My Opinion

In my opinion, I think that Their Eyes Were Watching God was a great novel to read and I enjoyed reading it a lot. At first, I thought it would be a very confusing book to read because of all the black dialect and I was not looking forward to reading it. After reading the first few chapters, I started to understand all the dialect and I could read it fluently while understanding it at the same time. Zora Neale Hurston did a great job writing this book and I think it is the best book she has ever written even though it received a lot of criticism from her peers. I think the characters in the novel really got the book going and made it seem so realistic, especially Janie. I think her life story is very moving and it is definitely worth reading about in this book. I think that the events that take place are very detailed and vivid and that is why imagery is so important in this famous novel. All the things that went on in the book made you want to keep reading, so that is one reason I wanted to keep reading this novel. I think Janie is a very important figure for the African American race because she shows that they can rise up and accomplish their dreams even with racism. The book was very easy to understand after getting used to it and the many symbols of the book added to the overall greatness of the novel. I think Hurston should have been praised a lot more for this novel and I do not understand why she received so much criticism for such an excellent book. I think all the components of a great book came together in this novel and it was one of the best books I have ever read in school. Even though this book is “different” in many ways does not mean it is not worth reading. I would recommend this book to almost anyone because it is a very inspirational story of a woman trying to find true love in her life and it would appeal to a lot of people. I would probably rate this book as a nine out of ten for its excellence in all the components of good literature.

http://www.foundvalue.com/photo/their-eyes-were-watching-god-26757

Symbols in Their Eyes Were Watching God

Important Symbols in Their Eyes Were Watching God

1. The roots of the trees- represents how African Americans have little to no roots.
2. Pear tree- represents Janie's budding womanhood and her desire to grow in love.
3. The mule- represnts how African Americans are mistreated and they have the worst jobs.
4. Janie's long, straight hair- represents how Janie is "different" and how she has bi-racial roots. Also, it represents her freedom as a woman.
5. A dog- represents how not to treat a lady.
6. The lamp post- a symbol of light and hope for the new town of Eatonville (progress).
7. Horizon- represents new dreams/wishes for Janie and also new beginnings.
8. The gate- represents the opening of new possibilities down the "road".
9. The general store- represents progress in Eatonville because black people have their own store and it is owned by black owners. It is also the central meeting spot for the town.
10. Janie's head rag- represents Joe's control; similar to slavery.
11. Joe's house- represents how people of wealth can afford expensive things.
12. Packet of seeds- symbolizes new life for Janie and how Tea Cake is with her always.
13. Hurricane- symbolizes God's almighty power and how he is the source of all power.
14. Checkerboard- represents how Janie is respected and has some sort of freedom in society.
15. Spitoon- symbolizes Joe's wealth and power.
16. Mrs. Turner- represents racism during that time and how segregation was encouraged.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Spittoon.jpg

Imagery in Their Eyes Were Watching God

Imagery is the usage and formation of descriptions and details to create a mental image in the reader's head. These descriptions help create a vivid image in the reader's head and really enhace the reader's experience. Imagery can be found in almost any kind or form of literature and it a very important component in modern English literature. Imagery is used a lot in Their Eyes Were Watching God and it is very easy to point out because there is so much of it. The imagery used really helps the reader understand what is going on since they have images of the various events that go on in the book. The imagery was also helpful if some things in the book did not make sense and it adds emphasis and detail to the characters and events of this famous novel. Here is a list of the imagery I found in Their Eyes Were Watching God.

