Since the book started with Janie as a 16 year old girl upset with her grandmother's wishes for her, it is easy as a teenage girl to relate to her. Even though our parents aren't trying to marry us off, we sill have different expectations for our future than our parents might. It is easy to understand why Janie feels like she does, making her a fun character to read about.
At the time that this book takes place, women are expected to tend to the one and do whatever their husband wishes. This does not appear to be the way Janie wants to live. First, she leaves her first husband because of the way he orders her around and expects her to do what he wants. When Joe offers her a better life, she runs away with him. As time passes, she strongly dislikes the way Joe controls her and doesn't allow her to truly take part in the town. Janie wants more for her life than what is really available to her.
Janie spends the majority of her adult life feeling stuck in two marriages where she is unhappy. Logan wants her to help out on his farm, which Janie feels is not appropriate for her to do. She thought that eventually she would learn to love Logan, but she realizes that she never will. When she first runs off with Joe, I think she loves him at the beginning but eventually comes to resent him. The more popularity and power that Joe gains, the more protective and controlling he becomes over Janie, which she doesn't like. Years of this behavior leads to Janie feeling pretty much freed after her husband's death
I like Janie a lot more than other characters because she is the first female main character we have seen so far. It's a lot easier to relate to her and her story is very interesting to read. It is easy to feel bad for Janie because of all of her troubles in marriage we see.
Yeah, I really like Janie too! It is easy to relate to her troubles because even though I'm not married & have a husband that's super controlling, I can understand what it feels like to be expected of something but hating it.
ReplyDeleteWhile reading chapter 2, I found Janie to be ungrateful. I found myself to be on Nanny's side of the situation. This could be because I am a guy, or for some other reason. But as the story progressed, I slowly began to sympathize with Janie as I learned more about her.
ReplyDeleteI guess what I would say about that scene is that I get both sides. Janie's grandmother would of course want a better life for Janie than what she had and she thinks she's doing what is best for Janie. But at the same time, I totally get Janie being totally upset. Her grandmother just decided the rest of her life (considering marriage should be for life). She will be stuck on that farm with Logan and she gets no say in it. Grandmother wants Janie to be grateful for what she has done for her, but Janie finds it hard to be thankful for not making her own choices, which totally makes sense. I find myself siding with Janie, since I think she should make her own choices, but I understand where the grandmother is coming from. I think it might have been better of advising Janie than just doing what she thought was right. It's just an unpleasant case of of somebody trying to protect somebody else but with a bad outcome.
DeleteI also really like Janie as a character. As a female and especially as we're growing up in an age where female empowerment is a growing movement, I feel like I tend to gravitate towards strong, independent women characters, even when they have their obvious flaws. As many people know, the discrimination towards women throughout history is immense and we see that in so many situations ranging from the way the wife of queens were treated to women not being able to vote in the US until around 1920. Even now, I feel like many of us girls have experienced a moment where we've been told, "That's good FOR A GIRL" or some kind of varying sexism so it kind of makes you cheer Janie on and get excited that she is this strong, independent woman who stands up for herself. Although I do feel sympathetic towards Logan Killicks, there is something about Janie that just makes me want to side with her anyways. I think the fact that she is a young 16 year old girl, literally the same age as me, also helps in that when I put myself in her shoes, I would also feel resentful and restricted. I'm really glad she got out of her relationships with Jody and Logan because both of them restricted her from doing what she truly wants.
ReplyDeleteI agree that Janie is the most relatable character. I definitely think that part of the reason is that she is the first female main character that we are reading about so it makes it easy for us girls to relate and understand, especially since she starts out as a teenager like you mentioned. I think another reason we find her more relatable has to do with that she is dealing with other issues besides racism. For instance, when the men are commenting on Janie's long hair and her beauty and Jody gets jealous, I thought how those sorts of issues, which are similar to catcalling, are prevalent even in today's society.
ReplyDeleteJanie is definitely a well written and compelling character. I've found myself rooting for her throughout the entire book. She is resilient in the face of adversity and I hope that she manages to find somewhere where she can be happy.
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