Their Eyes Were Watching God By Wyatt Painter
“Their Eyes Were Watching God” By: Wyatt Painter, Josh Brown, Landon Beard
Chapter 18
Plot Line ● ● ● ● The Bahaman workers (Saws) became more friendly and open and stop hiding their dances Tea Cake and Janie would host these fire dances behind their house Janie notice the Indians (seminoles) heading towards Palm Beach for higher ground They learn about the hurricane that is coming and it’s potentially dangerous They continued to have a fire dance later that night with no worries (they think that it must be impossible for a deadly storm to happen with crops growing so good and the money [$8] coming in) Muck workers, Janie, and Tea Cake notices groups of animals moving east during the night (dangerous creatures like snakes, panthers, while other animals like skunks, rabbits, and deer all move eastwards) People get worried and begin to leave the Muck fearing the storm will be bad One of the Bahaman boys (Lias) stops and asks Tea Cake if they’re leaving and discusses the hurricane (Lias) attempts to persuade Tea Cake into leaving for Palm Beach {“you ain't seen the bossman go up, is yuh? ”, “De Indians gahn east man. It’s dangerous. ”, “If Ah never see you no mo’ on earth, Ah’ll meet you in Africa. ” ● ● ● People gather at Janie and Tea Cake’s house, talking about a story of “Big John de Conquer”, eating, playing music & games, and having fun before they saw how the weather was only getting worse. (Muck-Boy chants and dances around) Muck-Boy goes back to sleep, while the others begin to play games like “Florida flip”, “Coon Can”, and “Dice” The group notices that the weather isn’t getting any better so the people begin to go home to their “Shacks” That night the winds and weather intensified, by next morning the hurricane was beginning its attack The big lake amplifies the storm causing it bursts of thunder and lighting to appear Tea Cake, Janie, and Motor-Boat stop messing around and begin to watch the door and question “God”
Plot Line Continued ● ● ● ● ● A scared baby rabbit runs into Tea Cakes shack to hide from the lake, who’s getting more and more mad. Janie and Tea Cake share a tender moment with Tea Cake asking Janie if she wishes that would’ve stayed in her big house, and Janie telling Tea Cake that he’s shown her the “light” The wind comes back with triple of its fury and blows the lights out for the last time, they struggle to see in the darkness while their souls questioned the might, but their “Eyes Were Watching God” Tea Cake goes outside and realizes how the storm has taken life and created it, but he mainly notices how the water has risen and there were now fish in their front yard Tea Cake tries to go out and find a car so they can leave the ‘Glades before things worsen, Janie begins to pack their things to leave but Janie is still hesitant to leave the shack Janie and Tea Cake with their things head out of the shack into the elements, Tea Cake doesn’t find any vehicles so they have to walk through the storm to help them walk through it better they wake up Motor-Boat so they can interlock hands The group heads out into the weather eastwards towards Palm Beach for safety but the intenseness of the weather causes Tea Cake to throw his “Box” away Once they reached fairly dry land the wind had picked up so much to where they had fight from being pushed off, while struggling to stay on path they noticed other people struggling, a house, and cattle The group looks back and notices all the chaos behind them with the storm finally freeing the lake from it’s “bed” and allowing it to engulf everything
Plot Line Continued ● ● ● The group together all gasp at the sight of the lake approaching violently and run from it’s impending terror While running from the lake the group yell “de lake is coming” to alert the other people that have stayed behind of the storm They make it to a tall house on a “Hump” of ground and Janies says let's stop here and rest for second so Tea Cake and Motor Boat break into the house and rest Tea Cake wishes that he had the sense that the people who owned this house had and left early to avoid this storm and all it’s deconstruction The group falls asleep with little to no delay but Janie wakes first to hearing the sounds of rushing water. She then wakes everyone and alerts them Tea Cake and Janie want to leave and avoid the possibility of the lake coming and devouring them but Motor Boat still wants to sleep because he’s exhausted Tea Cake and Janie try to persuade Motor Boat into coming with them, but he wants to take his chances because he needs his sleep. Tea Cake and Janie leave the house and Motor Boat behind and head out with them quickly hitting serious water, forcing them to swim Tea Cake and Janie swim in the strong currents but Janie isn’t able keep up so Tea Cake aids her in swimming until they find a ridge Tea Cake and Janie both worn plume out continue to travel onwards towards the six-mile bridge to find safety White people had already taken over the bridge