Imagery in Their Eyes Were Watching God

1.  “the great rope of black hair swinging to her waist and unraveling in the wind like a plume,” Description of Janie’s hair, which is a big symbol in the novel. Page 2

2. “time makes everything old so the kissing, young darkness became a montropolous old thing while Janie talked.” Time loomed on as Janie told her story to Phoeby. Page 7

3. “She had glossy leave and bursting buds and she wanted to struggle with life but it seemed to elude her.” This compares Janie to the blooming pear tree and how it is blooming as she is growing up and becoming a woman. Page 11

4. “Mind- pictures brought feelings, and feelings dragged out dramas from the hollows of her heart.” Nanny is trying to raise Janie while remembering the past things from her life, and trying to do better this time. Page 16

5. “They sat on the boarding house porch and saw the sun plunge into the same crack in the earth from which the night emerged.” This is symbolizing the start of a new day, and Janie has a new start for happiness. Page 33

6. “The fact that the thought pictures were always crayon enlargements of life made it even nicer to listen.” Listening to stories and talking makes life seem a lot better than it is to Janie; it idealizes things. Page 51

7. “The new moon had been up and down three times before she got worried in mind.” It had been a long time before Janie started to worry that she wasn’t falling in love with Logan as she hoped she would with time. Page 22

8. “She knew the world was a stallion rolling in the blue pasture of ether.” Life is fast changing and constantly moving. Page 25

9. “The women took the faded shirt and muddy overalls and laid them away for remembrance.” This was a description of the clothes Janie was wearing at the time, which was different then what she left wearing. Pg. 2

10. “From barren brown stems to glistening leaf-buds; from the leaf-buds to snowy virginity of bloom.” This describes how the pear tree grew during the seasons and how Janie should grow into a woman. Page 10

11. “There is a basin in the mind where words float around on thought and thought on sound and sight.” The mind is very complex, especially in Janie’s case and it works in strange ways. Page 24

12. “The shirt with the silk sleeveholders was dazzling enough for the world.” This is a good description of Joe Stark’s clothing and how stylish he was on the day he met Janie. Page 27

13. “Joe noted the scant dozen of shame-faced houses scattered in the sand and palmetto roots and said, “God, they call this a town? Why,’tain’t nothing but a raw place in de woods.”” This describes Joe’s first impression on the town of Eatonville and how rundown it was at the time. Page 34

14. “This business of the head-rag irked her endlessly. But Jody was set on it. Her hair was NOT going to show in the store.” Janie was not allowed to let down her beautiful hair in the store and she was annoyed about it. Page 55

15. “His prosperous- looking belly that used to thrust out so pugnaciously and intimidate folks, sagged like a load suspended from his loins.” This describes how Joe was looking and getting much older, especially in his stomach since he was getting fatter. Page 77

16. “Tuh think Ah been wid Jody twenty yeahs and Ah just now got tuh bear de name un poisonin’ him! It’s ‘bout to kill me, Pheoby. Sorrow dogged by sorrow is in mah heart.” The rumor about Janie trying to poison Joe with her cooking is so much that it could kill Janie. She feels sorry for Joe and all of her sorrow is in her heart. Page 83

17. “Janie starched and ironed her face and came set in the funeral behind her veil. It was like a wall of stone and steel.” Janie did come to the funeral in clothing that looked like she was concerned and mournful over the death of Joe, but her veil blocked her unconcerned feelings on her face about Joe’s death. Page 88

18. “Those full, lazy eyes with the lashes curling sharply away like drawn scimitars. The lean, over-paddled shoulders and narrow waist. Even nice!” Janie notices some of the physical appearances of Tea Cake that make him so attractive, which impresses her a lot. Page 96

19. “In the cool of the afternoon the fiend from hell specially sent to lovers arrived at Janie’s ear. Doubt.” The devil had brought doubt to Janie after she had not seen Tea Cake for a while and she was starting to think if Tea Cake was worth it. Page 108

20. “Done took to high heel slippers and a ten dollar hat! Looking like some young girl, always in blue because Tea Cake told her to wear it. Poor Joe Starks. Bet he turns in his grave every day.” Tea Cake spoiled Janie a lot on expensive items and he did anything for her. Joe, even though is dead, must be really mad at Janie and cannot stand Tea Cake at all. Page 110

21. “But, don’t care how firm your determination is, you can’t keep turning round in one place like a horse grinding sugar cane.” You cannot stand in one place to accomplish something, but rather you must move around and have determination. Page 118

