Symbol Chart

Throughout the story Their Eyes Were Watching God there are many symbols that are used to help describe what is going on in the book. These symbols also allow the readers to understand the deeper meaning of the story on another level. I believe that the five most important symbols in this book are Janie’s head rag, the rabid dog, guns, the sun, and plants/ flowers. These symbols all have completely different meanings from each other and they all describe very important messages in the book.

I think the most important symbol in this book is the sun. I believe this because of the message it portrays. It allows people to understand that every day is a new day and everything can change. This message can mean many different things. For example, it can mean that if you have a really bad day and nothing is going right then you can always look forward to tomorrow. It can also mean that there is always room for people to have a second chance. Overall, in this book the sun represents a very important message and I appreciate it because it can be can be interpreted in many different ways.

I believe that the next most important symbol in this book would be Janie’s head rags. I think this because it shows her becoming her own person and having the confidence to be who she wants to be. When Janie first takes off her head rag after her husband passes away, the readers see a different side of Janie that they have not seen before. This message shows people that they should not let others tell them what to do and that they should be the person that they want to be.

The fourth most important symbol in this book would be the gun. This symbol is kind of similar to Janie’s head rag because it also show’s Janie becoming her own person. When Janie first learns how to shoot a gun it represents her rebelling against the rules of feminism. At this time period it was unnatural for a woman to shoot a gun and you were looked down upon if you did. In this book when Janie first learns how to shoot the gun it shows that she no longer cares what anyone thinks of her and that she is going to do whatever she wants to do.

The next significant symbol would be the plants/ flowers. I think this because it shows that people do not need much in life to be happy. For example, in the beginning of the story Janie thought she needed a wealthy man and a nice house to be happy. By the end of the story she realized that all she needed was Tea Cake’s love and presence in her life and she would be more than content. Overall, this is a very important message and I think the book did a great job of portraying it.

I think the least important symbol out of the top five symbols I have selected would be the rabid dog. I think this because it was a smaller symbol and it is also a very generic symbol. The dog represented hate. It showed this by the way it attacked Tea Cake. In the end, this symbol was defiantly important, but don’t think it was nearly as important as the others. 

Janie’s Head-Rags- This is a very important symbol in this story because it represents Janie having power over herself. Janie’s second husband was the one who forced her to wear the head-rag because he didn’t want other men to be as attracted to her as he was. Once he died, Janie was quick to take off the head-rag and become her own women again.

The Rabid Dog- This dog is a symbol of hate because of the way it was willing to attack anyone and everything. It showed its hate when it attacked Tea Cake and ended up affecting his health.

Guns- Represent power in this story. When Janie learned to shoot a gun for the first time it showed her gaining power because she no longer let others tell her what she is and isn’t allowed to do. 

The Sun- Is a symbol of rebirth. Throughout this story Zora mentions the sun and the position it’s in multiple times and in the end Janie ends up relating it to Tea Cake. The overall message of the sun is that life goes on and that no matter how bad one day may seem, there is always tomorrow. 

Plants/Flowers- Represents the beauty and fertility of earth. It shows how little things can make you happy in life. For example, Janine finds in the end that she doesn’t need a nice house or things to make her happy, she only needs her and Tea Cake’s love. 

By Katherine Jenson