Plot Line Continued ● ● ● ● Janie and Tea Cake go by the overflowing bridge, and pass animals and people that are dead or in distress, such as a man clinging to a tree. Tea Cake tires himself out and Janie find a piece of stray roofing to lay him under and rest. Janie and the piece of roofing are lifted by the wind into the water, unknown to Tea Cake until she screams his name. A cow, with a massive dog sitting on her shoulders, swims near Janie is able to grab the back of the cow and lift her body out of the water. The dog goes to attack Janie, and Tea Cake dives in with his knife to protect her. Tea Cake and the dog fight, and the dog manages to bit Tea Cake on the cheek before he is able to kill the dog with his knife. Tea Cake sends the dog to the bottom of the river and swim to the shore with Janie and the cow. Janie and Tea Cake once at the shore exhausted begin to rest and sleep Janie and Tea Cake the next day walk to Palm Beach, their bodies weakened from the storms havoc they find a place to rest and Tea Cake talks to Janie
Extended Metaphors
Hurricane “Going to high ground. Saw-grass bloom. Hurricane coming. ” Everybody was talking about it that night. (154) “You couldn't have a hurricane when you're making seven and eight dollars a day picking beans. ” (155) “Mah uncle come for me. He say hurricane warning out in Palm Beach. ” (156)
Muck “Man, de money's too good on the muck. It's liable tuh fair off by tuhmorrer. ” (156) “Not so bad dere, but man, dis muck is too low and dat big lake is liable tuh bust. " (156) “In the ‘Glades, they, the “Saws, ” has been gradually drawn in the American crowd” (154) “Ah naw, man. Some boys in dere now talkin’ ‘bout it. Some of’em been in de ‘Glades fuh years. ‘Tain’t nothin’ but uh little blow. You’ll lose de whole day tuhmorrer tryin’ tuh git back out heah. ” (156)
Money “Man, de money’s too good on the muck” pg 156 “A thousand dollars a throw in Madison Square Garden couldn’t have gotten more suspenseful” pg 158 “You couldn’t have a hurricane when you’re making seven and eight dollars a day, picking beans. ” Pg 155 “Ah’m glad y’all stopped dat crap-shootin’ even if it wasn’t for money” Pg 159 “You got de money out de dresser draw already” Pg 160 “Found some newspaper and wrapped up all the paper money and papers” Pg 160 “A great deal do their money and perseverance and they found a place to sleep” Pg 167
Water “John de Conquer won the race; went on down to hell, beat the old devil and passed out ice water to everybody down there. ” (157) “He saw that the wind and water had given life to lots of things that folks think of as dead and given death to so much that had been living things. ” (160) “Saw people trying to run in raging waters and screaming when they found they couldn't. ” (161) “On each side of the fill was a great expanse of water like lakes—water full of things living and dead. Things that didn't belong in water. ” (165)
Wind “The winds, to the tiniest, lisping baby breath had left the earth. ” (155) “Sometime that night the winds came back. Everything in the world had a strong rattle, sharp and short like Stew Beef vibrating the drum head near the edge with his fingers. ” (158) “Through the screaming wind they heard things crashing and things hurtling and dashing with unbelievable velocity. ” (159) “The wind came back with triple fury, and put out the light for the last time. ” (160)
Dog “A massive built dog was sitting on her shoulders and shivering and growling. ” (165) “The dog stood up and growled like a lion, stiff-standing hackles, stiff muscles, teeth uncovered as he lashed up his fury for the charge. ” (166) “The dog raced down the back-bone of the cow to the attack and Janie screamed and slipped far back on the tail of the cow, just out of reach of the dog's angry jaws. ” (166)
John de Conquer “Handling Big John de Conquer and his works. How he had everything big on earth, then went up tuh heben without dying atall. Went up there picking a guitar and got all de angles doing the ring-shout round de throne. Then everybody but God and Old Peter flew off in a flying race to Jericho and back and John de Conquer won the race; went down to hell, beat the old devil and passed out ice water to everybody down there. ” (157)
Fish in the Yard “As soon as Tea Cake went out pushing wind in front of him, he saw that the wind and water had given life to lots of things that folks think of as dead and given death to so much that had been living things. Water everywhere. Stray fish swimming in the yard. ” (160)
Light “It is so easy to be hopeful in day time when you can see things you wish on” (158) “If you kin see de light at daybreak, you don’t keer if you die at dusk. It’s so many people never seen de light at all” (159) “The wind came back with triple fury, and put out the light for the last time. ” (160) “Even before the sun gave light, dead day was creeping from bush to bush watching man. ” (155) “The majority of them sat around laughing and waiting for the sun to get friendly again. ” (156)
