston and Joel Hurston. All rights reserved.
Acknowledgments are continued on page 202.
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Hurston, Zora Neale.
Their Eyes Were Watching God / Zora Neale Hurston; with related readings.
p. cm. – (The EMC Masterpiece Series Access Editions)
1. Hurston, Zora Neale. Their Eyes Were Watching God. 2. African American
women in literature. 3. African American women—Fiction. I. Title. II. Series.
PS3515.U789T5 2004
813’.52—dc22
2004053208
ISBN 0-8219-2736-1
Copyright © 2005 by EMC Corporation
All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be adapted, reproduced,
stored in a retrieval system, or transmitted in any form or by any means,
electronic, mechanical, photocopying, recording, or otherwise without
permission from the publisher.
Published by EMC/Paradigm Publishing
875 Montreal Way
St. Paul, Minnesota 55102
800-328-1452
www.emcp.com
E-mail: [email protected]
Printed in the United States of America.
2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 xxx 10 09 08 07 06 05
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Table of Contents
The Life and Works of Zora Neale Hurston..........................v
Time Line of Hurston’s Life and Works ............................viii
The Historical Context of Their Eyes Were Watching God.....x
Characters in Their Eyes Were Watching God.......................xv
Echoes of Their Eyes Were Watching God .........................xviii
Images of Their Eyes Were Watching God ............................xx
Chapter 1 ..............................................................................1
Chapter 2 ..............................................................................7
Chapter 3 ............................................................................17
Chapter 4 ............................................................................21
Respond to the Selection, Chapters 1–4.............................27
Chapter 5 ............................................................................31
Chapter 6 ............................................................................42
Chapter 7 ............................................................................61
Chapter 8 ............................................................................65
Respond to the Selection, Chapters 5–8.............................71
Chapter 9 ............................................................................73
Chapter 10 ..........................................................................77
Chapter 11 ..........................................................................81
Chapter 12 ..........................................................................88
Chapter 13 ..........................................................................92
Chapter 14 ........................................................................102
Chapter 15 ........................................................................107
Chapter 16 ........................................................................109
Chapter 17 ........................................................................115
Respond to the Selection, Chapters 9–17.........................120
Chapter 18 ........................................................................123
Chapter 19 ........................................................................134
Chapter 20 ........................................................................151
Respond to the Selection, Chapters 18–20.......................154
Plot Analysis of Their Eyes Were Watching God .................156
Related Readings ...............................................................160
“Love” from Dust Tracks on a Road by Zora
Neale Hurston ............................................................160
“Zora Neale Hurston: A Cautionary Tale and a
Partisan View” by Alice Walker..................................172
TABLE OF CONTENTS
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from Killer ‘Cane: The Deadly Hurricane of 1928
by Robert Mykle .........................................................181
“Lament” by Countee Cullen ....................................183
“Each Moment a White Bull Steps Shining into
the World” by Jane Hirshfield ...................................185
Creative Writing Activities................................................187
Critical Writing Activities .................................................189
Projects ..............................................................................193
Glossary.............................................................................196
Handbook of Literary Terms.............................................199
Acknowledgments.............................................................202
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THE LIFE AND WORKS OF
Zora Neale Hurston
Zora Neale Hurston was born in 1891 in Alabama but
grew up in Eatonville, Florida. Nestled in south central
Florida, Eatonville was a small town built, owned, and governed solely by African Americans. The community of
Eatonville nurtured Hurston, and its essence later permeated
many of her works. In Eatonville, Hurston and her neighbors were all first-class citizens; the men and women worked
hard during the day and came together in the evenings to
enjoy each other’s company. As a writer, Hurston attempted
to recreate the spirit of Eatonville and introduce characters,
such as those in Their Eyes Were Watching God, who live
meaningful lives largely independent from stereotypes and
racism. The town of Eatonville, with pine forests, hot days,
and balmy nights, frequently serves as the setting for
Hurston’s works.
Many of the events from Hurston’s life reappear in the
struggles of Janie Crawford, the protagonist in Their Eyes
Were Watching God. For example, Hurston’s mother, Lucy,
died when Hurston was only thirteen years old, leaving
Hurston alone with her unloving father. This sense of loss
and a struggle for self-definition surface in Their Eyes Were
Watching God, as do certain aspects of Hurston’s romantic
relationships.
After high school, Hurston attended Howard University,
a prestigious African-American college in Washington, DC.
As an English major, she wrote and published her first short
story in a campus newspaper. Soon she started attending literary lectures and salons and decided that she would
become a writer. She also grew interested in the AfricanAmerican activity building in Harlem. During her last term
at Howard, Hurston wrote the story “Drenched in Light,”
which was published in Opportunity: A Journal of Negro Life,
a Harlem publication that sought to “lay bare Negro life as
it is.”
