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Metaphors
Definition of Mood
The mood of a piece of writing is its general atmosphere or emotional complexion—in short, the array of feelings the work evokes in the reader. Every aspect of a piece of writing... read full definition
The mood of a piece of writing is its general atmosphere or emotional complexion—in short, the array of feelings the work evokes in the reader. Every aspect... read full definition
The mood of a piece of writing is its general atmosphere or emotional complexion—in short, the array of feelings the work evokes... read full definition
Chapter 6
Explanation and Analysis:
Their Eyes Were Watching God seeks to create many feelings in its reader, but there are two that stand out. First, there is a feeling of repeated liberation and revelation, as Janie finds herself and matures through her three marriages. The reader shares in Janie's feeling of constraint in each of her relationships—to Nanny, then to all three of her husbands in turn. And in contrast, the reader feels Janie's feeling of liberation when she goes to live with Logan Killicks, then her feeling of liberation when Joe Starks takes her to Eatonville, then her feeling of liberation again when Tea Cake sweeps her off her feet. Even Tea Cake's death feels like another liberation, as the plight of his illness and increasing abuse leaves Janie's life.
In these feelings of repeated caging and freeing, there is genuine romance. This is an important part of the mood: the book has three marriages and two real love stories, with Joe Starks and Tea Cake, both of whom genuinely flatter and care for Janie, at least at the beginning of their relationships. The book is in no small part a romance novel, and the reader shares in Janie's flattery, affection, and reluctant amorous delay. For a novel with almost exclusively Black characters, a book meant to create such feelings is in itself a sort of rebellion, which is part of Hurston's project.
In addition to these feelings of romance, liberation, and maturity, there is a pervading sense of naturalism and spirituality in the book. Hurston focuses, similarly, on the ways that Janie's thoughts work. Thus there is a peaceful, contemplative, almost meditative mood in much of the novel, throughout all three of Janie's marriages. Janie learns throughout the book how her own mind works and how to retreat into it in times of strife. As such, the book creates feelings of internal peace and quiet individualism, reflecting Janie's intent focus on learning how to remain mindful regardless of her circumstances. After Joe Starks restricts her from town life in Eatonville, she realizes she has a complex internal life and is not defined by her husband(s):
She found that she had a host of thoughts she had never expressed to him, and numerous emotions she had never let Jody know about. Things packed up and put away in parts of her heart where he could never find them. She was saving up feelings for some man she had never seen. She had an inside and an outside now and suddenly she knew not to mix them.
Throughout the book, Janie finds this sort of internal peace through a focus on nature. She seems to have a special affection for it, and a corresponding feeling of natural peace is part of this mood. Altogether, the mood of the book has a subtle but pervasive undertone of quiet and persistent inner stillness.
