Their Eyes Were Watching God

            The short story, Girl, reminds me of the movie “Their Eyes Were Watching God”. In the short story, the mother is giving her daughter a list of different rules and customs that she must follow in order to become a young lady; so that her daughter would not be considered a slut to society. This reminded me of “Their Eyes Were Watching God” because in this movie the protagonist, Janie, experiences a similar situation. She was raised by her grandmother because her mother had her at a young age. In order to avoid the same thing happening to Janie, her grandmother is very protective of her. For example, she did not want her interacting with the boys that lived near her. At one point she even slapped Janie after she caught her kissing a boy. Furthermore, Janie’s grandmother forced her to marry at a young age so that she could have financial security. In the short story, some of the different rules mentioned included how to walk and how to smile in different situations.

            The main connection between Girl and “Their Eyes Were Watching God” is that the adult figure is trying to teach the protagonist how to become a woman in society. Also both were based around a time period where women were subjected to inequality to men. Girls during this time were forced to grow up faster than they wanted to; in regards to the tasks they had to do. Another connection was that the voice of both protagonists is not heard. In Girl, the daughter never responds back to what the mother has to say. While in “Their Eyes Were Watching God” Janie is present, but out of respect, she obeys her grandmother’s demands. I thought the short story was very interesting and “Their Eyes Were Watching God” is one of my favorite movies and books!