Spurred by her contacts at Opportunity, Hurston moved
to New York City with $1.50 in her purse and a strong
desire to join the African Americans who were spearheading the Harlem Renaissance. Soon after her arrival, Hurston
began to exchange ideas with some of the best-known
intellectuals of the day, including Fannie Hurst, Eugene
THE LIFE AND WORKS OF ZORA NEALE HURSTON
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O’Neill, Langston Hughes, and Wallace Stevens. Later that
year, Hurston received a scholarship to Barnard College,
where she studied anthropology with Franz Boas and fostered her interest in folklore. Eventually, Hurston would
travel to Jamaica and Haiti to learn more about the folklore
and voodoo religion of those regions.
Hurston’s writing spanned a variety of genres, including
short stories, novels, plays, folklore collections, and articles.
Many works were written in the southern African-American
dialect she had heard in Eatonville. Some of Hurston’s bestknown works include Jonah’s Gourd Vine (1934), Mules and
Men (1935), Their Eyes Were Watching God (1937), Tell My
Horse (1938), her autobiography Dust Tracks on a Road
(1942), and Seraph on the Suwanee (1948). Hurston’s characters often struggle to understand themselves and their places
in the world. Her works share common themes, such as easing strained family relationships; seeking one’s identity,
freedom, love, and friendship; finding one’s place within a
community, especially as a woman; and coming home after
a long absence.
Hurston’s personal life was as dramatic as her writing. An
independent and flamboyant woman, Hurston developed
many close relationships with both men and women. In
1927, she married her college boyfriend. They divorced four
years later. By 1939, Hurston had remarried; this time her
husband was Albert Price III, who was fifteen years younger
and still a college student. Price expected Hurston to support him, and he threatened her with violence. Hurston left
Price after six weeks of marriage. Many people speculate
that the one real love of Hurston’s life was Percival Punter,
a much younger man. Hurston and Punter never married,
but their relationship lasted on and off between 1935 and
1941. Tea Cake Woods, a primary character in Their Eyes
Were Watching God, may be modeled after Punter.
In 1950 Hurston left New York and moved back to south
Florida. Although she had been writing for more than
thirty years, her earnings were so meager that she lived in
poverty. In the last ten years of her life, Hurston primarily
wrote magazine articles. She took a controversial stance
against desegregation in 1954, claiming that African
Americans didn’t need approval or help from Caucasian
Americans to succeed. This viewpoint cost her many
friends. By 1959, Hurston was on welfare, her health had
deteriorated, and she had suffered a debilitating stroke.
With no family members to care for her and little money to
support herself, Hurston was forced to move into the St.
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Respond to the Selection
Predict the kind of relationship Janie will have with Joe (Jody) Starks. Why do you
think it will go this way?
Investigate, Inquire, and Imagine
Recall: GATHERING FACTS
1a. From where, according to the
novel, has Janie come when the
townspeople first see her?
2a. With whom does Janie share
her story?
3a. In Chapter 2, where does
sixteen-year-old Janie go to
unwind and ponder her life?
4a. What does Nanny decide when
she sees Janie kissing Johnny
Taylor?
5a. For whom does Janie leave
Logan?
Interpret: FINDING MEANING
➛
➛
➛
➛
➛
Analyze: TAKING THINGS APART
7a. Analyze what it means to be
an unmarried, young, AfricanAmerican woman in the 1920s
in south Florida. Describe the
role that awaits Janie. How
does she react to that role?
1b. How is Janie feeling as the novel
begins? Why?
2b. Describe the relationship between
Janie and this person. What details
in the novel help you understand
this relationship?
3b. What is the significance of this
place for Janie? How does it
influence her thoughts and
feelings?
4b. Why does Nanny’s announcement
upset Janie? Why does Nanny
think her decision is a good idea?
5b. What appeals to Janie about this
other man?
Synthesize: BRINGING THINGS TOGETHER
➛
7b. When Janie resists marrying Logan,
Nanny explains to her, “’Taint
Logan Killicks Ah wants you to
have, baby, it’s protection.” What
does Nanny mean? Has she
answered Janie’s doubts? If so,
how? If not, how do you think she
could better answer them?
RESPOND TO THE SELECTION
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Evaluate: MAKING JUDGMENTS
8a. After Janie tells Joe about her
marriage to Logan, Joe says,
“You ain’t got no mo’ business
wid uh plow than uh hog is got
wid uh holiday! You ain’t got
no business cuttin’ up no seed
p’taters neither. A pretty dollbaby lak you is made to sit on
de front porch and rock and fan
yo’self and eat p’taters dat
other folks plant just special for
you.” What does Joe think
makes pretty women happy?
