Zora Neale Hurston: Their Eyes Were Watching God (1937)

Who is the author of Their Eyes Were Watching God and when was it published?

Zora Neale Hurston, 1937

What is the novel about?

A young Black woman searching for the right man while resisting the stereotypes of her grandmother and culture

Why does the protagonist remarry multiple times?

Because she refuses to stay in marriages that are not based on love

When and where was Zora Neale Hurston born?

1891, Eatonville, Florida

Where did Zora Neale Hurston study between 1919-1924?

Howard University

Where did Zora Neale Hurston study between 1925-1927 and with whom?

Barnard College, anthropology with Franz Boas

What fellowship did Hurston receive in 1936 and for what purpose?

Guggenheim Fellowship, to study West Indian Obeah practices

When and how quickly did Hurston write Their Eyes Were Watching God?

1937, in seven weeks

Where did Hurston research Black communities in 1947?

British Honduras (Central America)

What job did Hurston work in 1950?

Maid in a bar in Rivo Island, Florida

What job did Hurston work in 1956 and what happened?

Librarian at an Air Force Base in Florida, fired

When and where did Hurston die?

January 28, 1960, in a Welfare Home, buried in an unmarked grave in the Garden of Heavenly Rest, Fort Pierce

Who discovered and marked Hurston’s grave and when?

Alice Walker in 1973

What essay did Alice Walker publish in 1975 that sparked Hurston’s revival?

“In Search of Zora Neale Hurston”

When was Their Eyes Were Watching God published?

1937

Name two other works by Zora Neale Hurston.

Mules and Men (1935) and Dust Tracks on a Road (1942)

What was the Great Migration?

Movement of Black people leaving the South and moving to the North, comprising almost two-thirds of the 20th century

Which major urban centres did many Black people move to during the Great Migration?

Chicago and New York

Which New York neighbourhood became a central place for Black migrants and culture?

Harlem

What cultural movement was sparked by the influx of Black people in Harlem?

The Harlem Renaissance

Why did many Black people want to escape the rural South?

Economical reasons (poverty, few good jobs) and lingering racism

What was the Harlem Renaissance?

A period of immense creativity and cultural expression in the 1920s (Harlem, NYC), focused on African American art, music, literature, and intellectual pursuits

Which African American writers and poets emerged during the Harlem Renaissance?

Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Claude McKay, Jean Toomer

What themes did Harlem Renaissance literature often address?

Racial identity, discrimination, and the African American experience in the United States

Who was Langston Hughes?

An African-American poet who collaborated with Zora Neale Hurston

Which genre of music flourished during the Harlem Renaissance?

Jazz

Which jazz musicians became legends during the Harlem Renaissance?

Duke Ellington, Louis Armstrong, Bessie Smith

What role did jazz clubs in Harlem play during the Harlem Renaissance?

They were central venues that fostered the development of jazz as an art form

Which African American visual artists gained recognition in the Harlem Renaissance?

Aaron Douglas and Jacob Lawrence

What themes did Harlem Renaissance visual art often depict?

African American history and life

Which intellectuals shaped the political and cultural discourse of the Harlem Renaissance?

W.E.B. Du Bois and Alain Locke

Who was W.E.B. Du Bois?

A sociologist, first Black man to earn a PhD from Harvard, influential writer and thinker, author of The Souls of Black Folk

What ideas did Harlem Renaissance intellectuals promote?

Racial pride, social justice, and the importance of African heritage

How was the Harlem Renaissance connected to the Great Migration?

Millions of African Americans moved from the rural South to urban centers like Harlem, fueling cultural and social change

What is the central critique of Their Eyes Were Watching God?

A scathing critique of the institution of marriage

Where is the novel set?

Eatonville, Florida

Who is the protagonist of the novel?

Janie Crawford

What happens at the beginning of the novel?

Janie returns to her town after “dis year and a half” and tells her story to her friend Pheobe

How is Janie physically described?

Light-skinned, long hair, long legs

What is Janie searching for throughout the novel?

True love

What forms the main part of the novel?

Janie’s three marriages

Who raised Janie?

