Post #7

1. "So the beginning of this was a woman and she had come back from burying the dead"(Hurston 1).

Hurston messes with the chronology. The first page of this book did not start when Janie was born. It was not in the same order as time passed. This technique is an effective hook. However, that is not the only reason Hurston uses it. By having an event come first in a story, and then going back and explaining in more depth the details of it, the event becomes less important. The details carry more significance. In Eyes this helps connect with the townspeople and all the talking and spreading of rumors that they do.

2. "When the people sat around the porch and passed around the pictures of their thoughts"(Hurston 51).

Alliteration is used in this passage. In specific, the ‘puh’ sound is repeated. This is more of a hard sound than a soft sound. Alliteration affects the mood or atmosphere of a passage significantly. With this application, it mimics the sound of chatting and gossiping. It is done in a way that is low and quiet enough as to not draw attention. This further characterizes the people on the porch.

3. “Louder and higher and lower and wider the sound and motion spread, mounting, sinking, darking”(Hurston 158).

The use of parallel structure in Hurston's novel is very important. This is a common literary technique for her. She uses ideas that are similar, but they add depth. If this technique were not to be used, it would describe the situation, character, or scene in a bland manner. The repetitions add emphasis, so when Hurston uses parallel structure, the reader knows that whatever she is describing is important and the reader should focus more on that.