Do you agree? Why, or why
not?
Extend: CONNECTING IDEAS
➛
8b. How do Joe’s ideas for her future
make Janie feel? Predict how
Janie’s life with Joe will differ from
her life with Logan.
Understanding Literature
DIALECT. A dialect is a version of a language spoken by the people of a particular
place, time, or social group. List at least five examples of the southern Florida
dialect Hurston’s characters use in this novel. Why do you think Hurston chose to
have her characters speak in dialect?
NARRATOR. A narrator is one who tells a story. Who are the two narrators of Their
Eyes Were Watching God? Why do you think Hurston chose two narrators to tell
Janie’s story? Consider how the narrator describes the scene of Janie’s homecoming.
How would this scene differ if it were narrated by Janie?
FRAME NARRATIVE. A narrative is a story. A frame narrative is a second story that
provides a vehicle for telling the first story. Often, a frame narrative takes place in a
different time and/or place than the main narrative and can be found at the
beginning and end of the main story. What is the frame narrative in Their Eyes
Were Watching God?
CONFLICT. A conflict is a struggle between two forces in a literary work. A plot
involves the introduction, development, and eventual resolution of a conflict. One
side of a central conflict in a story or drama is usually taken by the main character.
That character may struggle against another character, against the forces of nature,
against society or social norms, against fate, or against some element within himself
or herself. What examples of conflict can you find in chapters 1– 4 of Their Eyes
Were Watching God? Which of these do you expect to be the central conflict, and
why?
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Plot Analysis of
Their Eyes Were Watching God
A plot is a series of events related to a central conflict, or
struggle. The following plot pyramid illustrates the main
parts of a plot.
PLOT PYRAMID
Climax
(D)
C)
n(
o
i
t
Ac
ing
s
i
R
Fal
lin
gA
cti
on
Exposition (A)
Inciting Incident
(B)
(E)
Dénouement (G)
Resolution
(F)
The parts of a plot are as follows:
The exposition is the part of a plot that provides the
background information, often about the characters,
setting, or conflict.
The inciting incident is the event that introduces the
central conflict.
The rising action, or complication, develops the conflict to
a high point of intensity.
The climax is the high point of interest or suspense in the
plot. Sometimes the action close to the climax is called
the crisis, or turning point.
The falling action is all the events that follow the climax.
The resolution is the point at which the central conflict is
ended, or resolved.
The dénouement is any material that follows the resolution and that ties up any loose ends.
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Exposition (A)
The reader first encounters Janie Crawford returning
home from the Everglades after burying Tea Cake Woods,
her third husband and true love. After an absence of a year
and a half, Janie has returned to Eatonville and awaits the
visit of her best friend, Pheoby Watson. Janie tells Pheoby
that her “conscious life,” or her realization of yearnings and
dreams, began at sixteen, while lying underneath Nanny’s
blossoming pear tree and watching the reciprocal relationship between the bees and the blooms. It was under this
pear tree that Janie first began to contemplate her self and
her desires, and she began to struggle with her dreams for
herself, wondering how she, too, could bloom: “she had
glossy leaves and bursting buds and she wanted to struggle
with life but it seemed to elude her.”
Inciting Incident (B)
Ready to embrace life, Janie decides to kiss a local boy,
“tall and lean” Johnny Taylor. Unfortunately, Nanny catches
Janie, realizes that Janie has become a woman, and decides
that Janie should marry an older man, Logan Killicks, who
has expressed an interest in her. However, Janie detests the
idea of marriage to someone she doesn’t love, as it violates
her vision of the pear tree, or her ideas about the life she
wants to build for herself. Nanny insists that Janie marry
Logan and professes that Janie will grow to love him.
Although this goes against Janie’s freshly formed idea of love
and life, Janie grudgingly marries Logan to please Nanny.
Rising Action (C)
Within a year of the wedding, Logan has ceased to court
Janie, and Janie realizes that Logan wants to use her as a
workhorse. Dissatisfied with her marriage, Janie is pleasantly
surprised when she meets Jody (Joe) Starks, a man with
vision who wants to make something of himself. Jody woos
Janie by promising to treat her like a queen and offering to
give her everything she needs if only she will marry him.
