For example:
Hurston writes that Janie views "her life like great tree in leaf with things suffered, things, enjoyed, things done and undone" (8). The simile comparing Janie's life and a tree with all its leaves suggests that Janie feels she has a vibrant life and connects Janie to the natural world.
“Tea cake was spending and doing out his own pocket, so Janie never told him about the two hundred dollars she had pinned inside her shirt next to her skin. Pheoby had insisted that she bring it along and keep it secret just to be on the safe side” (138-9) It is interesting that while she says that she is totally comfortable being with a man who does not have as much money as she does, she still feels the need to hide money from him, fearing what will happen if he finds it.
ReplyDelete-Mary-Clare
"He drifted off into sleep and Janie looked down on him and felt a self-crushing love. So her soul crawled out from its hiding place". This quote shows that Janie trusts Tea with her money, because when believes that even if he spends it erroneously, he is still prepared to fight to make that money back up to her. Additionally, when she opens up about the money in the bank she has saved, he says he needs none of it. This leads Janie to believe that he wants so keep the possibility of spending it away from himself, or he may do something like spend it all on gambling.
ReplyDelete- Cameron Gurwell
At the beginning of chapter 13 Janie finds that Tea Cake took her $200 without her knowing. When he returns he can sense how she feels about it: "Ah see whut it is. You doubted me 'bout de money. Thought I had took it and gone"(143). Just a few pages earlier Janie seemed so confident in him before they left for Jacksonville, but now she felt a little unsure of his honesty. Why now?
ReplyDelete-Evan Bak
“Dis ain’t no business proposition, and no race after property and titles. Dis is uh love game. Ah done lived Grandma’s way, now Ah means tuh live mine.” 136 It seems like a very good thing to say this and so far Tea Cake is doing really well. However I do wonder if she would be saying this if she didn’t already have the money she has. She brought $200 to be safe and even if she didn’t she has plenty in the bank. I really hope she follows through with these words now that she trusts Tea Cake more since he did that thing with the $200.
ReplyDelete-Dylan
“Ah see whit it is. You doubted me ‘bout the money. Thought Ah has done took it and gone. Ah don’t blame yuh but it wasn’t lack yuh think” (143) From this quote Janie doesn’t seem to trust Tea Cakes, however earlier in the chapter she seemed eager to leave her old life behind and begin a new life with Tea Cakes. I wonder if her lack of trust for Tea Cakes will persist through their relationship.
ReplyDelete“Janie waited till midnight without worrying, but after that she began to be afraid. So she got up and sat around scared and miserable. Thinking and fearing all sorts of dangers. Wondering at herself as she had many times this week that she was not shocked at Tea Cake’s gambling. It was part of him, so it was all right. She rather found herself angry at imaginary people who might try to criticize. Let the old hypocrites learn to mind their own business, and leave other folks alone. Tea Cake wasn’t doing a bit more harm trying to win hisself a little money than they was always doing with their lying tongues. Tea Cake had more good nature under his toe-nails than they had in their so-called Christian hearts” (148). It seems that she still defines good and bad through the men in her life. Because Tea Cake gambles, she considers it ok, despite society’s pressure to think otherwise.
ReplyDelete-Alicia
I thought the way Janie acts during the part where Jody takes Janie’s money is really indicative of the time period. They don’t frame the way that Jody took and spent her $200 as selfish or problematic. Instead, Janie is relieved since she is reassured that Jody loves her...it doesn’t matter that he blew a ton of her money so that he could feel rich and powerful for a day.
ReplyDelete“‘Well, how come yuh didn’t come git me?’ ‘Janie, would you have come if Ah did?’ ‘Sho Ah would. Ah laks fun just as good as you do.’ ‘Janie, Ah wanted yuh, mighty much, but Ah was skeered. Too skeered Ah might lost yuh’”(146). Tea Cake doesn’t take Janie to the party because he’s afraid that she would think of the people as too lower class. He doesn’t want to affect Janie’s social status or “‘drag you down wid me’” due to his “commonness”(147). This connects to how Jody didn’t allow Janie to attend events such as the mule funeral because it would be unacceptable due to her status as the mayor’s wife.
ReplyDelete“She was horned in slavery time when folks, dat is black folks, didn’t sit down anytime Dey felt lak it. So sittin’ on porches lak de white madam looked lak uh mighty fine thing tug her. Dat’s whut she wanted for me - don’t keer whut it cost...So Ah got up on de high stool lak she told me, but Phoeby, Ah dome nearly languished tuh death up dere. Ah felt like de world wuz cryin’ entry and Ah ain’t read de common news yet.”(136) This shows the different in her and her Grandmother’s desires. She wanted more than a porch to sit on, but her Grandmother couldn’t grasp that idea so she did as she was told. However, once she made her Gran,other happy, she came to realize that she had deferred her dream and put it on hold for another lifetime. She recognized that she needed to change the direction on her life.
