Feminism In 'Their Eyes Were Watching God'

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Kierra Huff ENG 376 Professor Morrissette November 23, 2014 Their Eyes Were Watching God Formal Essay Feminism, defined by Merriam-Webster’s Dictionary is the belief that men and women should have equal rights and opportunities. In the book, Their Eyes Were Watching God, the first correlation I made with Janie was the struggle with gender roles in this time period, this book showed how women were considered the weakest and are defined by their relationship to men. Gender was a repeated distraction to what causes Janie most of her problems with her grandmother and husbands. The book depicts Janie’s quest to find independence, growing and learning from each marriage, and ultimately finding her reason for living. Janie is married…show more content…
Obligated to marry Logan Killicks, Janie had to achieve her womanly roles as a wife, by consequently doing whatever Logan had her to do. Janie describes her relationship with her husband Logan Killicks by saying, “he did not represent sun-up and pollen blooming trees. “After feeling used and unloved by Logan, Janie leaves him for her soon to be second husband, Jody Starks. He moves from Georgia to Florida to build and run a town owned by African Americans. Jody convinced her to start this new and exciting life with him and to eventually become the mayor’s wife in Eatonville. To Janie, Jody is young and ambitious and seems able to offer her something new, attention, something that Logan fails to provide her. She is willing to give up the life Nanny has invested in her with Logan Killicks in hopes of a new adventure from Jody Starks. Janie wants something more than just financial stability, she wants true love and with hope from the charismatic charm of Jody, she feels like she’s found…show more content…
He made her feel as if she was independent in her thinking, when he was merely giving her options that he approved of. The way Janie’s character in relation to Tea Cake was in my opinion weak. It puts women in a position that will allow women to be taken advantage off by sweet-talking us into thinking they are doing the perfect things because they are treating us they way we want to be treated. It gives of the notion that women will do whatever men want as long as we are treated like women. To answer the question, is this a feminist text, I would say that it is. She decides to do what she wants to meet her needs at which point she becomes a feminist hero. She found her independence without relying on a man to fulfill her emptiness, she has found her meaning to life, and she found

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