Janie leaves Logan to marry Jody. Initially, Janie is
impressed when Jody takes her to Eatonville, begins to build
the town, and assumes the position of mayor. Gradually,
however, Janie tires of being treated like a precious object
rather than as an independent person. When Janie finally
argues openly with Jody, Jody is so hurt and offended that
he retreats into illness and refuses to talk with Janie until the
PLOT ANALYSIS
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day of his death. Jody’s death both saddens and relieves
Janie. Free of Jody’s demands and expectations, she vows to
embrace her single status and return to the desires of her
“girl self.”
When Janie least expects it, she meets the much-younger
and very charming Tea Cake Woods. Tea Cake piques Janie’s
interest by getting to know her and listening to her opinions. Eventually, Janie falls in love with Tea Cake. They
marry and move down to the Everglades where they both
work on the “muck,” picking beans during high season.
Janie has never been happier than she is with Tea Cake.
A hurricane hits the Everglades particularly hard. While
Janie and Tea Cake attempt to escape to higher ground,
Janie is blown into a deep mass of water and threatened by
a rabid dog. Tea Cake swims out to rescue Janie, and the mad
dog bites him.
About a month later, Tea Cake suddenly grows ill, and he
makes jealous accusations toward Janie. A visit from Dr.
Simmons reveals the worst possible news: Tea Cake has contracted rabies from the dog bite, and it’s too late to save him.
Dr. Simmons tells Janie that Tea Cake must sleep alone, he
will probably lose his sanity, and she can only keep him
comfortable until he dies. Meanwhile, Tea Cake’s jealousy
intensifies due to his illness, and he imagines that Janie is
spending time with another man.
Climax, Crisis/Turning Point (D)
Mad with jealousy, Tea Cake aims his pistol at Janie and
fires, and Janie, in self-defense, is forced to shoot back with
her rifle. Janie’s shot kills Tea Cake. As Janie watches Tea
Cake die, she realizes that this is “the meanest moment of
eternity.”
Falling Action (E)
Since there were no witnesses to Tea Cake’s death, Janie is
immediately taken into police custody and put on trial for
his murder. Janie’s worst fear is not that she will serve time
for murder; rather, she fears that the jury will underestimate
the depth of her love for Tea Cake. Although the court
acquits Janie, many of Tea Cake’s friends are still suspicious.
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Resolution (F)
Janie buries Tea Cake in Palm Beach, inside a strong vault
where he will forever be out of the way of wind and water.
In an attempt to make peace with Tea Cake’s friends, she
invites them to his funeral, and they come, realizing that
Janie was forced to shoot Tea Cake. They apologize to Janie
and ask her to stay down on the muck awhile longer.
Dénouement (G)
Staying on the muck makes Janie miss Tea Cake even
more, so she returns home to Eatonville and confides her
story in Pheoby. Awed by Janie’s story of love and loss,
Pheoby declares that she “growed ten feet higher” just
from listening to Janie. In narrating the story to Pheoby,
Janie realizes that there are two things everybody has to do
for himself or herself: “They got tuh go tuh God, and they
got tuh find out about livin’ fuh theyselves.” At the novel’s
end, Janie calls upon her soul to continue to embrace life’s
possibilities.
PLOT ANALYSIS
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Creative Writing Activities
Illustrating Character
Imagine that Janie is on a dating show and must choose
among three bachelors: Logan, Jody, and Tea Cake. Janie
will go out on a date with the man she chooses. Write a
script for the show, including Janie’s interview of each
bachelor. The questions that Janie asks should reflect her
concerns and motivations, and each man’s responses
should also mirror his character, motivations, life philosophy, and so on.
Before writing the script, think about Janie and her
changing definitions of love. Then write down at least four
or five details that describe Logan, Jody, and Tea Cake. With
all of these ideas in mind, draft the script for the show.
Conveying Landscape and Mood
One of the hallmarks of Zora Neale Hurston’s writing is a
strong sense of place. Her descriptions of the landscape
evoke a particular mood and enable readers to vividly imagine the place. Think of a landscape that has special meaning
or powerful associations for you. This could be your home
town, a place where you often vacation, a place in your
neighborhood where something particularly memorable
may have occurred, or any place that makes you feel a certain way. Use the chart below to list sensory details about
the place you have chosen. The details you list should evoke
the mood you want to convey.
Sensory Detail Chart
Sight
Hearing
Touch
Taste
Smell
Use these details to write a description of your landscape.
Use vivid language to allow your reader to experience the
place you have chosen. You might also include metaphors,
similes, personification, or other kinds of figurative language to make your writing more interesting.
CREATIVE WRITING ACTIVITIES
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Narrating a Relationship
Their Eyes Were Watching God begins and ends with Janie
sharing her struggles with her supportive friend, Pheoby.
