Role Of Femininity In Zora Neale Hurston's Sweat

The short story “Sweat,” by Zora Neale Hurston, seems to exemplify the epitome of a bad marriage. Hurston uses foreshadowing and irony to demonstrate the disintegrated relationship between the abusive husband and the diligent wife. Throughout the story, it becomes obvious that the husband does not oblige by the motto, “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” Hurston’s use of irony and foreshadowing helps reveal the fact that “the good will prevail” and Sykes will finally get what he deserves.

Zora Neal Hurston’s story “Sweat” is a about a married couple who lived in an all-black town in Eatonville, Florida. Delia Jones and Syke Jones were an African American couple that had been married for fifteen years. However, the relationship between them was an unhealthy one. The couple would argue all the time and Sykes would mistreat his wife. Delia worked as a washwoman and was the one that provided funds. Sykes, on the other hand, did not provide anything for them. Their relationship was known to be a bad one because of the major differences between them. Through Sykes’ disloyalty and violence, getting back violence from the snake, and Delia inheriting a peace of mind, Hurston reveals the theme that whatever one puts out in the universe,

The main character in Zora Neale Hurston’s “Sweat” is a black woman who resides in the South that clutches on to her belief in God to help her get through the suffering that she endures from her abusive and adulterous husband, Sykes. “Sweat” is full of religious symbolism that demonstrates that Hurston was using the theme of good vs. evil in the short story.

Zora Neale Hurston’s short story "Sweat" takes place in the 1920s in a small African American community in southern Florida. The story takes a look at a woman dominated by her husband, a common issue for many wives in the south during this time. Delia Jones, the protagonist in the story, is a hard-working woman who has bought her own home and supported her husband for fifteen years by taking in the laundry of white folks from the next town over. Delia’s husband Sykes does not value her or the work she does to support the both of them. Sykes has abused his wife for fifteen years and takes no shame in parading around his fat mistress for all to see. Sykes wants to get rid of Delia and take everything she’s ever worked for. Delia, though

“Everybody's good when they're good, darling. You don't judge a person by that. It's how they act when things aren't good that tells you who they really are.” ― Megan Jacobson (Goodreads, “56 Quotes”) Much like the world around us, literature has many elements that have the reader portray their own understanding and perspective of it. In Sweat, Zora Neale Hurston gives the reader many different situations where many readers can have several viewpoints. This seems to be very similar to the Bible, where a child of God can read the same scripture as another and have a completely different meaning in their eyes. Zora Hurston uses many elements that focus on the idea that actions one does speak louder than words, by the use of religious imagery and Delia, the wife.

Not only does he drain her financially, but he has also abused her mentally and emotionally for the most of their marriage. Delia reminds Sykes that all she does is "Sweat, sweat, sweat! Work and Sweat, cry and sweat, pray and sweat!" from the fifteen years she has been washing laundry and laments (Hurston 278). However, despite all the cruelty that is happening, the author still portrays her persona with great compassion. Delia has enormous love, but soon discovers that she has the capacity to hate as much as she loves which has developed from her long-suffering life with Sykes. The author creates Delia based off her own life of being a Christian woman, therefore, in the story "Sykes is clearly wrong throughout the story, and Delia is right in living out the principles of Christian love, tolerance, and humility" (Banks). The importance of this quote is that it puts Delia's character into perspective and reveals why the way she is. The author's beliefs and practices are demonstrated through Delia and explain her actions in the story.

Zora Neale Hurston is a remarkable author who reflects her life in most of her novels, short stories, and her essays. She was a writer during the Harlem Renaissance, also known as “the new negro movement”, however; her writings were not given proper recognition at first because they were not of the “norm” for that time period. All of the authors during the Harlem Renaissance were expected to write about race with a political mind set. Hurston was tired of seeing the same writings just different authors so her literary works were very different and were meant to stand out (Trudell). Among all of her abstracts, Sweat was a story of determination and oppression, with religion and strength as the backbone of

Although this angers Delia to hear, she simply reminds Sykes that she spends all of her time supporting them, and has done nothing but work, sweat, and pray for the fifteen years that she had been married to him. Delia eventually tells Sykes “Dat’s de reason Ah got mah letter from de church an’ moved mah membership to tuh Woodbridge – so Ah don’t haftuh take no sacrament wid yuh” (Hurston 569). Before she falls asleep that night, she reflects on the events of the evening, and finds some peace through her faith that Sykes would eventually get what is coming to him when she says aloud “Oh well, whatever goes over the Devil’s back, is got to come under his belly” (Hurston 565). It is also important to note that rather than give Sykes exactly what he has coming to him, Delia’s beliefs, both moral and religious, prevent her from taking action because she trusts that eventually God will take care of Sykes for the wrong he has done. We can see a bit of foreshadowing as to the fate of Sykes in the story when he assures everyone he is a snake charmer and can charm the deadly diamondback and says “Ah’m a snake charmer an’ knows how to handle ‘em. Shux, dat ain’t nothin’” (Hurston 568).