22. “Dirt roads so rich and black that a half mile of it would have fertilized a Kansas wheat field.” The dirt in the roads were so fertile and were rich in nutrients that it could all have been used to help a huge wheat field grow in Kansas. Page 129

23. “A little seed of fear was growing into a tree.” Janie’s fear that Tea Cake would end up running away with Nunkie was continually rising and what was just a little fear was turning into a lot of fear. Page 136

24. “Look at me! Ah ain’t got no flat nose and liver lips. Ah’m uh featured woman. Ah got white folks’ features in mah face.” Mrs. Turner thinks that she has physical characteristics that make her part of the white race, not the ugly black in her opinion. Page 142

25. “See dat! Mah woman would spread her lungs all over Palm Beach County, let alone knock out mah jaw teeth.” Any woman except Janie would yell and scream if they were whipped by their husbands and they would even retaliate, but Janie is the kind of person who would submit to it. Page 148

26. “The monstropolous beast had left his bed. The two hundred miles an hour wind has loosed his chains. He seized hold of his dikes and ran forward until he met the quarters; uprooted them like grass and rushed on after his supposed-to-be conquerors, rolling the dikes, rolling the houses, rolling the people in the houses along with other timbers.” The hurricane was rolling on and it was reaching its peak strength. It was destroying almost everything in its path and even killing people in its wake, leaving catastrophic damage. Pages 161-162

27. “Corpses were not just found in wrecked houses. They were under houses, tangled in shrubbery, floating in water, hanging in trees, drifting under wreckage. The hurricane was so devastating that it took bodies with it and threw them everywhere. Everywhere you looked in the muck there would be a dead body around. Page 170

28. “Ah done been done tuh de horizon and back and now Ah kin set heah in mah house and live by comparisons.” Janie says that she has lived her dream by finally finding love in her life and she is satisfied to be at home again. Page 191

My favorite example of imagery in the quotes listed is the one about the hurricane because it is the most detailed description of all the quotes. It shows how strong and powerful the hurricane was and shows how devastating the hurricane was. This quote really helps the reader understand what the situation was like for Tea Cake and Janie and is so detailed, which is why I like it so much. This is a great example of putting a vivid image inside the reader's head so they can see what it would be like to be at the sight of the hurricane. This quote can even help the reader understand what is going on and a mental image can help the reader follow along with the story. This is definitely my favorite quote and the best example of imagery because of its ability to create a mental image in the reader's head.



The Criticism of Zora Neale Hurston

Andrew B.

Mrs. Zurkowski

Honors English 9- Yellows

13 April 2011

Controversy Surrounding Zora Neale Hurston

            Zora Neale Hurston was a very famous writer during the Harlem Renaissance and she wrote a very famous book called Their Eyes Were Watching God in 1937. Through this work and many others written by Hurston, African American critics have come to really despise her work for how she makes African Americans feel like they have no freedom and never would. Critics have also noticed that she is, in a way, writing to a white audience since her works have favored white suppression. Zora had many brash views on the black race and critics questioned why she wanted blacks to rise up in society in ways that were not appropriate. In her books, such as Their Eyes Were Watching God, Hurston displays that blacks should live under the rule of whites and be silent instead of openly protesting against white rule. Many critics of the African American race are very upset with her because they think she portrays African Americans as people of no value and they think she supported segregation in her own time. One very famous African American, Richard Wright, was one of the main critics of Hurston and he challenged her views so much that Hurston had to stop writing.

