Chapters 8-9
Though typically the death of a person marks a time of mournfulness and depression, Janie clearly benefitedfrom the death of her husband. She was locked behind the bars in which he planted in frontof her, and there was no way for her to escape them. Though she’s there for him, before he dies, she assures him that he was wrong, and this demonstrates her stability and ability to speak the truth. Again, we see a fake side of Janie. Aside from how strong she is, she does give community what they want to see. It’s almost as if all of her past relationships have been successful out of guilt. She feels as if to succeed, she needs to be something she’s not. She married Logan, because he loved her and could provide for her, but not out of love, and the same went for Jody. She married him initially being attracted, but once the flame was gone and he began to mistreat her, she lost everything she had for him. However, she stayed with him for society’s sake, and cared more about what the town thought of her than what she thought of herself.
Subsequent to the death of Jody, relief fills Janie. She’s free and loves it. Still, she’s afraid of society. After six months of “morning” she begins to feel free again and at the same time, she feels that being happy is wrong. She’s an independent woman and shouldn’t feel badly about it. What I also found interesting was that she blames Nanny for her admiration of independence. Why? I don’t get. I feel that instead of blaming Nanny for this, she should look up to her. Nanny, to me, is a character to look up to instead of looking down upon. But, I must keep in mind the time period of the novel, and paciently wait to see how society will force Janie into another unhealthy relationship.
