Zora Neale Hurston’s short piece “Sweat” describes a
woman by the name of Delia who suffers constant abuse in the hands of her
husband, Sykes. He assault her physically and emotionally without showing mercy
or remorse. Delia seek refuge from Sykes torments by focusing on her job as a
washer woman and keeping her religious faith alive. The constant abuse imposed
on Delia caused her to develop as strong woman even though, she did not leave
her husband. She begin to reciprocate Sykes violent outburst; in the short
account by the author, Delia took hold of a skillet pan ready to defend herself
from his attacks. Her actions caused him to realize that she is not as
submissive as she used to be when he would constantly taunt and antagonize her.
Sykes take pleasure in bringing about Delia’s misery, he flaunts his mistress on
her face, and brought a rattle snake to the house with the intention of scaring
the woman. Delia became liberated when the rattle snake bit Sykes after he opened
the container, freeing the snake. The snake’s poisonous bite caused the death
of Sykes.
In
similarity to “Sweat” the movie “Diary of a Mad Black Woman”, by Tyler Perry depicts
the relationship of an upper middle class African American couple, where the
husband constantly abuse his wife ,Helen, physically and psychologically.
Charles, the husband of Helen, is a successful attorney, while his wife does
not have a career. He is the head of the house hold while the wife stays at
home and take care of the domestic capacities. He also cheats on his wife
publically without any remorse. The difference between the movie and the story
is that the husband is the one working while the wife focusses on her domestic
task and cares for the Charles.http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jNyw39a0qnc
Great post Berose, I can see how you made a connection. Although I have never seen that movie but it seems to be interesting. In the movie you said that the couple falls in the upper class level in society and the husband has a very successful job as a attorney. Attorneys are well respected and looked up to which I find to be very ironic in this situation due to the fact he is an awful man for beating his wife. I honestly would think that there is a chance that even if Helen went to go tell someone that there would be a slight chance that people would not believe her. I say that because the husband is a successful and educated man and he is the one bringing home the money while she does not work other than outside of the household needs. Both women face a struggle within their marriages, but I know that Delia was able to break away to freedom. What about Helen? Did she escape from her abusive marriage?
ReplyDeleteThis is a very great connection between these two. I actually didn’t even think about using this movie. Both of these women were in very similar situations. They were both black women who were dealing with black men that were not only cheating on them but were mistreating them. In “Diary of a Mad Black Woman” she was abused but she was mistreated when she was drug out of her home by her husband. The woman in “Sweat” was mistreated though verbal and physical abuse. They both were in relationships with no good men, that didn’t deserve them. Also, in the end both men ended up needing the help of the very women they had mistreated.
ReplyDelete"Diary of A Man Black Woman" is a good movie; I always enjoy Tyler Perry films. I can see the connection that you found between it and "Sweat". Both women were not willing to give up easy. The men in the works also had a lot in common. Just like you mentioned they had public affairs and verbally abused their wife. It is always saddening to watch and read these types of stories. However when the woman is finally liberated or decides to defend herself it gives one a sense of pride. A difference that I find between the two is that in the movie the wife is angry in her marriage (hence the title). But in "Sweat" the wife was not necessarily angry, she was pretty much calm. I think this has a lot to do with her ties to God and the church. Great job!
ReplyDeleteI think the relation you made with the "Diary of A Man Black Woman" and "Sweat" is prefect, would have done it myself if you hadn't beaten me to it. :) Again both suffer from physical and mental abuse and their husband both minimize them in the story and movie by not only talking down on them but as well as the flirting and cheating. In the end both of the husbands find themselves begging for help when Skyes is bit by the snake and when the husband in the movie is injured and needs getting around. That is also when both woman also decide to seek revenge. The only difference i can really see is that Delia was never as mad as the women in the movie, she never "fought fire with fire" as we discussed in class as oppose to the woman in the movie who was mad and stay that way for a long time.
ReplyDeleteI enjoy watching Tyler Perry movies and the connection you made between "Sweat" and "Diary of a Mad Black Woman," was head on. You hit the nail right on the head. In "Diary of a Mad Black Woman," the wife was constantly abused and neglected, and this was also the case in "Sweat." I feel like the husbands, both from the movie and the short story, received just what they deserved. Karma is really alive and well. You chose a really good piece of media to use as a comparison. Oh, and if I’m not mistaken didn’t the husband in the movie become paralyzed? So that means he was very dependent on the same person he was initially using.
ReplyDeleteBerose, I personally have not seen this movie, but I can see a clear connection between the movie and "Sweat." In both cases, the wives are seen as inferior and the men superior, and as a result, the women seem to have less power than the men. In both cases, the husbands were abusive in some way, and by cheating on their wives publically, their lack of compassion is emphasized and it shows how little they respect their wives. I enjoyed reading your post, and I thought that the connection you made was very accurate and well thought out.
ReplyDelete