Their Eyes Were Watching God - Rebirth of Transcendentalism Essay Example for Free

Their Eyes Were Watching God Rebirth of Transcendentalism Essay A century elapsed between the period of transcendentalism and the publication of Zora Neale Hurston’s novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God. During this time, the philosophies of Ralph Waldo Emerson and Henry David Thoreau faded as the post-war era of social realism began to dominate American culture and American literature. Thus, Their Eyes, published in 1937, was scorned and criticized by many for not being â€Å"political or serious† enough. It was not until twenty years after Hurston’s death that people began to appreciate Hurston’s works, especially Their Eyes, as important literatures in the African American and the American feminist movements. With further analysis, although Their Eyes is a modern novel, it actually takes the readers back to the period of Thoreau and Emerson; Their Eyes Were Watching God possesses elements of transcendentalism – self-reliance, nonconformity, and the over-soul – as supported by the essays of transcendentalist thinkers. To begin, a fundamental idea of transcendentalism is self-reliance, which stresses a person’s own judgment and intuition. Janie, the protagonist of Their Eyes, shows self-reliance when she uses her own judgments for the struggles she faces. For example, as she realizes that her marriage with Jody is tumbling down, â€Å"she saw that it never was the flesh and blood figure of her dreams. Just something she had grabbed up to drape her dreams over. [†¦] She had an inside and an outside now and suddenly she knew how not to mix them† (Hurston, 72). Janie knows her goals and desires, both are which shattered by Jody, so she must now distinguish the difference between the lies and the truth of her dream. Together with courage, her intuition gives her the strength to speak up to Jody on his death bed. Moreover, when she finally finds the love of her life, she feels â€Å"a self-crushing love, [allowing] her soul [to] crawl from its hiding place† (Hurston, 128). She doesn’t hide her feelings but goes to pursue her lover, Tea Cake. She is strong-will and has control over her feelings and thoughts. Even Tea Cake encourages Janie to use her own mind, â€Å"‘Nobody else on earth kin hold uh candle tuh you, baby. You got de keys to de kingdom’† (Hurston, 109). As Emerson would say that Janie possesses transcendentalist ideals because, â€Å"[She has the] integrity of [her] own mind [†¦] What [she] must do is all that concerns [her], not what the people think† (Emerson, 80). Her past experiences and her present judgments lead Janie to maker her own path in the future. Only when Janie relies on herself and holds her â€Å"keys to de kingdom† does she find her happiness and reach her dream. Furthermore, another element of transcendentalism is nonconformity, or individualism, which stresses the importance of finding one’s identity instead of giving in to society. Emerson explains nonconformity as â€Å"the great man who in the midst of the crowd keeps with perfect sweetness the independence of solitude (Emerson 80). Janie shows exactly this on the day she arrives back in Eatonville. Dressed in her blue satin dress, she confidently walks past the women and men, ignoring their hurtful gossips and leaving them in awe. Despite her solitude due to Tea Cake’s death, Janie welcomes her independence; she is perfectly at ease with herself. Moreover, Thoreau also writes about nonconformity; he writes, â€Å"The only obligation which I have a right to assume is to do at any time what I think right [†¦] They only can force me who obey a higher law than I† (Thoreau, 104). Janie shares Thoreau’s attitude when she stands up to both of her late husbands and declares what she believes is right. Logan tells her that she doesn’t belong anywhere but â€Å"‘It’s wherever Ah need yuh’† (Hurston, 31). This is probably the worst thing he can say to his newlywed; it’s hurtful, disparaging, and disrespectful. However, unlike all the other women, such as Nanny, during the time, Janie stands up for herself by yelling back at his wrongs so she can gain back her independence and dignity. As for Jody – a husband who makes her tie her hair back, denies her of speech and social interaction, and abuses her – Janie finally takes up the courage to tell the truth at his deathbed. â€Å"‘All dis bowin’ down, all dis obedience under yo’ voice—dat ain’t whut Ah rushed off down de road tuh find out about you’† (Hurston, 86). Jody has crushed her hopes and dreams and her image of love, and she’s not about to let him forget that. She would not obey; she has no obligation to obey. After Jody’s death, Janie is finally free. Even more, she feels no remorse and she doesn’t mourn because the lost of her husband gives her back her individuality. Last but not least, the over-soul is another focal point of transcendentalism; it connects God, Nature, and Man. Emerson writes in his essay, Over-soul, â€Å"We live in succession, in division, in parts, in particles. Meantime within man is the soul of the whole; the wise silence; the universal beauty, to which every part and particle is equally related; the eternal One† (Emerson, Over-soul). This over-soul connects the broken pieces of the universe together. Hurston’s Their Eyes contains many details that support the over-soul. For instance, in the beginning Janie â€Å"saw a dust-bearing bee sink into the sanctum of a bloom; the thousand sister-calyxes arch to meet the love embrace and the ecstatic shiver of the tree form root to tiniest branch creaming in every blossom and frothing with delight† (Hurston, 11). This imagery of the bee and the flower symbolizes Janie’s dream. The bee and the flower coexisted in harmony, just like what Janie hopes her marriage will be. This is Janie’s innocent soul as depicted by nature. Later on however, as she’s forced into marrying a man she doesn’t love, she begins to know â€Å"the words of the trees and the wind. She often spoke to falling seeds and said, ‘Ah hope you fall on soft ground’ [†¦] Janie’s first dream was dead, so she became a woman† (Hurston 25). As she begins to mature more, she also begins to understand the sound of nature. Nature and Janie’s souls appear to be one, united and growing together. She talks to the seeds, warning them, sympathizing with them of a world that can be disappointing and unfair. Finally, after she shoots her beloved Tea Cake in order to protect herself, Hurston writes that Janie â€Å"pulled in her horizon like a great fish-net. Pulled it from around the waist of the world and draped it over her shoulder. So much of life in its meshes! She called in her soul to come and see† (Hurston, 193). Although it was a tragic and sudden death, Janie is in peace. The love of Tea Cake will not be forgotten because he will always be with her. Janie now understands the mysteries of nature and her world; she is ready for whatever that may come. Janie has learned and grown, most importantly, she has found her soul. All in all, a century later, Their Eyes Were Watching God leads to the rebirth of transcendentalist ideas, including but not limited to self-reliance, nonconformity, and the over-soul. Throughout her journey, Janie begins to identify herself as a self-reliant individual with a soul, all of which are transcendental characteristics. In the mid 1900s, because of the on going civil rights movements, an African American woman is the least expected person to posses all these traits. Even so, Janie Crawford becomes a prominent literature figure that gives people hopes and dreams, while fulfilling those of Emerson and Thoreau. Bibliography Emerson, Ralph Waldo. From Self-Reliance. The InterActive Reader Plus. Illinoise: McDougal Littell, 2003. 78-83. Print. Ferguson, Craig. Ralph Waldo Emerson – Within Man Is the Soul of the Whole; the Wise Silence; the Universal Beauty Transcendental MeditationBlog. N. p. , 27 Mar. 2010. Web. 05 Aug. 2013. . Hurston, Zora Neale. Their Eyes Were Watching God: A Novel. New York: Perennial Library, 1990. Print. Thoreau, Hentry David. From Civil Disobedience. The InterActive Reader Plus. Illinoise: McDougal Littell, 2003. 90-105. Print.