ReplyDelete“‘Jody classed me off. Ah didn’t. Naw, Pheoby, Tea Cake ain’t dragging me off nowhere I don’t want tuh go... Ah wants to utuilize mahself all over”” (134) This explains Janie’s attitude with Tea Cake and how she understands Jody’s influence and the comparison with Tea Cake.
ReplyDelete“Ah naw, honey. Ah laks it. It’s mo’ nicer than settin’ round dese quarters all day. Clerkin’ in dat store wuz hard, but heah, we ain’t got nothin’ tuh do but do our work and come home and love”
ReplyDeleteI thought this passage was interesting as Janie clearly has a change in attitude regarding work. While she resented doing as she was told by Logan and Jody, she almost seems to have no problem doing labor with/for Tea Cake. This love-driven relationship is a new step in the right direction for Janie, but it also demonstrates something potentially dangerous about their relationship: Janie feels liberated yet their love gives Tea Cake power over her
"There was a suppressed murmur when she picked up a basket and went to work. She was already getting to be a special case on the muck. It was generally assumed that she thought herself too good to work like the rest of the women and that Tea Cake “pomped her up tuh dat.” But all day long the romping and the playing they carried on behind the boss’s back made her popular right away"(156) This scene is at the end of chapter 14, when Janie goes to work with Tea Cake. At first the people their judge her, but soon becomes very popular with the rest of the workers. After work, she recalls how the folk people come over and how the house is never empty, and filled with happiness. Here in the Everglades, Janie is closer to achieving the ideal of the pear tree, a life filled with nature and fufillment , the opposite of her life with Jody.
ReplyDelete-sam burge
Delete“Jody ain’t never in his life picked out no color for me. De world picked out black and white for mournin’, Joe didn’t... Ah was wearing it for de rest of y’all”(135)
ReplyDeleteThe community has all of these assumptions and expectations of Janie while they have no knowledge on the reality of the situation. They look down on her for not being a “dutiful” wife to Jody after his death but they fail to understand that he was a horrible husband. The community might be the real antagonist of the story as they continue to subscribe to and support such a lacking mentality.
“There was a suppressed murmur when she picked up a basket and went to work. She was already getting to be a special case on the muck. It was generally assumed that she thought herself too good to work like the rest of the women and that Tea Cake “pomped her up tuh dat.” But all day long the romping and the playing they carried on behind the boss’s back made her popular right away.” Chapter 14. Do you think that her going to work in the fields will have any impact on her own beliefs of social status?
ReplyDelete"So she got up and sat scared and miserable. Thinking and fearing all sorts of dangers. Wondering at herself as she had many times this week that she was not shocked at Tea Cake's gambling. It was a part of him, so it was all right" (148). Janie is so in love with Tea Cake that she is able to to fully accept and overlook his flaws. I feel that her acceptance of these risky flaws could a be little dangerous and could ultimately hurt Janie in the long run if she isn't careful.
ReplyDelete"You musta thought yo' wife was powerful ugly. Dem ugly women dat you paid two dollars not to come in, could git tuh de door. You never even 'lowed me tuh git dat close."(146). I'm glad that Janie is standing up for herself in her relationship with TeaCake. Has Janie finally found someone with which she can be free?
ReplyDelete"Done took...young girl..." (132). When they are talking about a ten dollar hat and some high heel slippers, they relate it to dressing up like a girl and its automatically noticed. Its strange in todays society how women get looked at and critiqued for every move they make, while men dont get looked at no matter what they do.
ReplyDelete
ReplyDelete"Oh, Ah know you don’t talk. We ain’t shame faced. We jus’ ain’t ready tuh make no big kerflommouck as yet” (137). This quote shows how Janie wants to keep her relationship enclosed. She doesn’t want anyones gossip to get involved with her relationship that she happens to be content with. She knows people are going to talk about it for several reasons.
“She was borned in slavery time ... Ah done nearly languished thus death up dere” (136). I thought this was a really interesting paragraph. Janie explains how her grandma wanted what her white owners had and how she wanted that life for Janie. But Janie realizes her ideal life isn’t what her grandmas was and decides she needs to find out what her ideal life is.
