Their Eyes Were Watching God offers an illuminating look at the journey of a “complete, complex, intact human being,” Janie Crawford. Her story, based on self-exploration, empowerment and self-liberation, details her loss and realization of her innocence and freedom as she constantly learns and grows from her experiences with problems. gender, racism and life. The story centers around an important theme; that personal discoveries and life experiences help a person find themselves. Nanny was determined that Janie would break the cycle of oppression of black women, who were "mules for the world." (Janie's first two husbands owned mules and the way they treated their mules paralleled the way they treated Janie. Logan Killicks worked his mule exactingly and Joe Starks bought Matt Bonner's mule and put it on to pasture as a status symbol.) After Joyfully discovering an archetype of sensuality, love and marriage under a pear tree at sixteen, Janie quickly understands the reality of marriage during her first two marriages. Both Logan Killicks and Joe Starks attempt to bully her into submission by treating her like a possession (Killicks worked her like a mule and Starks used her like a medal around his neck). Janie also learned that passion and love are linked to violence, as Killicks threatens to kill her and Starks beats her to assert his dominance. She continually struggled to keep her insides intact and strong despite ...