Their Eyes Were Watching God:
Summary and Overview of
Zora Neale Hurston’s Novel
Presentation by Charry Ann Shouf
March 28, 2002
1
Background Information on
Author
Zora Neale Hurston was born in
Eatonville, Florida in 1891.
She lived in an all African-American
community for her childhood years.
She wrote several novels and short
stories.
Her life’s motto was “Jump at the sun!”
given to her by her mother.
Her writing helped shape future female
African-American writers’ approach to
authorship and development of identity.
She was a writer, anthropologist and
political activist.
2
Harlem Renaissance
Lasted from 1919-1937.
Goals of the Harlem Renaissance:
 To respond to the social conditions of AfricanAmericans;
 To break with the 19th century minstrel stereotypes of
African-Americans;
 To place greater emphasis on black folk culture;
 To provide political and social uplift for AfricanAmericans through social programs such as the
NAACP.
3
Zora Neale Hurston’s Influence
on the Harlem Renaissance
Their Eyes Were Watching
God is considered the last text
of the Harlem Renaissance.
Her portrayal of an AfricanAmerican female able to
define herself outside of
social conventions and
stereotypes has provided a
model for modern African
Americans seeking their
identities in unconventional
roles.
4
Feminist Issues in Their Eyes
Their Eyes Were Watching God is considered the first
modern feminist text by an African-American.
Their Eyes Are Watching God describes Janie’s search to
find her identity and voice apart from her three husbands.
Janie leaves her first husband in search of a more fulfilling
relationships.
Janie finds her voice through her femininity and through
her community.
Janie chooses to work outside the home to find purpose
outside of domestic life.
5
Regional Dialect as a Form of
Realism
Hurston employed regional black dialect in
her writing.
Hurston chose to do this because she
wanted to portray African-Americans as
they appeared in some southern areas of the
United States.
Realism includes dialect, local color and
familial settings.
6
Parallels From Their Eyes to
Hurston’s Life
Janie married several times, as did Zora Neale
Hurston.
Hurston was often poor financially like Janie.
Hurston and Janie each search for identity as black
women.
Hurston had an affair with a young man, as with
Janie’s affair with Tea Cake in the novel.
7
Hurston’s Views of the South
Zora Neale Hurston believed that authentic black
culture can only be found in the south.
Hurston opposed the integrationist measures
implemented in the Brown vs. Board of Education
decision, seeing integration as a way for cultural
values to become tainted.
Hurston became a spokeswoman for the first
integrated all-black community, Eatonville,
Florida.
8
Hurston’s Relationship With
Langston Hughes
Both authors shared the same financial
patron: Charlotte Mason.
Hurston and Hughes collaborated to write
Mule Bone, an African-American play.
They also worked together to publish the
first issue of Fire, a magazine in which
several up-and-coming black authors were
able to publish their early works.
9
Black Arts Movement
Their Eyes Were Watching God marked the
end of the Harlem Renaissance.
After this period (post 1937), the Black Arts
Movement began, in which African
Americans continued to seek a new black
aesthetic that captured the emotions, desires
and unique talents of blacks in America as
they face prejudice.
10