Their Eyes Were Watching God Journal #6

Read closely Janie's description of Death in chapter 8. Make a list of the stylistic choices Hurston makes in the passage that begins "Death, that strange bird with the huge square toes..." and ends with "Rumor, that wingless bird..." Along with listing the decisions Hurston makes in this passage, identify the effect of each of each of these decisions.

1: The personification of Death, shown through the capitalization of the name and the actions he does (living in the West, standing, waiting).

• The abstract idea of Death is now a person, something more easily imagined and relatable.

2: The description of Death living way in the West.

• Death lives in the West, where the sun sets. This creates a connection between Death and darkness or night.  

3: The description of Death’s house without sides or a roof and how he does not

                        need those things.

• This symbolizes how Death is not burdened with human needs, such as protection, and emphasizes his invincibility over nature.

4: The metaphor of Death leaving a feather in Janie’s yard at any moment.

• This creates an idea of Death being as mobile as a bird and able to leave hints of his arrival by leaving a “feather” behind.

5: Assonance in the phrase “before there was a where or a when or a then”

• This assonance draws attention to Death being eternal and existing “before there was a where or a when or a then”

6: Death being personified as holding a sword.

• Earlier in the novel, a phrase “the stillness was the sleep of swords” is describes the state of Joe and Janie’s marriage after they fight. The sword could be a symbol of death itself.

7: The use of dialect in the words “wrassle” and “wuz”.

• These words reflect the way Janie speaks and tells the reader that theses are Janie’s thoughts and not exclusively narration.

8: The capitalization of the word “No”.

• By capitalizing the word “no”, it shows that even when sick Joe is aggressive and retains power over Janie.

9: References to trees, as in the phrase “under the palm and china-berry trees”.

• Trees and plants have been a motif throughout the novel. Also, Janie has a revelation while sitting under a pear tree. The people realize that Joe is going to die as they squat underneath the trees.

10: The metaphor of rumor being a wingless bird.

• This contrasts with the metaphor of Death leaving a feather. This shows how rumor is a man-made object and therefore “missing wings” and being imperfect, while Death is natural and therefore perfect.