self mutilation Essay -- essays research papers

Main Entry: self–mu†¢ti†¢la†¢tion Pronunciation: -"myà ¼t-&-'lA-sh&n Function: noun : injury or disfigurement of oneself Psychological characteristics of self-injurers Hate themselves, feel inadequate Tend to suppress rage Are usually angry , most of the time at themselves Are very sensitive to rejection Have aggressive feelings which usually get turned inward Are anxious and irritable Tend to be depressed suicidal and self destructive Are bad at controlling impulses, and do things for how they feel at the time Tend not to plan for the future, and do not put effort into excelling at work or school Tend to be avoidant Feel as if they have no control 97% are women 57% overdose on drugs along with the injuring Self mutilation is a subject that we are all aware of, but don’t usually try to learn more about. When you think of self mutilation you think of cutters and suicide attempts right? Well that is right to some extent; Yes Cutting is the most common self injuring method , but other severe forms of self mutation include†¦burning , self hitting , interference with wound healing hai...

Unilever Strategy for Organising and Structuring Its Global Operations.

Unilever is a complex global organization that has a portfolio of 400 brands, spanning 14 categories in home and personal care and food products. The company has 163,000 employees in the 170 countries within which it operates (Unilever, 2010). Organizations such as Unilever face the challenge of configuring a global structure that â€Å"works well in diverse locations but also brings units together in a coordinated fashion† (Shenkar & Luo, 2007, p. 312). Given its wide range of products and the diversity of countries in which it operates, Unilever has to employ a global organizational strategy that addresses its global complexity and the diversity of its product portfolio. In its portfolio, there are some product lines that can be extended to new markets with little or no modification, while there are others that need to be modified to suit the local preferences. For example, chemical products are highly standardized and require little variation for local markets (Child, 2005, p. 45). Standardization of such products creates economies of scale in production and requires a â€Å"high level of global coordination and integration† (Child, 2005) and centralized R&D. On the other hand, some of Unilever’s products, such as packaged foods, require modification to suit local tastes and cultures. There are no production economies of scale for such categories and product development has to be facilitated locally. These factors present two scenarios for the company – striving for high global integration in the case where products can be introduced to new markets without modification and striving for high local responsiveness where there is need for modification to meet local preferences. Unilever has to therefore adopt a global organizational structure that addresses the two scenarios. The organization employs a transnational strategy, which is best suited for Unilever’s global operations, as it is faced with high pressure for both local responsiveness and global integration (Child, 2005, p. 43; Shenkar & Luo, 2007, p. 312). Unilever also uses the transnational strategy to organize its functions. Its sales, distribution and promotional tasks are locally responsive and are decentralized to suit individual markets, whereas the R&D function is globally integrated to leverage learning in the different markets. The transnational strategy enables Unilever to leverage the advantages of low cost in conjunction with the advantages of differentiation. Unilever adopted the transnational strategy mainly in esponse to competition from Procter and Gamble, which was already pursuing a transnational strategy by 1990 (Child, 2005, p. 247). However Unilever is still lagging behind P&G, in terms of revenues, marketing and innovation, because it has faced difficulty in reorganizing its activities to meet the requirements of a transnational strategy. The transnational strategy is both demanding and expensive to implement. It also requires a â€Å"flat† hierarchy (Child, 2005, p. 249) and Unilever has gone through a process of reorganizing its structure through the â€Å"One Unilever† programme, which was launched in 2005. The programme resulted in â€Å"better allocation of resources, faster decision-making and a lower cost level† (Unilever, 2007) and enables the organization to leverage its scale both globally and locally. References: †¢ Child, J. (2005) Organisation: contemporary principles and practice. Malden, MA: Blackwell Publishing, pp. 241-253 †¢ Shenkar, O. & Luo, Y. (2007) International business. 2nd ed. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications. †¢ Unilever Website. Available from: http://www. unilever. com

