Their Eyes Were Watching God - Journal #2

This journal is based on the last and first paragraph of page 46-47

Alliteration: "She slept with authority and so she was part of the town mind." Repetition of 's'.
Analysis: I relate the word 'authority' to almost 'royalty'. And then I think of kings and queens sitting in their thrones all rigid and blank faced. The repetitive 's' sound makes me think about how repetitive Janie's life is, being forced to sit or stand quietly.

Motif: "They murmured hotly about slavery being over, but every man filled his assignment."
Analysis: Like I mentioned in my last journal, nameless people pop up all over the book. I think it's quite interesting workers specifically popped up again. Also the word 'slavery' really makes me wonder. I thought about that relationship between the bossman and sitters earlier as possibly being slavery, but dismissed it at the time.

Foil: Joe Starks
Analysis: The second paragraph in my selection describes Joe as not being "imposing" or "a fist fighter". Although I think one of the most important things Hurston included was "Neither was it because he was more literate than the rest." When it comes to dialect, Joe sounds like just about every single other african american in the book. Yet why was it mentioned that he was more literate? While Jody is pretty much just the same as everyone else, he isn't part of that unnamed mass of people. He stands out and commands that mass.

Mood: Inspiring
Tone: Reflective

Purpose:
I think this section was a little bit of time for Janie to organize her thoughts and the difference between her and Joe. While she is not quite as involved in the community of Eatonville, Joe is. More importantly though, is what Hurston chose to say about Jody. Going back to our discussion about dialect and literacy, I think the point Hurston was attempting to drive followed along the lines of: "You don't need to speak perfect English to use it effectively."

Look at Jody! Not intimidating, not violent, speaks just like everyone else and ends up being the Mayor! Perhaps Hurston was also trying to show that personality is just as important as brains.