One of Janie’s painful realizations was that her vision of Jody
was skewed—she misjudged him and what he could bring to
her life. Think about a time when you misread a person’s
character and were either surprised or disappointed. Write a
story about this experience as a letter to a close friend. Start
by telling how you met this person. Note your first impressions of him or her. How did your impressions change as you
spent more time with this person? Describe this person to
your friend by illustrating the person’s values, personality, or
manner. How did you learn who the person truly was?
Personification
Zora Neale Hurston is well known for her use of personification in her writing. Recall, for example, her chilling
personification of Death in Their Eyes Were Watching God.
Now it’s your turn to try your hand at personification. Pick
an object, an idea, or a feeling, and write your own twoparagraph personification of this thing. Start by thinking
about what kind of person this thing would be. Jot down
some notes, or freewrite on the topic for ten minutes. Then
draft your personification. In the first paragraph, describe
what you are personifying: how does it look? what noises
does it make? how does it smell? In the second paragraph,
tell what it does: what are its motivations? how does it
move? what emotions does it convey?
Narrative and the Blues
The blues were very popular during the time when Their
Eyes Were Watching God was written. On any given Friday
or Saturday night, blues musicians and vocalists could be
heard in juke joints across the south. Janie and Tea Cake
enjoyed the blues after a long day of working on the muck
in the Everglades, and Tea Cake is even referred to as son
of the Evening Sun, a reference to a blues song.
Listen to a few blues songs to learn how they are structured. Then write a blues song in Janie’s voice. First think
about one story that Janie might want to tell. Then write
at least two verses that communicate important events
from Janie’s story. Don’t forget to write a chorus for your
song. Think of your chorus as a thesis statement that communicates Janie’s main message to listeners.
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Critical Writing Activities
The following topics are suitable for short critical essays
on Their Eyes Were Watching God. An essay on any one of
these topics should begin with an introductory paragraph
that introduces the topic and states the thesis, or main
idea, of the essay. This introduction should be followed by
several paragraphs that support the thesis using examples
from the novel. The last paragraph of the essay should be
a conclusion that restates the thesis of the essay in different words. The conclusion should also bring a sense of
closure to the essay.
Comparing and Contrasting Two Characters
Write a comparison-and-contrast essay about one of the
following pairs of characters:
Janie and Nanny
Logan and Jody
Jody and Tea Cake
Tea Cake and Logan
On your own paper, draw a Venn diagram like the one
shown below. In the center of each of the two circles, write
the names of the characters you are examining. Record
similarities between the two characters in the overlapping
part of the circles and write differences in the parts of the
circles that do not overlap.
___________
Name
___________
Name
Use the points from your Venn diagram to draft your
essay. You will need to decide whether to use point-by-point
or block organization. In point-by-point organization, you
discuss one topic as it applies to the first character, and then
discuss the same topic in relation to the second character.
CRITICAL WRITING ACTIVITIES
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Throughout the essay, you move back and forth between the
two characters. If you choose this organizational method, be
sure to start a new paragraph every time you switch characters. In block organization you discuss all the aspects of one
character and then discuss all the aspects of the other character. Usually block organization works best if you will focus
on one major point of comparison, and point-by-point organization works best if you have several points of comparison.
As you develop your essay, be sure to include specific
examples from the book. Direct quotations from the text,
with page references, will also make your essay more
effective.
In your conclusion, you might suggest how the similarities and differences between the two characters you have
chosen relate to the meaning of the novel as a whole.
Exploring the Theme of Racism
Racism is discrimination or prejudice based on race or
ethnicity. Think about how many characters in Their Eyes
Were Watching God experience racism at some point. Many
of these characters are shaped in powerful ways as a result
of racist assumptions, actions, or expectations. In fact,
racism has so affected some of these characters that they
consciously or unconsciously pass down a legacy of prejudice. Select three of the following characters and discuss
when and how each character is affected by racism:
Nanny
Janie
Jody
Mrs. Turner
Tea Cake
For each character, note when they have experienced or
perpetuated racism. How did it affect them at the time?
What lingering effects does racism have on the character?
Use events and quotations from the text to support your
ideas. In your introduction or conclusion, you might want
to summarize what general points the book makes about
race or racism.
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Tracing Pear Tree Symbolism
Images of a pear tree occur throughout the novel. Why is
this image so central? What does it symbolize? How does it
become a “measuring stick” for Janie? Locate as many pear
tree passages as you can in the novel. Also find passages in
which Janie notices the absence of “bloom” or in which
something or someone violates her vision of the pear tree.
