Their Eyes Were Watching God: Chapters 1-3

by Zora Neale Hurston
Considered a seminal work of African-American literature, Their Eyes Were Watching God is notable for its strong and independent female protagonist.

Here are links to our lists for the novel: Foreword and Afterword, Chapters 1–3, Chapters 4–6, Chapters 7–14, Chapters 15–20
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Full list of words from this list:

words only definitions & notes
  1. resignation
    acceptance of an unpleasant but inevitable situation
    For others they sail forever on the horizon, never out of sight, never landing until the Watcher turns his eyes away in resignation, his dreams mocked to death by Time.
  2. treacherous
    tending to betray
    An envious heart makes a treacherous ear.
  3. inaudible
    impossible to hear; imperceptible by the ear
    She was stretched on her back beneath the pear tree soaking in the alto chant of the visiting bees, the gold of the sun and the panting breath of the breeze when the inaudible voice of it all came to her.
  4. languid
    lacking spirit or liveliness
    Then Janie felt a pain remorseless sweet that left her limp and languid.
  5. shiftless
    lacking ambition or initiative
    In her former blindness she had known him as shiftless Johnny Taylor, tall and lean.
  6. reproof
    an act or expression of criticism and censure
    The old woman’s voice was so lacking in command and reproof, so full of crumbling dissolution,—that Janie half believed that Nanny had not seen her.
  7. desecrate
    remove the sacredness from a person or an object
    The vision of Logan Killicks was desecrating the pear tree, but Janie didn’t know how to tell Nanny that.
  8. desist
    stop performing some action
    With her hand uplifted for the second blow she saw the huge tear that welled up from Janie’s heart and stood in each eye. She saw the terrible agony and the lips tightened down to hold back the cry and desisted.
  9. expound
    add details to clarify an idea
    Freedom found me wid a baby daughter in mah arms, so Ah said Ah’d take a broom and a cook-pot and throw up a highway through de wilderness for her. She would expound what Ah felt.
  10. conjecture
    the formation of conclusions from incomplete evidence
    She was back and forth to the pear tree continuously wondering and thinking. Finally out of Nanny’s talk and her own conjectures she made a sort of comfort for herself.
  11. malice
    the desire to see others suffer
    No’m, he ain’t even talked ’bout hittin’ me. He says he never mean to lay de weight uh his hand on me in malice.
  12. mien
    a person's appearance, manner, or demeanor
    Nanny sent Janie along with a stern mien, but she dwindled all the rest of the day as she worked.
Created on Fri Mar 08 18:06:55 EST 2013 (updated Sun Jul 06 23:12:17 EDT 2025)

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