1st journal entry

Thomas Woodward

1^st journal entry

9/10/11

Logan Killicks is described as an “ole skullhead” on page 13. Skullhead is not something you would call your future spouse. Skullhead is quite a morbid term for describing someone you would marry. Skullhead implies that he is already dead or that he is only a plain, boring set of bones. Logan is described as being void of all fleshy, interesting, human features and being void of love. Hurston uses the term skullhead to subtly show that Janie views Logan as an unlovable thing. This shows that Janie is willing to get married only because her Nanny wants her to. Janie is being pushed into the relationship by her Nanny. Skullheads can also be intriguing. Janie is curious about marriage and decides to try it out. “Did marriage end the cosmic loneliness of the unmated? Did marriage compel love like the sun of the day?” (21). Here Janie is thinking about the pros and cons to getting married. She fears that she will be stuck in a loveless relationship and waste her life with Logan. Logan is being described as a plain set of bones, people don’t like being around boring things or people. It is extremely difficult to love someone you find boring. Throughout Janie’s time with Logan, she is always commenting about how she doesn’t love him.

Why does Janie want to please her Nanny so badly? Why did Hurston associate death with marriage? Why does Janie want to get married at such a young age?

Joe Starks only thinks of Janie as a possession. When Janie meets up with Joe after her fight with Logan, Joe is in a car waiting for her. When she gets up on to the seat, Janie describes it as “With him on it, it sat like some high, ruling chair” (32). This shows that Janie feels optimistic about her future because she feels as if she is being lifted out of her old abusive life but in more subtle ways Hurston is foreshadowing how Joe will treat Janie. Hurston shows that while Joe is around, everything Janie does is on display. What I mean by that is, Joe is showing Janie off. He views her as a possession but nothing more. When you own nothing and have no money, being treated like royalty seems unimaginably good, but when possessions conflict with freedom then things begin to feel tainted. “It sat like some high, ruling chair” this tells us that Janie can have all the things she wants “Just like Joe had said. With new clothes of silk and wool” (33) but once she is in the “high, ruling chair”, Joe never wants her to come back down. Joe wants her to look pretty all day even if it means Janie loses her freedoms. Janie is being “owned” by Joe.

Why does Joe want to be married to Janie when she is only a possession to him? Wouldn’t it be more fun for Joe and Janie view each other as equals? Why does Janie want to be married so badly that she will marry a complete stranger?

Nanny is a very traditional character. She wants Janie to be married off to a successful person because it was what she was supposed to do when she was younger. Nanny feels that Janie shouldn’t marry by her heart but marry for wealth and possessions. She feels that to be successful, a person should marry someone else from a higher social class. “Whut I seen just now is plenty for me, honey, Ah don’t want no trashy nigger, no breath-and-britches, lak Johnny Taylor usin’ yo’ body to wipe his foots on” (13). Nanny is not concerned about whether or not Janie likes Johnny. Nanny is more concerned that Janie would think about having a relationship with a person of a lower social class. “Dat’s what makes me skeered. You don’t mean no harm. You don’t even know where harm is at” (13). Janie is Nanny’s most precious belonging. Nanny wants to give Janie the best future possible but the only way Nanny knows how is by prearranged marriage.

Even if it means Janie will not enjoy the relationship she is in, Nanny still wants to marry her off to a successful man. “‘Don’t think Ah don’t feel wid you, Janie, ‘cause Ah do.’”

Why didn’t Nanny tell Janie about prearranging a marriage with Logan? Why did society start having prearranged marriage? It doesn’t really accomplish anything. Why must Janie be married off right when she reaches her womanhood?