Symbolism, Imagery, And Irony In Sweat By Hurston

In her story “Sweat'', through her use of symbolism, imagery, and irony Hurston underscores the idea that relationships can not flourish without equality among one another. One example of how she used symbolism to portray the theme is when the snake bites Sykes. In her story “Sweat '', Delia is married to a mentally and physically abusive man named Sykes. As Sykes is dying in their house, Hurston uses the Jordan River to give the reader an idea of what Delia is feeling: “She knew the cold river was creeping up and up to extinguish that eye which must know by now that she knew” (7). This is the final sentence in the story, and it leaves the reader with the symbol of the cold river, which represents the death of Sykes as well as Delia’s relationship

Hurston also portrays the theme through nature imagery. She uses the sky and the sun to allow the reader to interpret how Delia is feeling throughout the span of Sykes death. When Sykes arrives back at the house after releasing a snake in their home, “The gray in the sky was spreading.” (6) Later, when Sykes is dying after being bit by the snake, Delia is choosing to not help him, “The sun crept on up, and he called…[Delia] never moved, he called, and the sun kept rising '' (7) The sun creeping up represents a new beginning for Delia that comes with the death of her abusive husband who never supported her, or her work in any way. These two quotes support the theme because the association of Sykes arriving with the gray sky spreading, and him dying with the sun coming up proves that Delia was not treated equally or appreciated in her relationship with Sykes, and therefore their relationship did not thrive, it died. Finally, irony was used by Hurston to really bring out the idea that relationships must be equal. The irony of the story occurs when Sykes lets the snake loose in the