Their Eyes Were Watching God

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was looking forward to freedom and escape. Janie’s final husband Tea Cake was opposite of Jody, he loved Janie for who she was, and gave her personal space and freedom. She did not treat her like the way her other husbands treated her. And although he was younger than Janie, he treated her with care In this marriage, Janie’s wish for true love and adventure came true, they were romantic.

Throughout the hero’s journey, Janie also encounters helpers and mentors who’s essential to Janie’s success to her journey. They include ones such as Phoebe, Tea Cake, and doctor. Phoebe was Janie’s good friend, when Janie was hated from her surroundings, Phoebe was the only person that cared about her. Although the doctor was a minor character in the story, he is considered as a mentor for Janie since Janie had barely anyone beside her during Tea Cake’s sickness. Last but not least, Tea Cake plays the role of both challenge and mentor in the story. He helps Janie through her hard times, and helped her regain trust that was already broken due to her ex-husbands.

The final stage of the hero’s journey is the abyss. Janie becomes the heroine when she releases her self to freedom. Though it is ironic part is that she obtain her freedom through violence. Although Tea Cake was Janie’s mentor through the journey, in the end he was driven as a threat. Janie was freed from oppression when she discovered her identity and the true meaning of love from past her experiences. Each husband taught her a valuable lesson. When Logan died Janie learns that love doesn’t mean financial stability, the marriage was due to her Nanny’s force, hence it is not true love. Jody doesn’t allow Janie to speak in public because he feels embarrassed for Janie’s poor English, he also forbids Janie to show her hair and forces her to wear hair rags, it was oppression. And the last man that she truly loved, Tea Cake reached out for Janie’s emotions, played checkers, explored, and listened to what she had to say. He helped her find her voice, love and adventure, completed her dream.

The hero’s journey is a cycle that progressed Janie into a stronger, smarter woman, thus making her the heroine of the story. She analyzed her mistakes from her failed marriages. The final stage of the hero’s journey is the return with a gift. Janie achieved self-empowerment, peace when she moved back to Eatonville, symbolizing gift. This symbolizes that she has matured and her past dreams do not matter because she accomplished them already. She wants to be alone with her newly found self. Janie’s experiences from her husbands’ helped her achieve her ultimate goal of adventure and love in the end along with finding out who she truly is.