ReplyDelete"Sometimes Janie would think of the old days in the big white house and the store and laugh to herself. What if Eatonville could see her now in her blue denim overalls and heavy shoes? The crowd of people around her and a dice game on her floor! She was sorry for her friends back there and scornful of the others. The men held big arguments here like they used to do on the store porch. Only here, she could listen and laugh and even talk some herself if she wanted to" (157)
ReplyDeleteJanie has more freedom in Jacksonville than in Eatonville, as she can socialize with others and is not being controlled by someone like Jody. This shows that so far Tea Cake is kind and caring to Janie, although this may or may not change later in the novel.
I also find it interesting that she is scornful of the ones in Eatonville who were not her friends. It means that she hated most of the people there, probably because they were bystanders, even though her primary problem was Jody.
"Ah’m older than Tea Cake, yes. But he done showed me where it’s de thought dat makes de difference in ages. If people thinks de same they can make it all right. So in the beginnin’ new thoughts had tuh be thought and new words said. After Ah got used tuh dat, we gits ‘long jus’ fine. He done taught me de maiden language all over." (138). While her first two marriages stripped Janie of her innocence, when Janie is with Tea Cake, she feels like a child again and her innocence and maidenhood are restored. Janie feels that age does not matter in this relationship, and brings her back to a feeling of a fresh start, like she can be a young woman again.
ReplyDelete"He drifted off into sleep and Janie looked down on him and felt a self-crushing love. So her soul crawled out from its hiding place" (151). Tea Cake assures Janie that he's not interested in her money, freeing her from that fear that was planted by other people's judgments. In response, Janie feels "self-crushing love." This event allows Janie to overcome her doubts about Tea Cake and feel content again for the first time in many years.
ReplyDeleteAfter recounting his wild night out, Janie says to Tea Cake, "'Looka heah, Tea Cake, if you ever go off from me and have a good time lak dat and them come back head tellin' me how nice Ah is, Ah specks tuh kill yuh dead. Yuh heah me?'" (147). In her relationship with Joe he was constantly isolating her. She was forced to stay home or work in the store and she wasn't allowed to take part in many social events. Now that she is starting a new life we see her finally standing up for herself. She has regained her voice.
ReplyDelete“... Janie looked down on him and felt a self-crushing love. So her soul crawled out from its hiding place”(151). Janie’s soul had always been hidden away before she met Tea Cake because there was always someone controlling her, Nanny, Logan, and Jody. They all suppressed her in some way, whether on purpose or not. For the first time in her life, she loves someone and the love is reflected back. Tea Cake’s attitude towards Janie and the respect he has for her has caused her to feel freer and makes her truer to herself. Janie understands her worth now that she is with Tea Cake. -Angie Zhao
ReplyDeleteHurston writes, "Maybe Tea Cake might turn out lak dat. Maybe not. Anyhow Ah'm ready and willin' tuh try 'im" (135). This shows Janie's transition from feeling an obligation to marry to her own feelings of wanting to marry. Her previous marriages had come about because of her feeling of obligations and lack of understanding of love. This one has come about because she feels genuine respect from Tea Cake.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 14, Hurston writes “There was a suppressed murmur when she picked up a basket and went to work. She was already getting to be a special case on the muck. It was generally assumed that she thought herself too good to work like the rest of the women and that Tea Cake 'pomped her up tuh dat.' But all day long the romping and the playing they carried on behind the boss’s back made her popular right away.” This quote made me wonder about what impact working in the fields will have on Janie, and on her view of herself. Will she start to see herself as a more independent woman? Perhaps she will start questioning her status in society?
ReplyDeletePhoeby says “But, Janie, Tea Cake, whilst he ain’t no jail-bird, he ain’t got uh dime tuh cry. Ain’t you skeered he’s jes after yo’ money -- him bein’ younger than you” (Hurston 134). Based on this exchange, I wonder what Phoeby’s motives are with this conversation. Is she really trying to protect Janie? If so, is she more worried about Janie’s reputation or about her emotional well-being?
ReplyDelete"But anyhow, watch yo'self, Janie, and don't be took advantage of. You know how dese young men is wid older women. Most of de time dey's after whut dey kin git, then dey's gone lak a turkey through de corn."(135). Phoeby says this to Janie warning her about Tea Cake. Upon first reading I was on Janie's side and was optimistic about Tea Cake but after reading the other chapters in this section I also think Janie should be watching out, but she seems so used to being oppressed by the men in her life that even actions that show that she doesn't really have their respect don't really phase her. Phoeby assumes that Tea Cake doesn't genuinely love Janie but the thing is she's probably right. What does that say about the society the book takes place in?