Her grandmother Nanny

What happened to Janie’s parents?

Her father was absent, her mother disappeared after being raped at 17

What was the context of Janie’s upbringing?

Raised in the backyard guesthouse of the white Washburn family, where Nanny worked

What does Janie’s first kiss in the backyard symbolize?

Proof to Nanny that she is ready for marriage

Why does Janie resent her grandmother?

Nanny forced her into marriage, the last person Janie ever obeyed

What does Nanny believe is essential for women’s survival?

Land ownership and marriage to a man for protection

What is Nanny’s idea of protection for women?

A married woman becomes a man’s property, which secures her safety

What does love mean for Janie?

Something different from protection or property, marriage should be about love

Who is Janie’s true friend and confidante in the novel?

Pheobe Watson

Who was Janie’s first husband?

Logan Killicks

Why did Nanny push Janie to marry Logan?

For security and protection, not love

Why did Janie leave Logan Killicks?

She didn’t feel love and longed for something more

Who was Janie’s second husband?

Joe (Jody) Starks

What role did Joe Starks have in his community?

Became the mayor of an all-Black, almost utopian settlement

What was Janie’s role during her marriage with Joe?

Forced to run the store in the town

How did Joe treat Janie’s voice in public?

He shut her up when she spoke, silencing her

How did Joe criticise Janie as she aged?

He mocked her for growing older

How did Janie’s marriage with Joe end?

Their relationship disintegrated, and he eventually died after a bitter fight

Who was Janie’s third husband?

Tea Cake (real name: Vergible Woods)

What made Janie’s marriage with Tea Cake different?

It was based on genuine love and passion

How was Tea Cake different from Janie’s other husbands?

He was younger, freer, and more affectionate

What tragic event happened to Tea Cake?

He was bitten by a rabid dog while protecting Janie

How did Tea Cake’s illness affect him?

He went mad from rabies and became violent

How did Janie’s marriage with Tea Cake end?

She shot him in self-defence, killing him

What role does “the town” play in the novel?

It is an intolerant force that judges Janie and enforces social norms.

How is envy/jealousy shown in the novel?

Through gossip, judgment, and resentment from others in the community toward Janie’s beauty, choices, and relationships.

How is racism depicted in the novel?

Through discriminatory attitudes, like Mrs. Turner saying “can’t stand black niggers” and “Indians don’t know much uh nothin’.”

How are gender stereotypes shown in the novel?

Women are expected to be submissive and obedient; men dominate and own property, while women are seen as property themselves.

What tension does the novel explore between marriage and love?

Marriage is often shown as security and ownership, while Janie longs for love, passion, and desire beyond social expectations.

When does Janie first become aware of her racial identity?

When she sees a color photograph of herself and realizes she is black, not like the rest.

What does the photograph symbolize?

The metaphor of the veil, representing racial prejudice and discrimination separating African Americans from white Americans.

What significance does this moment have in Janie’s life?

It marks the beginning of her outsidership and her need to make her racial identity her own.

What does Janie’s reaction to her husband’s comment reveal?

She forces a laugh to fit in, even though she isn’t genuinely amused.

What theme does this illustrate?

The development of a split personality: the private self versus the social self, which rarely overlap.

Why does Janie adopt this behavior?

To navigate societal and marital expectations without causing conflict.

What caused people in the town to resent Janie?

She wasn’t an outsider due to her skin color, but because she was aligned with power as the Mayor’s wife.

How is this resentment described?

It is like witnessing a “familiar strangeness,” akin to seeing one’s sister turn into a ‘gator.

What theme does this illustrate?

The town as an intolerant force that ostracizes those who hold authority or deviate from social norms.

What happens to Janie’s perception of her marriage to Joe?

The marriage loses its intimacy; the bed is “no longer a daisy-field” and she isn’t open with him.

What event triggers this realization?

Joe slaps her in the kitchen, shattering her image of him.

What does Janie learn about herself?

She develops an inside and outside self, learning not to mix her private feelings with public life.

What theme does this illustrate?

The erotic death of a marriage constrained by social conventions and patriarchal authority