Darkness “Several times during the night Janie heard the snort of big animals like deer. ” (154) “Sometime that night the winds came back. Everything in the world had a strong rattle like Stew Beef vibrating the drum head near the edge with his fingers. ” (158) “Louder and higher and lower and wider the sound and motion spread, mounting, sinking, darking. ” (158) “But it was night, it stayed night. Night was striding across nothingness with the whole round world In his hands. ” (158) “A baby rabbit terror ridden, squirmed through a hole in the floor and squatted off there in the shadows against the walls. ” (159)
Eyes “The time was past for asking the white folks what to look for through that door. Six eyes were questioning God. ” (159) “They sat in company with the others in other shanties, their eyes straining against crude walls and their souls asking if He meant to measure their puny might against His. They seemed to be staring at the dark, but their eyes were watching God. ” (160) “If Ah never see you no mo’ on earth, Ah’ll meet you in Africa” Pg 156 “The others forgot the work and the weather watching them now. ” Pg 157/158 “Ah don’t speck you seen his eyes lak I did. ” Pg 167
Bossman/God “Chink up your cracks, shiver in your wet beds and wait on the mercy of the lord. ” Pg 158 “Big Massa draw him upstairs” Pg 159 “Ole Massa is doin’ his work now. Us outta keep quiet. ” Pg 159 “Six eyes were questioning God. ” Pg 159 “Ah wuz fumblin’ around and God opened the door. ” Pg 159 “They seemed to be staring at dark, but their eyes were watching God. ” Pg 160 “You ain’t seen the bossman go up, is yuh? ” Pg 156 “The bossman might have thing stopped before morning anyways. ” Pg 158
Describing Maps
Describing Map: The Muck 1. Bountiful 2. The Muck is this place that is abundant in life with it producing large harvest of crops. Tea Cake brings Janie to the Muck so that they can grow their relationships and show Janie what she’s been looking for the whole time. In the Muck Janie has this realization that life isn’t just materialistic and based solely on what you have. Janie sheds her worldly views that Jody Starks, Nanny, and society has installed into her, and she has this internal realization that the love and relationships she’s been trying to find has been within herself. 3. “Man, de money’s too good on the muck” 4. [pg. 156] 5. DEVICE: Diction, Oxymoron
The Muck 6. The Muck is producing crops, that are bringing in money (something Tea Cake wants) illustrating how the Muck is bountiful. But it isn’t just the crops that become bountiful; relationships, values, and maturity also grows from living in the Muck. Janie gets to see what love is like, and mature in the ways that she wasn’t able to mature in when she was younger. And even though Janie and Tea Cake are driven out from their home, love overpowers the fact that they lost everything that they had worked for.
Describing Maps: The Dog 1. Powerful 2. The dog was a random animal in the middle of the hurricane, riding on top of a cow when Janie fell from the roofing into the hurricane water. The dog attacked Janie when she grabbed onto the cow, forcing Tea Cake to fight and kill the dog, only before he was bit on the face. The dog bite led to Tea Cake’s disease and his awful death. 3. “The dog stood up and growled like a lion, stiff-standing hackles, stiff muscles, teeth uncovered as he lashed up his fury for the charge. ” 4. [pg. 167] 5. DEVICE: Simile
The Dog 6. The dog was very similar to the hurricane due to it representing a factor of nature that we could not control. The power of both shows how humanity constantly believes that it can control nature and God when in fact, we can not. The animals—the “children” of nature fled—Tea Cake and Janie both end up paying for their mistakes in believing that nature was not going to do what it had planned to them; Tea Cake with his life and his belongings, Janie with her love and everything they had. The dog was compared to a lion, which is symbolized as a strong, dangerous animal, and also a strong leader. This comparison shows just how powerless we are to nature and God (Janie nearly being killed if Tea Cake hadn’t fought for her, who eventually died from battle wounds). The underestimation of nature showed the characters the power that God can bring.
Describing Map: Motor Boat 1. Hopelessness 2. Motor Boat is a friend of Tea Cake and Janie, and stays with them when the hurricane comes. He stays behind and discontinues running when they stop at a house to rest, and his fate is unknown. 3. “Goodbye, Tea Cake. Y’all oughta stay here and sleep, man. No use in goin’ off and leavin’ me lak dis. ” 4. DEVICE: Symbolism 5. [pg. 163]
Motor Boat 6. “Motor Boat”, the friend of Janie and Tea Cake, gave up from running from the hurricane after he rests and becomes too weary to keep going. His fate is never revealed, and we have to assume that he died when the rest of the hurricane came down on the Everglades. The hurricane represents the struggles that we go through in our everyday lives; Janie, Tea Cake and Motor Boat couldn’t believe that a hurricane could come because of how good the crops were growing, yet it came. When the trio had to flee, Motor Boat eventually gave up. Motor Boat represents the part of us that wants to quit even when we know we shouldn’t, while Janie and Tea Cake represent the stronger side of the human spirit that will not back down.
