In chapter 12, the town starts to react to Janie’s relationship with Tea Cake. Phoeby says Janie is of a higher class than Tea Cake, but Janie disagrees. She says it was Jody who put her up on a pedestal, someplace she doesn’t belong:
Jody classed me off. Ah didn’t. Naw, Pheoby, Tea Cake ain’t draggin’ me off nowhere Ah don’t want tuh go. Ah always did want tuh git round uh whole heap, but Jody wouldn’t ’low me tuh. When Ah wasn’t in de store he wanted me tuh jes sit wid folded hands and sit dere. And Ah’d sit dere wid de walls creepin’ up on me and squeezin’ all de life outa me. Pheoby, dese educated women got uh heap of things to sit down and consider. Somebody done tole ’em what to set down for. Nobody ain’t told poor me, so sittin’ still worries me. Ah wants tuh utilize mahself all over. (Hurston)
Janie wants her life to mean something, and she thinks Tea Cake might offer a way for her to live a more meaningful life. What do you think of Tea Cake and his intentions with Janie? If you’ve finished the book you know what happens. But even so, does Tea Cake want the best for Janie or is he another bad choice on her part? Quote the novel to answer the question and follow MLA Style in your response.
Your paper should be a minimum of 100 words and should be spell-checked. If you include quotations, they should be cited correctly using the MLA Style. Double space your assignment and post it as a Word document or a PDF. Remember to look at the rubric for more requirements for this assignment.
Course Outcomes Achieved:
integrate the reading, analysis, and discussion of literature into writing processes.
complete research that distinguishes among a variety of resources based on a standard criterion.
