31. Their Eyes Were Watching God: Themes

One of the themes from Their Eyes Were Watching God is that dominance and conquest are destructive ways to seek identity and fulfillment. Which quotation best supports this theme?

"But you wasn't satisfied wid me de way Ah was. Naw! Mah own mind had tuh be squeezed and crowded out tuh make room for yours in me."

Mrs. Turner's bigotry and prejudice are unusual because she has turned against her own race and only likes Janie because of her mixed race features. Considering that all elements of a story work together to convey theme, is Hurston revealing any themes through the character of Mrs. Turner?

No, Mrs. Turner's prejudice is an isolated aspect of the novel and thus is more likely to be a way to emphasize Janie's efforts to be true to herself by remaining with Tea Cake.

Theme is an important element in Their eyes were Watching God. Which of these is one of those themes?

The need to dominate others is destructive and counterproductive

Consider the following statement: "Negative experiences, as well as positive ones, strengthen us and can help us become the person we are meant to be." Do you think this is a theme of the novel? Why or why not? Explain your answer using textual evidence. Your answer should be 150 words.

The statement is a theme of the novel. Typically, it is because novels have narrative and characters' arc. Here, the protagonists encounter negative and positive experiences where they make a decision. And in every decision, it triggers the characters to internalize very well their actions. Thus, making them more careful. A lot of novels such as The Ghostwriter by Alessandra de Torre, Harry Potter by J.K Rowling possess this kind of theme. In The Ghostwriter, Helena Ross suffers from the guilt of killing her family and brain cancer. This causes her to be imperious and hateful to other people as she grows up. But she has experienced positivity, where Mark, her friend, helps her to become alive again and take away her burden. In the end, Helena becomes human with gladness in her heart. In Harry Potter, look at how Harry Potter becomes stronger even without his parents and Sirius. He looks very lonely, sometimes discriminated by the Malfoys. However, in the end, he defeats Voldemort because he believes he has still friends beside him. The point is when negative and positive experience overlap, it creates a power that truly pushes a person to act, to make decisions, and be the person he or she really is.

Compare and contrast the concepts of topic and theme. Use examples from the novel to illustrate your answer. Your answer should be 150 words or less.

Think of theme as, Theme: The message. An important fact to remember in identifying the theme in any piece of writing is that theme is not directly given, the reader can understand the theme only after reading and understanding the work. The topic is the subject discussed in a piece of writing and it explains what the story is about. Topics are easy to identify as writers generally use a direct approach to define and explain the general subject of their works.

When we say that discovering theme is partly a subjective task, we are using which of the following meanings of subjective?

characteristic of or belonging to reality as perceived, rather than as independent of mind

Janie's various struggles against those who repress her identity and voice help develop the topic of _____.

independence

Which two statements best describe themes in this novel?

independence and identity are the best ways to self-fulfillment. Humanity is in a constant struggle against nature.

The account of Janie's decision to leave Logan is central to the development of which topic?

the longing for love and self-fulfillment

Theme is uncovered through the characters and events of a story. Which two events express Janie's underlying belief that true love is key to her happiness? Select all that apply.

the spring day when the uniting of the bee and blossom helped her understand the meaning of marriage when her image of Jody was shattered after he hit her for ruining the dinner