An Exploration On The Carnival Features In Their Eyes Were Watching God

Zora Neale Hurston is a famous black woman writer, folklorist and anthropologist in the Harlem Renaissance. In all her lifetime, she finishes four long-length novels and more than fifty short stories, essays and dramas. And her most popular one is Their Eyes Were Watching God. It was criticized and neglected when it came out, but now it has been recognized and welcomed. As one of the classics in black literature, Their Eyes Were Watching God is the first work which fully shows women’s consciousness awakening in their inner hearts and become a landmark in creating the images of black women.The researches on the novel Their Eyes Were Watching God at home and abroad are mainly focused on feminism, native techniques, characteristics of Bildungsroman, black folk culture, Hurston’s concepts of race and culture, something related to Hurston’s life experiences, comparisons with other works and so on. This thesis primarily analyzes the typical features of the theory of “Carnival” showed richly in the novel with Bakhtin’s theory of “Carnival”. Meanwhile, a free and equal Utopia is presented to readers with the technique of carnivalization, revealing the social ideal of black people and placing high hopes on black people that one day a harmonious Utopian kingdom will come true.This thesis consists of an introduction, four chapters and a conclusion.The opening part mainly gives a brief introduction to Zora Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God and a literature review at home and abroad. Then it points out the significance of the thesis: from the perspective of Bakhtin’s theory of “Carnival”, the paper presents traditional culture and customs of black people, positive and optimistic life attitudes, carnival spirits of pursuing freedom and equality and themes of American women’s revolt against sexual discrimination and self-pursuit. It also expresses the author’s real longing for equal and harmonious Utopia.Chapter one gives a brief introduction to the origins, contents and main features of Bakhtin’s theory of “Carnival”. The theory has its long history. From ancient Greece and Rome to the 19 th century, different scholars in different times give their different opinions about the cultural phenomena in the carnival. In the theory, carnival, carnival sense of the world, and carnivalization are three closely related concepts. In the times of ancient Greece and Roman, Middle Ages and Renaissance Period, the carnival celebrations play an important role in people’s life. All the rituals and forms are called “carnival sense of the world” and their expressions and reflections showed in the literary works are “carnivalization”. The primary features are popularity, ceremonialness, duality, and subversion, through which the “carnival” in the work can be fully embodied.Chapter two analyzes the popularity and ceremonialness in the work. There are a lot of rituals and ceremonies in the carnival. The chapter firstly interprets popularity, including Janie’s carnival of nature, gathering on the shop porch in Eatonville and the carnival in the swamp. Then it comes to ceremonialness which is explained from the ritual of lighting the street lamp and the mule’s funeral. These external characteristics reflect rich meanings of carnival sense of the world and make people free from serious official world.Chapter three analyzes the duality in the work. It is mainly interpreted from crowning and decrowning, death and rebirth, language and laughter. The forms of crowning and decrowning are mainly from rituals and official world. Janie’s three marriage experiences make us know the dual meanings of death and rebirth. In addition, the language and laughter make people experience relaxing, free and equal atmosphere in the carnival.Chapter four analyzes the subversion in the work from religious holiness, Janie’s spirit and white culture and values. Firstly in the mule’s funeral, religious holiness is degraded and its seriousness is completely subverted. Then Janie’s spirits of constant fighting with the world and pursuing freedom subvert traditional opposition between men and women. On the other hand, Joe and Mrs. Turner’s blind worship of white culture and value shows more subversiveness.Based on the analysis and discussion above, the concluding part points out that this novel bring readers to an carnivalized Utopian word of equality, freedom and happiness with the main line that Janie tries their best to get rid of three marriage lives to seek her own freedom and equality. Meanwhile, the author ridicules and dispraises the existing official world with strict hierarchies by the way of carnivalization, expressing her dissatisfaction with people’s lives and her longing for ideal life in the future, advocating that people should respect and love lives and believing firmly that the old systems will die out and the new ones will come.