The symbol in their eyes is looking at God

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Symbolism is a common way for writers to install deeper meanings into ordinary objects. It adds to the depths of a novel and helps writers convey messages or express emotions more effectively. Zora Neale Hurston is a great novelist, folklore, and humanist in American history. In 1937, her Their Eyes Were Watching God was published. The novel describes the protagonist's anti-patriarchal struggles through her four marriages, seeking love and striving for an independent female identity. Three important symbols from the novel are: the pear tree, the mule and the name. These symbols contribute significantly to the construction of Janie’s self-perception and identity.

 

The image of pear trees appears repeatedly in the novel, which not only indicate Janie’s development of an independent identity, but also shows her inner desires as a woman. The pear tree first appeared as: " Janie had spent most of the day under a blossoming pear tree in the back-yard (Hurston 13)." Here the pear tree becomes Janie herself, as the two are both treated as objects in nature that are comparable to each other. The other lay of meaning is Janie’s search for her happiness. “He could be a bee to a blossom ... Spices hung about him. He was a glance from God (Hurston 126).” In the natural environment, the bees are attracted to the pear trees. This relationship is applied to between men and women, which is a pioneering voice for gender equality in love and marriage. It can be seen that Hurston's idea of true love is when women are respected and loved by their husbands as equals in a relationship.

 

In Their Eyes Were Watching God, black women are compared with mules. In the novel, Janie's blood is half white and half black, which is also known as mulatto. This implies that Janie’s origin is very similar to that of the mule. Janie's grandmother once compared the black woman to the mule "De nigger woman is de mule uh de world so fur as Ah can see (Hurston 17)." Hurston has repeatedly emphasized the image of the mule, from the way Janie's first two husbands treated her. Logan treated the mule as a slave, extracting all the value from it while only feeding the most basic needs of it. Joe treated the mule like a trophy of his own success and social status. He only wanted the mule for others to admire and envy him. These examples show that black women often do not get the respect they deserve from their husbands. In fact, black women subconsciously consider themselves as mules, too: “Tony don't fee-eed me (Hurston 86)!”. Through the descriptions of the mule, the novel vividly depicts the oppression of men on black women.

 

Janie's three husbands' names are another instance of symbolism, which indicates her path to finding her true self and happiness. Logan "Killicks" and "kill" sound similar, indicating that Logan was a killer for Janie’s innocence and the dreams she once had about love. Janie married Logan when she was only 16 and was unwilling, hoping that she "wouldn't be lonely anymore (Hurston 25)." But Logan killed Janie’s dream. Joe's surname is "Starks", which means: rigid and cold. Joe is a grim, tyrannical person who controls and dominates the people around him. Joe sees Janie as an object and possession in order to satisfy his desire for power, which agrees with his surname. Finally, "Tea Cake" is the nickname of Janie’s last husband, suggesting that he represents the type of sweet, gentle husbands. "Tea Cake" is Janie's first man from inner love and respect: “Seemed as if she had known him all her life (Hurston 118).” The three surnames show Janie’s path of growth and development, and finally on the way to her happiness.

 

In conclusion, the use of pear trees, mules, and surnames as symbols effectively convey the inner world of black women like Jennie, who were beginning to break free from their conventional identities and create new ones. Their Eyes Were Watching God is the pioneer work in depicting the black women’s self-awareness and the realization of their own voice. The symbol of mules shows how black women lived under suppression from the society. Meanwhile, the pear trees illustrated a resisting force against such oppression, seeking for equality between genders. Through the three marriages of Janie and the three surnames, the novel reveals black women’s desire for love, respect, and happiness.

 

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