Eyes Journal 3

In chapter 6 of Their Eyes Were Watching God, Daisy Blunt is portrayed as a very feminine, beautiful woman. We know this because Hurston simply tells us. "She is black and she knows that white clothes look good on her, so she wears them for dress up. She’s got those big black eyes with plenty shiny white in them that makes them shine like brand new money and she knows what God gave women eyelashes for, too"(67). Hurston also goes even further in emphasising this by showing just how crazy the men of Eatonville go over her. "All the rest of the single men have crowded around Daisy by this time"(68). Hurston naming Daisy after a flower was no coincidence. Hurston gives Daisy her name, and gives her a particular set of qualities for a reason. The reason is shown multiple times throughout the rest of the chapter. Hurston uses flower metaphors to show the love, or lack thereof in Janie's marriage. "The bed was no longer a daisy-field for her and Joe to play in. It was a place where she went and laid down when she was sleepy and tired. She wasn’t petal-open anymore with him"(71). All the men love Daisy, and Janie's marriage is starting to become loveless so the best way for Hurston to make a connection between the two is through flowers. "She had no more blossomy openings dusting pollen over her man"(72). Although Hurston does not directly relate to daisies in this quote it is still quite apparent to the reader that she is referencing to flowers. Hurston characterizes Daisy as a woman who is loved by men, beautiful, and feminine, in order to relate to the lack of love in Janie's marriage through flowers.