Then write an essay in which you trace the use of pear tree
imagery throughout the book. Your introduction should
contain a thesis in which you suggest what the pear tree
symbolizes. Each body paragraph should use quotations and
other evidence from the novel to support your thesis. In
your conclusion, you might want to connect the meaning
of the pear tree symbolism to the overall themes in the
novel.
Considering the Questions Raised by the Novel
In Chapter 3 of Their Eyes Were Watching God, the narrator states that “there are years that ask questions and years
that answer.” Throughout the novel Janie asks questions
about her life.
Write an essay that focuses on three significant questions
that Janie asks. In your introduction describe the types of
questions she ponders, and formulate a thesis focusing on
the theme of these questions. Each body paragraph should
address one of Janie’s questions, the reason behind it, and
the answer that Janie discovers. In your conclusion, consider Janie’s declaration to Pheoby in the final chapter: “Two
things everybody’s got tuh do fuh theyselves. They got tuh
go tuh God and they got tuh find out about livin’ fuh theyselves.” What does Janie mean when she says this? How
does it relate to all of the questions she asks?
Analyzing Point of View
In the beginning of the novel, Nanny gives Janie advice
about the role of black women: “Honey, de white man is de
ruler of everything as fur as Ah been able tuh find out.
Maybe it’s some place way off in de ocean where de black
man is in power, but we don’t know nothin’ but what we
see. So de white man throw down de load and tell de nigger
man tuh pick it up. He pick it up because he have to, but he
don’t tote it. He hand it to his womenfolks. De nigger
women is de mule uh de world so fur as Ah can see.” Write
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an essay in which you analyze Nanny’s point of view. What
is her motive in giving this advice to Janie? How have her
past experiences as a slave influenced Nanny’s point of
view? Why does Nanny force Janie to marry Logan? Is
Nanny’s advice right for Janie? Be sure to formulate a thesis
that expresses the main idea you want to convey about
Nanny’s point of view. Every paragraph in your essay should
support your thesis.
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Projects
Researching a Region
Eatonville and the Everglades are two actual regions of
Florida as well as the settings for much of Their Eyes Were
Watching God. In small groups, research various aspects of
one of these regions. One group might focus on the founding of Eatonville, while another group might investigate
the ecology of the Everglades. Other groups might research
the roles these regions played during the Civil Rights
movement, the World Wars, or other significant times in
history. Don’t forget to search for photographs or artwork
that depict the area you are researching. Resources you
might use in your research include your local library, a university library, Hurston’s “Eatonville Anthology,” the Web,
the South Florida visitors’ center, and historical societies in
Florida.
Once your group has collected information, create a
multimedia presentation on your region. Use audio and
visual elements to make the place real for your classmates.
Surveying Zora Neale Hurston Web Pages
A number of websites contain information on Zora Neale
Hurston. Create a Zora Neale Hurston Web Research Guide
in which you evaluate the information available on at least
five of these sites.
For each website you review, answer the following list of
questions:
1. Who created the website? Who is responsible for its
content?
2. How much do you trust this person or organization to
provide accurate information? What credentials make
this person or organization a reliable source of
information?
3. Does the site provide contact information for the
creator or webmaster? (The most reliable sites generally
provide a means through which researchers can ask
questions or make comments.)
4. How recently was the site updated?
5. What kinds of information are provided?
6. How detailed is the information?
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7. How easy is it to navigate this site? How many dead
links did you find?
8. Would you recommend this site to students researching
Hurston? Why, or why not?
Use your answers to write a one- or two-paragraph review
of each site, and collect these reviews in your Zora Neale
Hurston Web Research Guide. Be sure to rate each site so
readers can easily assess the usefulness of each site. Feel free
to design your own rating system, but be sure to explain it
somewhere in your Research Guide.
Make copies of your Zora Neale Hurston Web Research
Guide for your teacher, any interested classmates, and for
your classroom or school library.
Creating a Soundtrack for the Novel
Imagine that Their Eyes Were Watching God is being made
into a movie that will include all of the major events in the
novel. Then imagine that you have been hired to create the
soundtrack for the movie. Pick at least ten songs that are
appropriate for various scenes from the novel. Record these
songs on an audiocassette or CD. Then write liner notes for
the soundtrack. These notes should explain which scene the
song addresses and why you have chosen this song. Finally,
design a CD or audiocassette cover for the soundtrack.
Reflecting upon Representations of Marriage
Over the course of the novel, Janie experiences three very
different marriages with Logan, Jody, and Tea Cake. Based
on evidence from the book, create three collages that visually depict the marriage that Janie shared with each man.
