Character Analysis: Their Eyes Were Watching God By Zora Neale Hurston

As Janie grows tired of the business end of the store she finds joy in the people that come. One day, Janie and Jody were sitting on the porch witnessing a humorous conversation between two men. Before she knew it, Janie was order back into the shop when she heard Jody tell her, “‘I god, Janie,’ Starks said impatiently, ‘why don’t you go on and see whut Mrs. Bogle want? Whut you waitin’ on?’ Janie wanted to hear the rest of the play-acting and how it ended, but she got up sullenly and went inside” (Hurston 70). I have noticed that since Janie first met Jody, his personality has changed. The first time they met, Jody seemed to admire and fantasize what an amazing life he could have with Janie but now, Jody seems to be demanding and bossy towards

This caused him frustration and his frustration caused him to lash out at Janie. One day a customer named Steve Mixon came in for some tobacco which Janie cut wrong. Mixon began to joke with Janie when he said, “‘Looka heah, Brother Mayor, whut yo’ wife done took and done.’ It was cut comical, so everybody laughed at it. ‘Uh woman and uh knife—no kind of uh knife, don’t b’long tuhgether.’ There was some more good-natured laughter at the expense of women” (Hurston 78). In general, Janie seems to struggle to find a place for herself so far in the novel. When Steve Mixon saw Janie handling the knife, he reacts like he thinks it is strange for a woman to be using a one He almost made fun of her and the way she was using the knife; even though he was only joking, he still offended Janie. The insults that Mixon was throwing around about how Janie was using the knife and saying that a woman and a knife are not a good pair, kind of implied that he was saying a woman was doing a mans job. Why would a woman not handle a knife? Even though, in that time period, it was unusual for women to do anything besides tend to the children and the household, Janie was working in the store which meant she could work with a