Status Quo in George Orwell´s Animal Farm Essay - 1798 Words

The cynical act of deceiving the less clever is, in fact, the gracious act of conveying a â€Å"truth† to the same latter group. This ideal is constantly formulated by a central government for the sole purpose of maintaining the classes at the status quo. In George Orwell’s Animal Farm, an allegorical satirical novel, the subject of Orwell’s satire is the byproduct of a revolution with Communist roots symbolized by a rebellion on a farm by the inhabited creatures. Two pigs from the animals, Snowball and Napoleon, self-establish themselves over the rest of their animals due to their superior intelligence. Being symbols of actual leaders, Snowball being Leon Trotsky while Napoleon being Joseph Stalin, history tells the reader what will occur.†¦show more content†¦Also, Squealer at the end establishes a privilege but rejects the notion at the beginning to establish a persuasive setting. Then, Squealer is able to placate a possible tension by merely strength ening the animals’ dependence on the pigs and therefore able to convince the rest. A concluding example of Squealer’s lies, â€Å"That evening Squealer explained privately that Napoleon had never in reality been opposed to the windmill†¦Why†¦ had he spoken so strongly against it? †¦ ‘Tactics, comrades, tactics’!†(pg.22). This quote contains a lie stripping Snowball’s public figure, while embellishing Squealer’s superior, Napoleon. Squealer speaks upon the animals privately to actively engage his audience, making his lie indeed more credible. Although, Napoleon’s previous action of peeing on the windmill’s plans are more personal than logical, as tactics would have been doing this in public to enhance public recognition. Once Napoleon turns against Snowball, Squealer declares, â€Å"He was Joness secret agent all the time. It has all been proved by documents which he left behind him and which we have only j ust discovered† (pg. 31). Although, it may seem Squealer is employing a lie that is a long-shot he employ a sub-technique. The context before this quote shows Snowball as a character that would never associate himself withShow MoreRelatedGeorge Orwell s The And Animal Farm1749 Words   |  7 Pagesundoubtedly be a scarce amount, yet an amount nonetheless, of individuals who see right through it. The brave individuals have the mindset to stop at nothing to make a change in their world. George Orwell wrote many acclaimed novels in his lifetime, two of the most deliberated ones being 1984 and Animal Farm. These novels contain settings of a totalitarian leadership within a dystopian world, where multiple subliminal and ideological problems exist within parts of the society. Totalitarianism wasRead MoreAnimal Farm And 1984, By George Orwell1936 Words   |  8 PagesOrwell depicted the non-utopia of the future and the perils it involves in one of the post powerful warnings ever is sued against the dangers of a totalitarian society. George Orwell was a dystopian writer and wrote novels about the consequences of oppressive powers, such novels include Animal Farm and 1984. He wrote Animal Farm in 1944-1945 at the tail end of the WWII, his inspiration came from the revolutions in Russia, the result of that was the USSR, which divulged the country into a totalitarianRead MoreGeorge Orwell23689 Words   |  95 PagesGeorge Orwell England Your England As I write, highly civilized human beings are flying overhead, trying to kill me. They do not feel any enmity against me as an individual, nor I against them. They are ‘only doing their duty’, as the saying goes. Most of them, I have no doubt, are kind-hearted lawabiding men who would never dream of committing murder in private life. On the other hand, if one of them succeeds in blowing me to pieces with a well-placed bomb, he will never sleep any the worse forRead MoreHistory of Social Work18530 Words   |  75 Pages.........................................................................28 Mary Richmond.......................................................................................................................................................29 George Orwell, John Howard Griffin, Pat Moore, Tolly Toynbee, Gà ¼nther Wallraff, Barbara Ehrenreich ............30 Sir William Beveridge .............................................................................. ...........................................