Describing Map: Janie 1. Forgiving 2. Janie, the main character and the focus of the story, is caught in a hurricane with her lover, Tea Cake. After Tea Cake makes the mistake of ignoring warnings to leave, they are forced to leave their home and belongings to fight through the hurricane and survive. 3. “We been tuhgether round two years. If you kin see de light at daybreak, you don’t keer if you die at dusk. It’s so many people never seen de light at all. Ah wuz fumblin’ round and God opened de door. ” 4. DEVICE: Situational Irony 5. [pg. 159]
Janie 6. Although Janie ended up losing almost everything except for her life and her lover (for awhile) she realizes just how much her journey with Tea Cake and the hurricane combined to show her what really matters. Janie tells Tea Cake that she forgives him for not listening to those who left because he showed her love for the first time, and she is happy that she knows that she felt love before she died. The situation becomes very ironic due to the fact that Tea Cake should’ve been at fault for not taking the chance to leave when he had it; Tea Cake says that he bets Janie wishes that she had stayed in her big house in Eatonville, but she says that she doesn’t care because she only wants to be with him.
Describing Map: Tea Cake 1. Martyr 2. Tea Cake is the lover of Janie, and is caught in the hurricane after foolishly ignoring the warnings of natives and friends to leave before they were killed. Tea Cake fights the hurricane hard, and is bitten on the face by a dog that tries to attack Janie in the water. He ends up dying for her. 3. “Dese people had mo’ sense than Ah did. Us oughta went on wid ‘Lias lak he ast me. ” 4. [pg. 162] 5. DEVICE: Irony
Tea Cake 6. Earlier in the chapter, Tea Cake was telling Lias, one of the Bahaman workers that offered him and Janie a ride out, that he would be wrong to leave only because the Indians are. A few pages later, Tea Cake wishes he had taken Lias’ offer, and it is very ironic due to the huge change of feelings. Tea Cake ends up paying for his arrogance with his life, but it was not a wasted death; he gave his life for the woman that he loved. Tea Cake feels sorry for not have gotten Janie out of there earlier, but he feels joy and happiness when she tells him that no matter his mistakes, no matter what gets taken from them, and no matter what he does, she will always love him for showing her what true love meant, and for putting his life on the line to save her.
Literary Analysis
Wyatt’s Literary Analysis: Hurricane Quote- “It woke up old Okechobee and the monster began to roll in his bed. Began to roll and complain like a peevish world on a grumble. ” “The monsterstropolous beast has left his bed. The two hundred mile an hour wind had loosed his chains. He seized hold of his dikes and ran. ” Devices- Personification, Allusion, and Metaphor Analysis- The hurricane that hits the Muck is personified as an evil monster that is hellbent on consuming everything in its path. “De lake” keeps on chasing Tea Cake Janie like a monster as they try to run from it (because they can’t fly). These quote illustrates how devastating and terrifying the storm is, with is destroying house, dikes, and sucking up people and debris while advancing towards Janie and Tea Cake. Also with the allusion to lake Okechobee in Florida (the eighth largest freshwater body in the U. S) demonstrates the massiveness of this monster that is attacking Janie and Tea Cake.
Landon’s Literary Analysis: The Power of God Quote- “Sometime that night the winds came back. Everything in the world had a strong rattle, sharp and short like Stew Beef vibrating the drum head near the edge with his fingers. By morning Gabriel was playing the deep tones in the center of the drum. So when Janie looked out of her door she saw the drifting mists gathered in the west – that cloud field of the sky – to arms themselves with thunders and march forth against the world. ” Devices: Simile, Allusion, and Personification Analysis: The characters realize the power of the coming storm when it is compared to the angel of death, Gabriel. The thunder of the storm is related by a simile to one of the characters tapping on a drum and growing closer to the middle where there is a deeper sound created, giving off how a deep, echoing thunderstorm would sound; the explanation gives a sense of an approaching danger that is only getting bigger with time. The quote seems to put the coming storm as a divine prophecy of the approaching death of those living in the Everglades. Due to the ignorance of the characters thinking that they can ride out the storm without any worry, God shows his power to those who ignored what He sent their way. That power is the personified hurricane (arm themselves…. . march forth) that destroys their homes, their land, and takes the lives of those who were unlucky enough to not be able to get away from the ever flowing water.
Josh’s Literary Analysis: Fish in the Yard Quote - “As soon as Tea Cake went out pushing wind in front of him, he saw that the wind and water had given life to lots of things that folks think of as dead and given death to so much that had been living things. Water everywhere. Stray fish swimming in the yard. ” Devices: Symbolism and Imagery Analysis: The fish symbolizes the knowledge that Janie wants to obtain. As when she first learns how to fish, she uses a fishing pole to catch them. Which limits her to the amount of knowledge that she can obtain at once. At the end, Janie uses a fish-net to finally pull in her “horizon, ” or the goals that she wanted to reach. With the idea that a fish net can pull in many fish at once, it portrays that she is able to obtain more knowledge at one time. This quote illustrates the “stray fish” swimming past them as they are walking through the flood, demonstrating how close she is to obtaining her “horizon. ” Janie is still not quite to the point where she can pull it in with a net, but it symbolizes her halfway mark to reaching her goals.
- Slides: 34