            Richard Wright was a very influential character during the Harlem Renaissance and he is very famous for criticizing Hurston and her views on the black race. He hated the book Their Eyes Were Watching God, particularly for how Hurston portrays blacks in society. Hurston was very famous for her black dialect within the books and she treasured using it. But Richard Wright thought it was completely wrong because the dialect described blacks as dumb people who did not know how to talk. With this he says that blacks had no knowledge of anything if they could not even speak right. He also criticizes Hurston for her description on what blacks do and does not like the fact that the blacks have to do all the work and they have be under the control of white rule. “Richard Wright , Author of "Black Boy", disliked Zora portrayal of blacks as "common folks working beanfields”” (Jack, 1998). As an active speaker for African American rights, Wright thinks that blacks should fight for their rights instead of accepting that whites have the power and being silent, which Hurston portrays about blacks. His ultimate view of the book is this: “He therefore thought the story of "Their Eyes are watching God, the story of Jamie Crawford a wasted one” (Jack, 1998). Since Wright was so popular amongst his peers, everyone agreed with him and Hurston disappeared from literature and society.

            I agree and disagree with the critics on their views on Hurston. I agree that Hurston should have promoted black protest rather than the blacks just keeping quiet. I also definitely agree with the idea that Hurston wrote to white audiences and it seemed to me that she was supporting segregation and white rule. I do not agree that she was trying to make African Americans seem like dumb people and people that do all the work. I say this because the dialect that she used in the book was very important to her heritage and she valued it a lot, so I think she deserves to use it. When she portrayed African Americans doing all the work, I think she was just trying to detail the lives of the African Americans at the time and describe how mistreated they were. Her book was not a waste to me but rather was very influential because it described that segregation had a bad impact on African Americans. Overall, I have mixed feelings about Hurston and what the critics have to say, but she will always be remembered for all the criticism she had to take.

Bibliography

Jack, Grace. "Zora Neale Hurston (1891-1960)." Http://www.library.csi.cuny.edu. 7 Dec. 1998. Web.     13 Apr. 2011. http://www.library.csi.cuny.edu/dept/history/lavender/386/zhurston.html.

Vrotsos, Karen. "AP Central - English Literature Author: Zora Neale Hurston." HTML REDIRECT. Collegeboard.com. Web. 15 Apr. 2011. <http://apcentral.collegeboard.com/apc/members/courses/teachers_corner/30289.html

http://kalamu.posterous.com/video-richard-wright-black-boy

Blog Post #2 - Zora Neale Hurston

Background Information

• She was born in Notasulga, Alabama, in 1891 but was raised mainly in the town of Eatonville, Florida, which was the first incorporated all-black town in the United States.
• In 1918, she began her college career at Howard University and founded the student newspaper, but she left to go to Barnard College in 1925, where she was the only black student.
• She received a degree in anthropology at Barnard in 1927 when she was 36 years old and went to Columbia University to study with famous anthropoloist Franz Boas.
• She visited the Carribbean and South America to see what the culture was like and many of her folklores were based off of the folklore customs of these areas.
• Hurston's knowledge of her racial heritage and African American life was very influential on many writers during the Harlem Renaissance and helped many become famous.
• She compiled many famous works, including Mules ans Men in 1935, which was a collection of African American folklores, and her most famous work, Their Eyes Were Watching God in 1937.
• She contriuted to the Harlem Renaissance by writing the famous short story "Spunk", which was selected for The New Negro, a collection of poetry and essays that focused on African American art and literature.
• She was very vocal in addressing the issues with race and gender and she thought that blacks could find freedom in society.
• Her work became unknown for decades for cultural reasons and many people opposed her work for the language she used to express the African Americans in her literature.
• In 1960, Hurston was struggling finacially and physically and ended up dying from hypertensive heart disease in a nursing home in Fort Pierce, FL.

