In the novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God, there are several symbols.
One of the major symbols in the novel is the blossoming pear tree. The
blossoming pear tree is a symbol of passion and sexuality. One afternoon Janie,
around the age of sixteen, watches the bees buzzing around the blossoms, and
she hears the song of the birds. Janie is overcome with ecstasy as she watches
the tree. She has never felt this before, and she desires to find a man who will
make her feel the way that she feels as she watches the tree. This desire to find
this man continues throughout the novel. Another symbol is the horizon. The
horizon represents a magical, far-away land where Janie longs to visit. The
women sitting on the porch criticize Janie for her beauty. Janie wants freedom
from this and all of her troubles; she dreams of a land where she can feel free
from the world’s restraints. Janie’s long and flowing hair is also a symbol in Their
Eyes Were Watching God. Janie’s hair represents power and defiance. In the
novel, women of Janie’s age did not wear their hair down since it was considered
improper. While married to Tea Cake, Janie was able to live like a girl again.
Janie defied the norm and let her beautiful hair flow.
There are also several themes in the novel, Their Eyes Were Watching
God. The major theme is love changes people. Since the age of sixteen, Janie
has dreamed of meeting the man of her dreams. She wants to find a man who
loves her and respects her for who she is. Janie’s first husband, Logan Killicks,
was an older man. This marriage was arranged by Janie’s grandmother and was
not based on the couple’s love for one another. Janie thought she would learn to
love Logan. Although they were married twenty years, Janie never really loved
him. Logan was verbally abusive towards Janie, and after a threat on her life,
Janie left her husband. Janie then married Jody Starks. Jody was mayor of an all
black town, and viewed Janie as the perfect wife for a respectable mayor. He
loved her for her beauty not because of who she was. Jody never respected
Janie, and he beat her often. After a disease took Jody’s life, Janie left town and
fell in love with Vergible Woods, also known as Tea Cake. Tea Cake loved Janie
for who she was. Janie finally found the man she had been searching for. Janie
and Tea Cake’s love for one another was tested during the hurricane. Because of
the rabid dog bite, Janie was forced to shoot Tea Cake in order to survive. Janie
grew through her relationships with the men in her life. Janie grew to be an
amazing woman through the love she never had for Logan, the love she thought
she had for Jody, and the true love she felt for Tea Cake.