After you’ve put together each collage, choose a song that
captures the mood of each marriage. Gather your classmates
and present each collage, accompanied by the song you
have chosen. Ask your classmates to guess which marriage
each collage represents. Be prepared to explain the visual
elements you’ve used and the music you’ve chosen.
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Investigating the Impact of Natural Disasters
Zora Neale Hurston based the hurricane in Their Eyes Were
Watching God upon two hurricanes that decimated south
Florida and the areas around Lake Okeechobee in 1926 and
1928. What natural disasters have affected your city or
town? Talk to your relatives, neighbors, and friends to find
out if they have recollections of significant natural disasters
near your home. Then head to your local historical society,
library, or meteorology center for more information.
After you have compiled interesting and useful information, give a brief presentation to your class. Be sure to
include copies of newspaper articles and relevant photos.
If possible, you might also include an audiotaped interview with a survivor of the disaster.
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Glossary
PRONUNCIATION KEY
VOWEL SOUNDS
a
hat
ā
play
ä
star
e
then
ē
me
i
sit
¯
my
CONSONANT SOUNDS
b
but
ch
watch
d
do
f
fudge
go
h
hot
j
jump
k
brick
ō
ȯ
oi
ou
u
u
–
go
paw, born
boy
wow
up
burn
u̇
ü
ə
book, put
blue, stew
extra
under
civil
honor
bogus
l
m
n
ŋ
p
r
s
sh
lip
money
on
song, sink
pop
rod
see
she
t
th
v
w
y
z
sit
with
valley
work
yell
pleasure
al • lure (ə lür’) n., appeal.
am • or • ous (a’ mər əs) adj., strongly moved by love,
especially romantic love.
ap • pend (ə pend’) v., add on as an afterthought.
as • sail (ə sāl’) v., attack.
as • set (a’ set) n., advantage, resource.
.
au • da • cious (o dā’ shəs) adj., original and full of verve.
.
au • then • ti • ci • ty (o thən tis’ ə tē) n., worthy of
acceptance or belief due to being based in fact.
balk (bäk) v., block, stop as if by an obstacle.
bar • ren (bār’ rən) adj., incapable of producing offspring.
be • lit • tle (bə li’ təl) v., cause a person or thing to seem
smaller or less.
bo · da · cious (bō dā’ shəs) adj., unmistakable.
con • sign (kən sin’) v., commit someone or something to a
particular fate.
curt • ly (kərt’ lē) adv., in a short, abrupt way.
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del • e • gate (del’ i gət’) n., person authorized to act as
representative; deputy or agent.
de • sist (də sist’) v., to cease doing something.
des • po • tic (des pä’ tik) adj., tyrannical; acting with
absolute power.
dis • so • lu • tion (dis ə lü’ shən) n., decomposition into
fragments or parts; disintegration.
em • balm (im bäm’) v., treat in a way that prevents decay.
em • bark (em bärk’) v., make a start, often on a trip.
en • dow (en dau’) v., provide with.
gump • tion (gum’ shən) n., initiative; drive.
hal • lowed (ha’ lōd) adj., made sacred.
horde (hord) n., huge crowd; large quantity.
in · fat · u · at · ed (in fa’ chü ā təd) adj., inspired with foolish
or extravagant love or admiration.
ir • rev • er • ent (ēr re’ vər ənt) adj., lacking proper respect
or seriousness.
lac • er • ate (las’ ə rāt) v., rip, cut, or tear; cause emotional
distress.
lan • guid (lan’ gwid) adj., lacking energy or vitality; weak.
mien (mēn) n., bearing or manner, especially as it reveals an
inner state of mind.
ob • scur • i • ty (äb scyur’ ə tē) n., state of being unknown.
.
os • ten • ta • tious • ly (os’ tin tā’ shəs lē) adv., in a showy
display meant to impress others.
o • ver • ture (ō’ vər chər) n., movement toward.
pal • lid (pal’ lid) adj., lacking sparkle or liveliness; dull.
.
prom • on • to • ry (präm’ ən tor’ ē) n., high ridge of land
or rock jutting out into the water.
pug • na • cious (pug nā’ shəs) adj., combative in nature,
belligerent.
re • ac • tion • ar • y (rē ak’ shə nār ē) adj., conservative;
overly focused on reaction rather than originality.
re • con • cile (re’ kən s¯l) v., come to terms with; accept.
re • pu • di • ate (rə pyü’ dē āt) v., refuse to accept as valid
or binding.
sac • ri • lege (sa’ kri lij) n., violation of something sacred.
sta • tic (sta’ tik) adj., unchanging.