ReplyDelete-Jona
pg 138-139, last and first paragraph.
ReplyDelete“He pinched her in the side and ignored what she said”(144). Janie spent much of these chapters worried about Tea Cake, and when she attempts to voice those concerns she is ignored. While I’d still like to believe Tea Cake means well it’s hard to ignore the fact that he is acting in a very similar way to Janie’s previous partners.
ReplyDelete“She was broken and her pride was gone, so she told those who asked what had happened. Who Flung had taken her to a shabby room in a shabby house in a shabby street and promised to marry her next day. They stayed in the room two whole days then she woke up to find Who Flung and her money gone...” (141). I think this passage shows how broken Janie is because she has been taken advantage of and wronged so many times before in her past relationships. When she falls for a new person, she seems to block out all the negatives and can’t recognize the pattern in all of her relationships.
ReplyDelete"Tea Cake was spending and doing out of his own pocket, so Janie never told him about the two hundred dollars she had pinned inside her shirt next to her skin... She had ten dollars over her face in her pocket book. Let Tea Cake think that was all she had."(138/139) This seems like the prime example of traditional gender roles and reflects Adiche's Ted talk as the man is always expected to pay in the relationship.
ReplyDelete"They counted it together --- three hundred and twenty two dollars. It was almost like Tea Cake had held up the Paymaster" (150). How did Tea Cake turn 12 into 322? This is very unrealistic. He must have cheated or something. This explains why he got stabbed.
ReplyDelete"He peeped up over the door sill of the world and made a little foolishness with red. But pretty soon, he laid all that aside and went about his business dressed all in white"(142). Hurston refers to the sun in this quote. I find it interesting that she combines the motif of the sun and the color motif of the clothing here. Earlier in chapter 12 she mentions that she only wore mourning clothes for a short time because "De world picked out black and white for mournin'"(135) when Phoeby suggests she stops wearing such colorful clothing. I interpreted the "foolishness with red" as a reflection of Janie's choice to wear a broad color palette after Jody's death and the "business dressed all in white" as a faint reminder of Jody's memory. Jody is the main object of the sun imagery thus far and it seems to me like the sun imagery here is supposed to represent Janie contemplating the events that have led her to her situation with Tea Cake.
ReplyDelete"Dat's all Ah wants tuh know. From now on you'se mah wife and mah woman and everything else in de world Ah needs." (pg. 147)
ReplyDeleteThis quote, paralleled with how Jody treated her, shows the change in Janie's life the way she is treated. This change is seen as she and Tea Cake are continuously traveling and going out, while Jody would make an effort to leave Janie behind at the store. This traveling represents Janie's newfound freedom and shows how Tea Cake, unlike Jody, doesn't chain her down.
(Sorry it's late- it didn't post the first time)
“He ain’t never ast de first penny from me yet, and if he love property he ain’t no different from all de rest of us. All dese ole men dat’s settin’ round me is after de same thing. They’s three mo’ widder women in town, how come dey don’t break dey neck after dem? ’Cause dey ain’t got nothin’, dat’s why". (p 134) I thought that it was interesting how Janie sticks with her idea of ideal love, how she defends proudly Tae Cake. How she goes against what most men in this story, shows that a woman can, in fact, think and reveals that it is only normal to want property as a human being.
ReplyDelete"Naw, Phoeby, Tea Cake ain't draggin' me off nowhere Ah don't want tuh go... Phoeby, dese educated women got uh heap of things to sit down and consider" (107). These exchanges with Phoeby, Janie's confidant, don't make sense within the novel's frame narrative? How, or more importantly why, would Janie be reiterating a conversation she had or the events surrounding it to the exact same person? Hurston very clearly had strong writing ability and a talent for imagery, but her narrative conventions sometimes are confusing, or leave something to be desired.
ReplyDeleteIn chapter 13, “He drifted off into sleep and Janie looked down on him and felt a self-crushing love. So her soul crawled out from its hiding place.” I like how Teacake says he’s not interested in janie's money and makes it clear which I guess frees her from the fear. This shows relationship fulfillment that she had always yearned for and had never been a part of her previous marriages. Also she loves Tea Cake so much that she is also giving up some part of her individuality.
ReplyDeleteAnnie Tyler is described as having “Love affairs, affairs with boys in their late teens or early twenties for all of whom she spent her money on suits of clothes, watches, and things like that and how they all left her as soon as their wants were satisfied.” I’m not sure if this was what Hurston was going for, but I almost saw this as an extreme of how people may view Janie now that she’s gone after a younger man, Tea Cake.
ReplyDelete