In a passage from Seraph on the Swanee, Hurston illustrates impoverished town in west Florida and how the people that live there conduct simple lives by depending and feeding off the swamp. By giving the passage historical context, Hurston clearly shows how rare the town of Sawley is in today’s fast pace lifestyle. Through describing the town Sawley and its people, Hurston displays an appreciation for the simple lifestyle the people of Sawley lead. Hurston highlights the beauty of Sawley and how the lifestyle of the people there may be different, but the town stands as little slice heaven for those who call it home. Through an allegory of the bliss that Adam and Eve experienced in the Garden of Eden.
Towards the end of the closing paragraph the author employs a polysyndeton, “...in the Suwanee, and bream and perch and cat-fish.” The excessive use of “and” accentuates the diversity of the fish in the Suwanee river that contributes to the cuisine of Sawley. Moreover, this scheme provides the reader with an idea of the various dishes that assist in the unique description of Sawley. Furthermore, this literary device slows down the pace of the passage so the audience can thoroughly envisage the setting Hurston is painting. Additionally, the author expresses a zealous tone with the use of approving diction such as, “mighty nice” and “mighty fine” when venturing into the description of the community’s meals.
It had two stories with porches, with banisters and such things. The rest of the town looked like servants’ quarters surrounding the “big house”. (47) After arriving in town, Janie soon realized she wasn’t living their life, she was living his. Here Hurston portrays Joe’s overbearing hold over Janie. The description of Eatonville is consumed by the imagery of Joe’s house, store and the porch attached.
Hurston’s metaphors help the reader to understand the great deal of oppression that the handkerchief symbolizes. The author’s metaphors such as “girl was gone”, “woman had taken her place”, and “the glory was there” emphasize that Janie is able to reveal her true beauty in overcoming her struggles. The author implies that by Janie uncovering her hair, she is revealing the constant shadow that has prevented her from her self-examination and in finding her true identity. The author’s metaphors are used to help the reader understand that the moment for an individual to overcome a struggle is profoundly beautiful and
In reading Joyce Carol Oates, “Hi Howya Doin”, 2007 and Zora Neale Hurston’s, “Spunk”, 1925, we have noticed similarities and differences between the two stories, which we have analyzed for further discussion. Both stories consist of life that is filled with uncertainty; good and evil are ill defined. In the story, “Hi Howya Doin”, by Joyce Carol Oates, she describes a husky male running along a path filled with a variety of different individuals from all walks of life who want only to be left alone, want no social interaction or discourse and prefer to contemplate in solitude with their miserable existence. In “Spunk”, the author paints a verbal picture of life during the early part of the 20th century, in a rural southern community, where social discourse, social contact and social interaction are extremely important for
In the story, ‘The Gilded Six – Bits’ revolves around the two main characters, Missie May and Joe. They both reside in a predominantly black neighborhood or community. Joe works at G and G Fertilizer. He is the one completes the financial duties.
Temptation led to forgiveness in aspects of materialistic items. Missie May had an affair with Otis Slemmons, he represents wealth and influence which Missie May does not have the privilege of in her marriage. Zora Neale Hurston emphasizes his wealth in order to
Hurston tells the story of Janie, a black woman who because of her grandmother experiences and beliefs was forced to marry into a loveless marriage with Logan Killicks, a hard-working farmer who had 60 acres of land and could provide for Janie. This marriage ended when Janie ran away with Joe Stark, a man that she fell in love with and thought could give her the love absent between her and Logan. But Janie soon realized that her second marriage wouldn’t turn out better than her first. Joe was just as controlling and degrading as Logan. He hardly expressed his love for Janie and spoke to her like an incompetent child.
“The Gilded Six-Bits”, by Zora Neale Hurston has two tones that appear throughout the story. The beginning and end of the story have a lighthearted tone. The story is lighthearted because it is about a happy newlywed couple. However, once Missy May is caught with Mr. Slemmons, the tone becomes darker because of her betrayal. The adultery changed the couples’ relationship, but it did not cause their marriage to end.
The Gilded Love In “The Gilded Six Bits”, a short story by Zora Neale Hurston, the marriage between Joe and Missie May is greatly affected by materialism. Every Saturday afternoon Joe throws nine silver dollars for Missie May to pile beside her plate at dinner; she then runs out to greet him and they play fight with each other. She digs through his pockets for candy kisses and other goods that he has put in them for her to find. They obviously love each other, but I think that in this Hurston is giving a subtle hint of what role materialistic things play in the relationship between them.
Overcoming Infidelity The Gilded Six-Bits was published in 1933 by Zora Neale Hurston. Hurston enjoys writing about the celebration of being black in America. Some other works that Hurston has wrote include Sweat, Spunk, etc. Her most famous work was her novel “Their Eyes were Watching God.” The Gilded Six-Bits is about an African American couple who tries to fix their relationship after the wife cheats on her husband with a rich guy.
In Zora Neale Hurston’s short story “The Gilded Six-Bits”, many different aspects can be justified and analyzed. One of the things I found most interesting was that Zora Neale Hurston attempted to objectify many of the characters. Objectifying means to treat someone, a physical being, as an object rather than a human. Zora Neale’s short story “The Gilded Six-Bits” is a great example of displaying female subjectivity in African American women’s narratives. Otis D. Slemmons, is one of the main characters who plays a very crucial role in the development on this story.
In utilizing the supernatural within the short story “Spunk,” specifically the character of Joe returning from the dead as a bobcat, Zora Neale Hurston illustrates the strong desire for equality commonly seen in literature written during the Harlem Renaissance. Firstly, it is important to note that while alive, Joe faces quite a bit of negative treatment, especially at the hands of Spunk. For example, Spunk ends up taking Joe’s wife, Lena, from him, walking around the village as “big as life an’ brassy as tacks” (Hurston 949). At this moment, Spunk is far from ashamed to be seen with another man’s wife, basically portraying Joe as incapable of being a decent husband and standing up for himself and his marriage.
Me and Lennie were real happy there, cos we could go over to the town on Sunday and sit on the street and watch life go by. Ye, we had a hellu’ve good life up in Weed.” George paused and before he continued. “So we was sittin’ in the gutter one day in a quiet place of the town and Lennie sees a girl come by, really purty girl with a pink beautiful dress, ya know the color of dem real fancy cakes the baker makes for those rich folks. And there’s two things Lennie jus’ loves - bright colors and soft things, so when
Hurston’s autobiography, Dust Tracks on a Road marks the popularity of her career as a writer in the Harlem Renaissance. It is an autobiography intertwined with reality, mystery, imagination, creation, humor and wisdom, celebrating Hurston’s struggle from an isolated southern child to a recognized black female writer. It is an autobiography contains a controversial work evoking both recognition and discrete criticism. Starting with the history of Eatonville, the founding of the pure Negro town, Hurston in Dust Tracks locates herself as a carefree black girl in a harmless place immune from threats of the racial segregation, then delineates her life as a wander after her mother’s death. Aside from her journey in life, the alienation of the narrator
