On Primitivism Inclination In Their Eyes Were Watching God

Zora Neale Hurston,one of the representative writers of the Harlem Renaissance in America,is the famous American folklorist and anthropologist.Meanwhile,as the mother of African-American literature,she has deep influence on the later writers.In her long literary career,Hurston creates numerous influential and valuable works,and the most famous and popular work is Their Eyes Were Watching God,which is known as the classic of feminism and Afro-American literature in the 20 th century.The African American literary critic Bernard W.Bell holds the idea: the Harlem Renaissance in the early 20 th century could be called the period of “primitivism”.Primitivism,as a world-wide cultural ideological trend,takes nature,primitivity and instinct as the highest measure value,praises the primitive lifestyle and pure humanity,criticizes social malady caused by the modern civilization and turns to non-Western cultures to find spiritual consolation.As an anthropologist,Hurston is acutely conscious that the modernization and urbanization have eroded the black culture and blackness.She revives the black culture and introduces it into Their Eyes Were Watching God.It reflects that she attempts to establish her black cultural identity through returning to the black traditional culture,meanwhile expresses that Hurston yearns for noble and pure humanity.After reading carefully,the author summarizes that the primitivism inclination in Their Eyes Were Watching God is embodied in the following three aspects: the critiqueof modern civilization,the worship of nature and primitive lifestyle and the return of black culture.The first chapter discusses Hurston's criticism on modern civilization for it causes the alienation of Negroes and the loss of black cultural root.Nanny and Logan are alienated by material civilization in pursuit of material wealth.Joe and Mrs.Turner worship white people blindly and lose the roots of black culture.They are indulged in modern civilization,depart from the traditional black culture and lose their spiritual homeland.The second chapter analyzes that Hurston expresses her deep love for nature and romantic longing for primitive life through shaping distinctive characters Tea Cake and Janie.Passionate and courageous Tea Cake loves the black culture,returns to the primitive Everglades and lives an atavistic life.Jane,the heroine,loves nature and believes in animism.In the primitive Everglades,she seeks romantic love and finds her black cultural identity.They return to the black community and obtain spiritual pleasure in nature.The third chapter illustrates the uniqueness of black culture through expounding Black English vernacular,black sermon and Hoodoo,black folktale and legend,and black songs and dances in the novel,and expresses Hurston's return to black culture.Based on above analysis,this thesis finds that Hurston appeals to human beings to pay attention to modern material civilization causing the alienation of Negroes,the erosion of black people's humanity and the loss of black people's soul.She advocates that Negroes return to nature and human instinct,get out of the predicament of modern civilization,and rebuild black spiritual homeland.She also attempts to guide Negroes return to black traditions,pursue black cultural root and reestablish black cultural identity.