Her increased sense of self-worth because of her romantic relationship with Tea Cake made her consider the possibility that she can attain her needs and wants, and be able to control her actions and behavior in order to attain these needs and wants. In effect, in order to preserve her relationship with Tea Cake, she willingly let herself be subjugated by Tea Cake's dominant nature. On a bigger plane, Janie's characterization in "Their Eyes" has a profound effect on the way African-American women viewed and regarded themselves during the post-slavery period. Through Janie's character, Hurston was able to depict the image of the African-American woman who had gradually attained self-actualization through her experiences in life, specifically her history of being subjugated in a patriarchal...

As explicated clearly in Hubbard's (1994) words, "[t]he end product of Hurston's vision is the creation of a new black woman through a critique of the past. In looking back, Janie also looks forward to the day when American women of African descent will no longer be the mules of the world" (48).
Bibliography

Fisher, J. (2003). Women in Literature: Reading through the lens of gender. Connecticut: Greenwood Publishing.

Hubbard, D. (1994). The sermon and the African-American literary imagination. MO: University of Missouri Press.

Hurston, Z.N. (1990). Their Eyes Were Watching God. NY: Perennial Classics.

Nelson, E. (2000). African-American Authors, 1745-1945: Bio-bibliographical critical sourcebook. Connecticut: Praeger.