The Role Of Women In Their Eyes Were Watching God

“Freedom cannot be achieved unless women have been emancipated from all forms of oppression” (Nelson Mandela). Women throughout history has been shown to be treated unequally compared to men, they are heavily repressed by stereotypes of society and by men who believe they are superior compared to women. Zora Neale Hurston explores the roles of women in the novel, Their Eyes were Watching God, through the characters of Janie and her second husband, Joe Starks. Even with two different marriages, Janie never got the chance to be who she really is. The men in her life had held Janie back from what she wanted. Similarly, in the novel, The Great Gatsby, by F. Scott Fitzgerald, Tom Buchanan hid his wife, Daisy Buchanan, and has a mistress named Myrtle Wilson. Tom is seen as a man

In both novels, Joe and Tom were in controlled of the women. By all means, women are typically seen as below the other gender because of their roles assigned by the public.
To begin, men have superiority and power over women. In Their Eyes were Watching God, Joe Starks is a great example of this. While working in the store, Joe makes Janie wear a head rag so that it would cover up her hair from the other men gazing at her luscious hair. Hurston writes about Janie’s realization of her situation by mentioning, “Her hair was NOT going to show in the store….She was there in the store for him to look at, not those others” (Hurston 73). Joe clearly illustrates that Janie’s sole purpose is to serve and please only him. Joe will do as much as to demand Janie to wear her hair in certain ways so it doesn’t distract any of the