Novel Synopsis
By Anna Schlipp
In Zora Neale Hurston’s world renowned novel Their Eyes were Watching God is the story of Janie Crawford, a fierce woman living in post-civil war society. The story opens with Janie returning to an old home. She is greeted by her friend Pheoby Watson and the two sit down as Janie begins to share her life story.
Janie was born in West Florida and raised by her Nanny. They lived with a white family for most of her childhood who Nanny worked for. She lived with her grandmother until the age of sixteen when she married Logan Killicks, a prosperous man within the community who owned a good portion of land. She lived with him for several years, unhappy as it was an arranged marriage, until she met Joe Starks.
In a short time, she agreed to leave Logan for Joe and then traveled away from her childhood home with him to find new horizons. They arrived in a small town that was hardly anything more than a group of shacks. Joe had big dreams for the town though, and he quickly set about breathing life into it. He built a general store and a wonderful house for Janie and himself. The townspeople elected Joe major and from there Janie and Joe’s life was set in the small town of Eatonville. Slowly, Joe became more and more possessive, using his higher intellect to trick Janie into bending to his will. It was when Janie had almost lost hope that Joe died, leaving her a widow. She mourned as was customary, but felt more joy than sadness.
It was then that Tea Cake came along. He quickly won Janie over and had her committed to marrying him. They left Eatonville and moved down to the Everglades. There they lived for two years, until a hurricane hit. After narrowly escaping the brunt of the storm, Tea Cake and Janie returned to their home. Unfortunately Tea Cake was bitten by a dog and received a case of rabies. Janie was forced to kill him in self-defense. After being tried for murder and cleared of the charges, she packed up and went home.
Janie’s story ended there as she bid Pheoby goodbye and went into her old home, closing the last chapter of love in her life.
By Anna Schlipp
In Zora Neale Hurston’s world renowned novel Their Eyes were Watching God is the story of Janie Crawford, a fierce woman living in post-civil war society. The story opens with Janie returning to an old home. She is greeted by her friend Pheoby Watson and the two sit down as Janie begins to share her life story.
Janie was born in West Florida and raised by her Nanny. They lived with a white family for most of her childhood who Nanny worked for. She lived with her grandmother until the age of sixteen when she married Logan Killicks, a prosperous man within the community who owned a good portion of land. She lived with him for several years, unhappy as it was an arranged marriage, until she met Joe Starks.
In a short time, she agreed to leave Logan for Joe and then traveled away from her childhood home with him to find new horizons. They arrived in a small town that was hardly anything more than a group of shacks. Joe had big dreams for the town though, and he quickly set about breathing life into it. He built a general store and a wonderful house for Janie and himself. The townspeople elected Joe major and from there Janie and Joe’s life was set in the small town of Eatonville. Slowly, Joe became more and more possessive, using his higher intellect to trick Janie into bending to his will. It was when Janie had almost lost hope that Joe died, leaving her a widow. She mourned as was customary, but felt more joy than sadness.
It was then that Tea Cake came along. He quickly won Janie over and had her committed to marrying him. They left Eatonville and moved down to the Everglades. There they lived for two years, until a hurricane hit. After narrowly escaping the brunt of the storm, Tea Cake and Janie returned to their home. Unfortunately Tea Cake was bitten by a dog and received a case of rabies. Janie was forced to kill him in self-defense. After being tried for murder and cleared of the charges, she packed up and went home.
Janie’s story ended there as she bid Pheoby goodbye and went into her old home, closing the last chapter of love in her life.