Whenever we encounter people in our lives, we automatically and instantly label them and sort them into certain categories. For example, a woman with short hair who wears clothes that are generally assumed to be more likely worn by men will often be expected to be a lesbian. A bodily disabled person, meanwhile, may cause great surprise in many people when he or she proves to be an excellent athlete.
There are innumerous stereotypes or general assumptions that are created in relation to a person’s looks, biology, and physiognomy, which have an enormous impact on our perception of our environment. They weave a very complex construct of beliefs about what is “natural” for a person to be and do, which sociologists seem to have proven e.g. for the concept of race. It has been created by society itself and only gains its seeming legitimacy in its members’ incorporation of these values and according behavioral patterns. What does not fit in these created schemes is most often discriminated against, while in reality the supposed “otherness” or “unnaturalness” only exists through the myths woven around a person’s outer appearance. However, on the background of this dynamic, through the “gaze of the other”, and depending on the extend to which they incorporate these societal ideas, subjugated people and groups may actually become the way they are seen. They apply the generally assumed characteristics of their sex or race to themselves and thus give them their seeming legitimacy, while in fact race, gender, age or whichever roles must not be seen as static, but as “uh movin’ thing” (Hurston, 191).
In the following I will try to depict how Janie, the female protagonist in Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God, emancipates herself from the beliefs and values her environment tries to impose on her.
Table of Contents
1. Introduction
2. Janie’s emancipation from the gaze of the other in Their Eyes Were Watching God
2.1 The gaze of the other – the race concept as an example
2.2 Janie’s emancipation from society’s conventions in Their Eyes Were Watching God
2.2.1 Zora Neale Hurston
2.2.2 Summary
2.2.3 Opposing and deconstructing society’s “assignments”
3. Conclusion
4. Bibliography
Objectives and Themes
This paper examines how the protagonist Janie Crawford in Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God emancipates herself from the societal stereotypes, gender roles, and racial hierarchies imposed upon her. By analyzing the "gaze of the other" and the internalization of oppressive norms, the work explores how Janie identifies, challenges, and ultimately deconstructs the restrictive "assignments" forced upon her by her environment and her various husbands.
- The concept of the "gaze of the other" and racial formation.
- The impact of socialization and societal conventions on individual identity.
- The role of Zora Neale Hurston’s biographical context in the novel's themes.
- Janie’s evolution through her relationships with Logan Killicks, Joe Starks, and Tea Cake.
- The deconstruction of racial, gender, and class-based stereotypes.
Excerpt from the Book
2.2.3 Opposing and deconstructing society’s “assignments”
Janie’s process of emancipating herself from the beliefs prevalent in her society can be divided into three main stages, the first one starting with the second chapter and the time she lives with her grandmother through the day she leaves Logan Killicks, her first husband. In the social hierarchy that was imposed on Nanny who was born into slavery, (Hurston 16), “de white is de ruler of everything” (Hurston 14) and seen as the purest, most divine being. He owned and abused every little bit of his black slaves, maltreating their bodies on plantations, selling their children, and ripping them of every possible right as in the Jim Crow Laws. Nanny’s slaveholder, Marse Robert, continuously raped her, which she was ironically punished for by her jealous “Mistis” (Hurston 17).
As a white woman, she was next in the hierarchy due to the privilege of being married to such a supposedly divine being as “the white man” as well as her skin color. After her came the black man, who literally bowed to the white world’s commands in picking up the load that the white man threw down for him to carry (Hurston 14). But since the black man did not bear the double stigma that society created for the black woman – in her sex and skin color – “he don’t tote [the load]. He hand it to his womenfolks” (Hurston 14), thinking himself better than her, because he is one step closer to society’s ideal than her. Having to cope with discrimination on the background of two discredited attributes (Goffman 14) and the reduction of her personality as a mere consequence of her biological disposition(s) one has to believe – following Fanon’s theory of triple consciousness – that in Nanny’s case a sort of quadruple consciousness would be the result because not only is she assigned the role of a black person in society, but also that of a woman, both of which competing with her own perception of herself.
