TEWWG - Journal #2: Analytical (Ch. 1, 2)

Prompt:
(Analytic): Pick a passage from your reading (between one paragraph and half a page). Copy the passage onto your blog and make a list of the decisions that Hurston made in writing that passage. What techniques, what patterns, what questions, what tone, what word choice, etc.

Response:
"It was a spring afternoon in West Florida. Janie had spent most of the day under a blossoming pear tree in the back-yard. She had been spending every minute that she could steal from her chores under that tree for the last three days. That was to say, ever since the first tiny bloom had opened. It had called her to come and gaze on a mystery. From barren brown stems to glistening lead-buds; from the leaf-buds to snowy virginity of bloom. It stirred her tremendously. How? Why? It was like a flute song forgotten in another existence and remembered again. What? How? Why? This singing she heard that had nothing to do with her ears. The rose of the world was breathing out smell. It followed her through all her waking moments and caressed her in her sleep. It connected itself with other vaguely felt matters that had struck her outside observation and buried themselves in her flesh. Now they emerged and quested about her consciousness." (pg. 10-11)

1. Motif of nature when referring to the "blossoming pear tree" presents itself.
2. Third omniscient point of view is used to illustrate Janie's thoughts and feelings of the time spent under the pear tree.
3. The tone of this passage indicates a gentle side to nature, which is like Janie as a child, care-free and light-hearted.
4. Descriptive imagery is used to reach three of the five senses.
5. The tree is personified to bring the passage to life and give it more dimension.
6. "Bloom" is repeated to show how new life can come about, which ties into Janie blossoming into a woman.
7. The simile comparing the tree to the flute illustrates the tree as something that will always remain beautiful.
8. " The rose of the world" symbolizes Janie's dream which is carried out through life.
9. A calm rhythm allows the gentle tone of this passage to stand out.
10. The phrase "snowy virginity" is a connotation for a fresh beginning, such as Janie's transformation into womanhood.
11. Ambiguity is demonstrated through "the rose of the world" as Hurston never clearly defines what she means, and how it ties into the following sentences with "it".
12. Setting is clearly shown by the descriptive language used.
13. Consonance can be seen through the repetition of the "b"-sound throughout the passage.
14. "Now they emerged and quested about her consciousness" foreshadows Janie's change from a child into a woman, as she begins to see life in a different light.
15. Theme: Transitioning from one stage in life to the next is the same experience for all living organisms.
16. Thesis: Zora Neale Hurston uses imagery and personification to demonstrate the similarities all living organisms share.