Free Essays - Southern Black Vernacular in Their Eyes... now he had loosened his chains. He grabbed his dams and ran forward until he met the quarters; The sea walked on the land with a heavy heel. "The lake is coming!"JThis excerpt from Zora's book Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God, is an example of his extraordinary writing. He makes us feel like we are actually in his book, through his use of Southern black vernacular and admirable description. His characters are realistic and he inserts special, well-thought-out phrases to keep us interested. Zora Neale Hurston's art allowed her to write this compelling story about the life of a Southern black woman. Hurston uses black southern dialect throughout the book. This is appropriate because all of the dialogue is between blacks who grew up in the Deep South. Some authors who write in dialect totally confuse their readers. However, Ms. Hurston's writings do not confuse us at all. A particular example of this is found on page 102. Tea Cake begins by saying, "'Hello, Miss Janie, ah hope it woke you up.' “Yeah, Tea Cake. Come rest your hat, why did you leave so early this morning?” Janie replied. This dialogue is easily understandable. The reader really gets the feel of the speech because reading it is just like listening to it. Mrs. Neale also knows where to stop to write in dialect. All the narration and description in the book is in plain English: she does not confuse us by putting the narration in dialect, only the characters' speech is in dialect. This part of Zora Neale Hurston's art enriches the story without confusing the reader. Hurston not only uses the vernacular of the deep south, but also uses traditional southern legends. An example of this is the way the book refers to death as "the one with the square feet." who comes from the West. Even if the reader is unfamiliar with the reference to Death as "the one with the square feet", the use of traditional legends helps make us feel like we are where the book is set...

Topic > Free Essays - Southern Black Vernacular in Their Eyes... now he had loosened his chains. He grabbed his dams and ran forward until he met the quarters; The sea walked on the land with a heavy heel. "The lake is coming!"JThis excerpt from Zora's book Neale Hurston, Their Eyes Were Watching God, is an example of his extraordinary writing. He makes us feel like we are actually in his book, through his use of Southern black vernacular and admirable description. His characters are realistic and he inserts special, well-thought-out phrases to keep us interested. Zora Neale Hurston's art allowed her to write this compelling story about the life of a Southern black woman. Hurston uses black southern dialect throughout the book. This is appropriate because all of the dialogue is between blacks who grew up in the Deep South. Some authors who write in dialect totally confuse their readers. However, Ms. Hurston's writings do not confuse us at all. A particular example of this is found on page 102. Tea Cake begins by saying, "'Hello, Miss Janie, ah hope it woke you up.' “Yeah, Tea Cake. Come rest your hat, why did you leave so early this morning?” Janie replied. This dialogue is easily understandable. The reader really gets the feel of the speech because reading it is just like listening to it. Mrs. Neale also knows where to stop to write in dialect. All the narration and description in the book is in plain English: she does not confuse us by putting the narration in dialect, only the characters' speech is in dialect. This part of Zora Neale Hurston's art enriches the story without confusing the reader. Hurston not only uses the vernacular of the deep south, but also uses traditional southern legends. An example of this is the way the book refers to death as "the one with the square feet." who comes from the West. Even if the reader is unfamiliar with the reference to Death as "the one with the square feet", the use of traditional legends helps make us feel like we are where the book is set...