Violence in Hurston’s Seraph on the Suwanee and Their...

Violence in Hurston’s Seraph on the Suwanee and Their Eyes Were Watching God Several scenes from Seraph on the Suwanee parallel scenes from Their Eyes Were Watching God. The scene beginning â€Å"The gun came up†¦Ã¢â‚¬  on page 183 of Their Eyes Were Watching God and ending â€Å"†¦pried the dead Tea Cake’s teeth from her arm† on page 184 echoes the scene in Seraph on the Suwanee beginning â€Å"She flung her hands up†¦Ã¢â‚¬  on page 145 and ending â€Å" ‘†¦just as fast as you can’† on page 146. The premise for each scene is identical. The prime female character is forced to defend herself from a close male family member who has gone mad and is threatening her life. Even in the face of death, she is primarily concerned with his well-being and becomes the only person†¦show more content†¦She has known full well of his potential violence yet sticks around out of loyalty, in addition to the fear of what he might do if she tried to leave. Hurston describes the men as wild and threatening animals. Earl â€Å"snarls† from under the table and causes its contents to come â€Å"crashing to the floor.† He is described without his name, as â€Å"a form† that â€Å"springs away.† Arvay must â€Å"keep him from biting her hands.† The symbolic animalistic biting is also a focus in Their Eyes. Hurston turns Tea Cake into a rabid dog with a â€Å"ferocious look in his eyes† who â€Å"closed his teeth in the flesh of [Janie’s] forearm. Janie â€Å"pried the dead Tea Cake’s teeth from her arm.† Biting as a most base, barbaric form of fighting creates a fierce animal-like character who has no conscience or qualms about hurting or ultimately killing some one, even some one who loves him more than anything. Janie risks her life to give Tea Cake more than one fair chance to save himself. â€Å"The pistol snapped once,† indicating his full attempt to murder her, yet she takes no precaution to protect herself. By â€Å"the second click,† she has her gun loaded yet resists shooting and actually tries to reason with the rabid man—â€Å"Tea Cake, put down dat gun and go back tuh bed†Ã¢â‚¬â€almost like a mother trying to protect her child by way of warning. Even after his third attempt at killing her, she still â€Å"hopes†