Through external conflict exhibited by three significant occasions with the antagonist and husband, Sykes Jones, Zora Neale Hurston takes her leading character, Delia Jones, through an internal change from a submissive character to an aggressive and defensive character in her short story, "Sweat." When the story opens, one finds Delia Jones on a Sunday evening washing clothes, as was her profession, and humming a tune, wondering where her husband had gone with her horse and carriage. Little did she know that within the week she would stand against her abusive husband and watch him die of the situation he would create.

In “Sweat”, Hurston’s use of Sykes’s evil qualities illustrates the actions and the personality of the character Sykes. For example, Sykes has kicked the clothes around the ground because Delia refuses to stop cleaning white men’s clothes and kept working. Hurston’s description of how Sykes is threatening Delia as “Next time, Ah’m gointer kick’em outdoor!,” foregrounding his intimidation (Hurston 517). Snakes were known for being demanding to get what they want and Sykes used a ruthless tactic to hope that Delia would do what he wanted. Also, another illustration of his wicked qualities is shown when Merchant talks to the village men about Sykes seducing his wife with a basket of pecans. The description is described as “He's allus been crazy 'bout fat women, put in Merchant. He'd a' been tied up wid one long time ago if he could a' found one tub have him. Did Ah tell yuh 'bout him come sidlin' roun' mah wife-bringin' her a basket uh pee-cans outa his yard fuh a present? Yessir, mah wife! She tol' him tub take 'em right straight back home, cause Delia works so hard ovah dat washtub she reckon everything on de place taste lak sweat an' soapsuds. Ah jus' wisht Ah'd a' caught 'im 'roun' dere! Ah'd a' made his hips ketch on fiah down dat shell road,” emphasizes this fact (Hurston 519). The author makes use of Sykes’s womanizing ways to show that he tries to win the affection of Merchant’s wife instead of taking the pecans to Delia. His relationship is indifferent when it comes to romance toward Delia, which often

In Zora Neale Hurston’s story “Sweat,” Delia spent her days and nights washing clothes to support herself. Her husband, Sykes spent his adulterous days with other women and his nights abusing Delia. Typically, Delia

The short story Sweat is set in Florida, in the town where author Zora Neale Hurston was born. This story is about Delia Jones, a Christian woman who is hardworking and unappreciated by her husband Sykes. She has been married to him for fifteen years and early on in their marriage Sykes began to abuse Delia both physical and mentally. What makes it even worse is that he gains much pleasure in antagonizing her, and is completely mean spirited towards Delia and does not care about her whatsoever. Following this it states in the book “He slapped his leg with his hand and almost rolled on the ground in mirth. “If you such a big fool dat you got to have a fit over a earth worm or a string, Ah don’t keer

Sweat is a story about a Black woman named Delia Sykes, who lives in the hot and humid rural Florida, a land infested with snakes and alligators. The story took place in the summertime and Delia was hard worker washing “white folks” clothes, while her lazy, unfaithful husband named Sykes only waits for her to feed him. He treats Delia badly and uses her horse to escape during the night to go to his lover. Delia is meek when it comes to her husband, but she is independent because she can provide for herself and for her husband (even if he is no-good and a cheater). Another dominant character trait of the character in focus is that she is a believer of God, Evil, and fate. Hurston creates a character that is both meek and strong, but she is also faithful. The author effectively illustrates a

The short story "Sweat" by Zora Neale Hurston illustrates the abusive and failing marriage between Delia and Sykes Jones. Within the story, good versus evil plays a huge role in developing the two characters. Delia is presented as a hardworking, independent wife that is devoted to her husband. However, Hurston presents her husband as being the total opposite. He's not a hard worker and he is unfaithful. In addition, he abuses her both physically and emotionally. Throughout the story, readers can also see the relationship between the two individuals take an unexpected turn. This story is read as a work of feminism where the protagonist, Delia, is seen as a strong woman rather than one who

Delia and Sykes have been married for over fifteen years, yet two months after their marriage Sykes started abusing her. That being said, it wasn’t always like that; Sykes at one point was afraid that Delia was going to leave him. Sykes, before he was married, was described by the townspeople as,