Their Eyes Were Watching God, one of the most famous works in the twentieth-century American literary canon, tells a real Southern love story with the wit and eloquence for which Zora Neale Hurston is known. The first characteristic of the book is the use of dialect. A dialect is a language that is widely spoken in a particular area. The fundamental advantage of dialect in literature is that it enhances linguistic imagery.
New words, when employed in the proper context and in moderation, improve discourse and capture readers’ interest. The author employs dialect to bring the plot and the characters to life. The usage of accents helps the characters appear natural and convincing. After the first adaptation to the language, the reader feels as if they are part of the story.
However, it is important to realize that using the local language confines the author to a certain geographical area and ties him to a single scenario. By blending classic literary language in normal English with phonetically written, rather than precisely pronounced conversation, rich with metaphors and similes, Hurston convincingly depicts the accent and culture of his African American characters at the time.
The author also used several analogies in his work “Their Eyes Were Watching God.” This approach is employed in language to communicate meanings that cannot be articulated literally or, if expressed literally, lose all or part of their artistic worth. Metaphor is one of the most popular literary clichés. Hurston, for example, appears to hint at Joe’s credentials by using the critical metaphor “bee” (Hurston 32).
However, the previous sentence sheds light on Janie’s obvious love for Joe. Thus, metaphor expresses what cannot be described by direct nominations, such as the state of a person’s soul. Through the metaphorical units in the work, we can trace the chain of states the protagonist experiences.
Work Cited
Hurston, Zora Neale. Their Eyes Were Watching God. ViragoPress, 2018.