GLOSSARY
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te • mer • i • ty (tə mer’ i tē) n., foolhardy disregard of
danger.
tran•sient (tran’ shənt) n., one who often moves from place
to place, especially a hotel guest or boarder of brief duration.
trans • pose (tranz pōz’) v., transfer from one place or time
to another.
unc • tuous • ness (ənk’ shəs nəs) n., quality of being falsely
kind or eager to please, often in order to get something in
return.
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Handbook of Literary Terms
CONFLICT. A conflict is a struggle between two forces in a
literary work. A plot involves the introduction, development, and eventual resolution of a conflict. One side of a
central conflict in a story or drama is usually taken by the
main character. That character may struggle against
another character, against the forces of nature, against
society or social norms, against fate, or against some element within himself or herself.
FIGURATIVE LANGUAGE. Figurative language is writing or
speech meant to be understood imaginatively instead of
literally. For example, when the narrator says on page 1
that “Ships at a distance have every man’s wish on board,”
the narrator is not referring to boats with piles of wishes
on them. Instead, he or she is commenting on the way the
image of a ship represents the feeling of desire.
FOIL. A foil is a character whose attributes, or characteristics, contrast with the attributes of another character.
Logan and Jody are foils
FORESHADOWING. Foreshadowing is the act of presenting
material that hints at events to occur later in the story. In
Chapter 2, for example, Hurston writes that Janie “saw her
life like a great tree in leaf with the things suffered, things
done and undone. Dawn and doom was in the branches.”
FRAME NARRATIVE. A frame narrative is a narrative, or story,
that provides a vehicle for telling another story. Their Eyes
Were Watching God begins with a frame narrative in which
an unnamed narrator watches Janie return to Eatonville
and tell her friend Phoeby what has happened in her life.
DIALECT. A dialect is a version of a language spoken by the
people of a particular place, time, or social group. In Their
Eyes Were Watching God, most of the characters speak with
an African-American southern Florida dialect.
IMAGE AND IMAGERY. An image is language that creates a
concrete presentation of an object or an experience. An
image is also the vivid mental picture created in the
reader’s mind by that language. Imagery is the set of
images in a literary work.
METAPHOR. A metaphor is figurative language in which one
thing is spoken or written about as if it were another. This
figure of speech invites the reader to make a comparison
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between the two things. The two “things” involved are the
writer’s actual subject, the tenor of the metaphor, and
another thing to which the subject is likened, the vehicle of
the metaphor. When Nanny says that an African-American
woman “is de mule uh de world,” the tenor is an AfricanAmerican woman, and the vehicle is a mule.
MOTIVATION. A motivation is a force that moves a character to think, feel, or behave in a certain way.
NARRATOR. A narrator is one who tells a story. Works of fiction always have a narrator, unless they consist entirely of
dialogue without tag lines, in which case they cease to be
fictions and become closet dramas, dramas meant to be read
aloud but not performed. The narrator in a work of fiction
may be a central or minor character or simply someone who
witnessed or heard about the events being related. Writers
achieve a wide variety of ends by varying the characteristics
of the narrator chosen for a particular work. Of primary
importance is the choice of the narrator’s point of view. Will
the narrator be omniscient, knowing all things including the
internal workings of the minds of the characters in the story,
or will the narrator be limited in his or her knowledge? Will
the narrator participate in the action of the story or stand
outside that action and comment on it? Will the narrator be
reliable or unreliable? That is, will the reader be able to trust
the narrator’s statements? These are all questions that a
writer must answer when developing a narrator.
PERSONIFICATION. Personification is a figure of speech in
which an idea, animal, or thing is described as if it were a
person. Hurston personifies nature and events in Their Eyes
Were Watching God. For example, the sun is personified on
page 1: “The sun was gone, but he had left his footprints
in the sky.”
PLOT. A plot is a series of events related to a central conflict,
or struggle. A plot usually involves the introduction of a
conflict, its development, and its eventual resolution.
SETTING. The setting of a literary work is the time and place
in which it occurs together with all the details used to create
a sense of a particular time and place.
SUBPLOT. A subplot is a subordinate story told in addition to
the major story in a work of fiction. Often a subplot mirrors
or contrasts with the primary plot. Their Eyes Were Watching
God contains many subplots, including the story of Mrs.
Turner.
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SYMBOL. A symbol is a thing that stands for or represents
both itself and something else. To figure out what a symbol
represents, you need to think about the associations most
people have with the object, but you also need to look
closely at the part of the text in which the symbol appears.
How is the object described? Does it appear once, or several
times? How does it change, if at all? Is it associated with a
particular emotion, character, or occurrence? One symbol
in Their Eyes Were Watching God is the horizon.
THEME. A theme is a central idea in a literary work.
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