http://www.palmbeachpost.com/news/zora-neale-hurston-she-was-a-plain-jane-192642.html

http://www.africawithin.com/aalit/zora_neale_hurston.htm

Information sources

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Zora_Neale_Hurston

Microsoft Student with Encarta

Background Information on the Harlem Renaissance

• During the Great Migration, many African Americans left the South and migrated to the cities of the North for employment oppurtunities.
• One area that flourished with African Americans was the nieghborhood of Harlem in New York City, which became the culutural center of black America.
• In the late 1800s and continuing through the early 1990s, literature and art began to flourish with such authors as Claude McKay and artists such as Bob Cole.
• Young writers and authors such as Langston Hughes began to fuel the rise of the Harlem Renaissance and literature would continue to thrive with all the young writers beginning to take shape.
• Music and literature during the Harlem Renaissance was very diverse and there was no common type that was expressed and the lives of African Americans were expressed through songs and poems.
• There were some racial issues of the work done during the Harlem Renaissance because some works made African American stereotypes, but W.E.B. Du Bois really spoke up for all the black people.
• African American musicians played to audiences of blacks and whites and many of the more successful musicians played exclusively in dowtown New York.
• The Harlem Renaissance was affected greatly by the Great Depression in the mid-1930s because many blacks artists and writers left the city so it was on a decline.
• The Harlem Renaissance ended because many writers and musicians stopped working and young artists were not associating with the Harlem Renaissance anymore.
• African American art and literature was changed forever due to this time period and it showed that African Americans could thrive in literature just like the whites could.

Countee Cullen

• He was a very important important poet during his time and wrote about the lives of African Americans.
• He won many poetry contests at a young age and eventually moved on to New York University, where he produced many works for many literary magazines.
• He contributed to the Harlem Renaissance by producing many volumes of poetry including Color in 1925 and Copper Sun in 1927.
• Cullen died very unexpectedly in 1946 due to kidney failures and complications from high blood pressure.
• He will always be remembered for his poetry works he created during the Harlem Renaissance and he always tried to avoid using steroetypes in his works.

http://www.english.illinois.edu/maps/poets/a_f/cullen/life.htm

W.E.B. Du Bois

• He graduated Harvard University with a doctoral degree the first African American to do so.
• Du Bois wrote many famous books that influenced the Harlem Renaissance, including Black Reconstruction in 1935 that desribed how important African Americans were in the past.
• During the Harlem Reniassance, Du Bois was a prominent civil rights activist who fought for the rights of all African Americans.
• Du Bois made national attention when he argued against Booker T. Washington's view on African Americans while saying that blacks should work their way up in society to guarantee themselves civil rights.
• He helped young writers such as Langston Hughes rise up in the Harlem Renaissance so they could contribute their own works.
•  Du Bois founded the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) and he led them to fights for civil rights.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:WEB_DuBois_1918.jpg

Claude McKay

• McKay was a Jamaican-American writer and poet and he wrote three books during the Harlem Renaissance, including Home to Harlem in 1928, which was a best-seller.
• At a young age, he was attracted to the Communist Party when he was in London, but he never became an official member of the party.
• He emerged as one of the first voices of the Harlem Renaissance and he was one of the first major poets of the Harlem Renaissance.
• In his literature, he expressed racial awareness for African Americans that would help African Americans gain freedom and rights.
• He also made a book of his own poems, called Selected Poems, but he died of a heart attack at the age of 59.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Mackey.jpg

Information Sources- Microsoft Student with Encarta

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Claude_McKay

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Countee_Cullen

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/W._E._B._Du_Bois

Creative Project

Some photos of Bullhead City.

These are different maps of Bullhead City.

This is the typical weather of Bullhead City, where it has a desert climate and very warm temperatures.

This is the wildlife of Bullhead City with many fish species and Lake Mead National Recreation Area, which has tons of plant and animal species.

This is the plant and animal life, which includes desert plants and animals and insects that can survive the harsh conditions.

These are some interesting sites in Bullhead City like nearby Laughlin, Nevada and the Colorado River and Lake Mohave.

The numerous ways that you can reach Bullhead City, especially the local airport called Laughlin/Bullhead International Airport by plane and Interstate 40 by car.

There are many things to do in Bullhead City, especially the water activities like kayaking, scuba diving, fishing, and white water rafting.

Some more pictures, including Lake Mohave, cacti, and the Colorado River.

Picture Sources

Information Sources