Summary of Chapters
1. Introduction: The introduction establishes the theoretical framework regarding societal labeling, stereotypes, and the "gaze of the other," outlining the paper's goal to analyze Janie Crawford’s emancipation in Hurston's novel.
2. Janie’s emancipation from the gaze of the other in Their Eyes Were Watching God: This chapter analyzes the mechanism of societal oppression through racial and gender categories, using Fanon's and Omi and Winant's theories to explain how these structures shape the protagonist's reality.
2.1 The gaze of the other – the race concept as an example: This section details the historical and sociological construction of race as a tool of oppression and identity formation, illustrating how the "gaze" forces subjugated groups to define themselves through the eyes of the oppressor.
2.2 Janie’s emancipation from society’s conventions in Their Eyes Were Watching God: This section explores how Janie navigates and eventually rejects the traditional roles imposed upon her by her society, specifically through her personal development.
2.2.1 Zora Neale Hurston: This subsection provides biographical background on Hurston, emphasizing her anthropological interests and her own struggle against the stereotypical expectations of her era and the literary establishment.
2.2.2 Summary: This section provides a concise overview of the novel's plot, tracing Janie's life from her upbringing by her grandmother through her three marriages.
2.2.3 Opposing and deconstructing society’s “assignments”: This section performs a deep analysis of how Janie breaks free from the hierarchical constraints and internalized traumas passed down by Nanny and reinforced by her husbands, Logan and Joe.
3. Conclusion: The conclusion reaffirms that Hurston’s work carries a profound social message, challenging critics who dismissed the novel and emphasizing the necessity of individual and collective deconstruction of prejudice.
4. Bibliography: Lists the academic sources used to support the analysis of the novel, sociological theories, and biographical data.
Keywords
Janie Crawford, Zora Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God, Gaze of the Other, Emancipation, Racial Formation, Gender Roles, Stereotypes, Internalization, Deconstruction, Identity, Societal Conventions, Frantz Fanon, Triple Consciousness, African-American Literature.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the primary subject of this research paper?
The paper focuses on the female protagonist Janie Crawford in Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God and her journey of self-emancipation from societal and cultural constraints.
What are the central themes explored in the text?
The core themes include the "gaze of the other," the construction of race and gender, the impact of societal expectations, the internalization of trauma, and the process of finding individual autonomy.
What is the central research question?
The research explores how Janie manages to recognize, oppose, and finally deconstruct the racial, gender, and social roles that her environment attempts to impose upon her.
Which scientific and theoretical methods are applied?
The paper utilizes sociological theories of "racial formation" (Omi and Winant), the concept of the "gaze of the other," and Frantz Fanon's theories of identity and "triple consciousness" to analyze literary developments.
What does the main body of the paper cover?
The main body examines the historical construction of race, provides biographical context on Zora Neale Hurston, summarizes the plot of the novel, and analyzes in detail Janie’s emancipatory stages through her three marriages.
Which keywords best describe this study?
Essential keywords include emancipation, gaze of the other, racial formation, gender roles, societal conventions, and identity construction.
How does the author characterize Nanny's influence on Janie?
Nanny is seen as a representative of the oppressive system she was raised in; while she wants to protect Janie, her own internalization of white-dominated hierarchical values creates a conflicting upbringing for her granddaughter.
What role does the character Tea Cake play in Janie's development?
Tea Cake serves as a catalyst for Janie's genuine emancipation by treating her as an equal, which allows her to reclaim her identity and eventually move past the "dead" societal notions that hindered her previous relationships.
How does the author interpret the death of Tea Cake?
The author argues that killing Tea Cake is a necessary, tragic act of self-preservation that allows Janie to become complete and fully independent, honoring his memory while shedding the "beastlike" influence of societal bias that ultimately contaminated him.
- Quote paper
- Julia Balogh (Author), 2007, Janie’s emancipation - The “gaze of the Other” in Zora Neale Hurston’s "Their Eyes Were Watching God", Munich, GRIN Verlag, https://www.hausarbeiten.de/document/178400
