Imagery in Their Eyes Were Watching God

A detailed Summary of Imagery in Their Eyes Were Watching God


Metaphors and other such literary devices have been used for centuries by authors to create multiple meanings and hidden significance. Sometimes, an author will work with one image throughout a novel, and other times multiple images will be used to illustrate the many messages of a story. Still, few authors have achieved the kind of metaphorical beauty Zora Hurston realizes with in her novel Their Eyes Were Watching God.

Hurston's most famous metaphor is the likening of Janie to a pear tree, but perhaps the most important symbolism can be found in the very first paragraph of the novel:

"Ships at a distance have every man's wish on board. For some they come in with the tide. For others they sail forever on the horizon, never out of sight, never landing unti


Hurston isn't just concerned with deep philosophical undertones, throughout the novel are peppered wonderful figurative descriptions of everyday things. She closes chapter 10 with a description of the moon rising, its "amber fluid was drenching the earth, and quenching the thirst of the day." Similarly, chapter 4 closes with the porch-sitters seeing "the sun plunge into the same crack in the earth from which the night emerged." At the beginning of chapter 14, she describes the Everglades as having "Dirt roads so rich and black that a half mile of it would have fertilized a Kansas wheat field." These literary treats make Hurston's world seem all the more real.

Joe Starks is a selfish character, driven only by his desire to be powerful. To illustrate how Joe is differ

Some common words found in the essay are:
God Hurston's, Joe Starks, Everglades Dirt, , Watching God, Zora Hurston, Eyes Watching, eyes watching, eyes watching god, watching god, throughout novel,

Approximate Word count = 520
Approximate Pages = 2 (250 words per page double spaced)

Category: English

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