Summary Before long, the seasonal workers on the muck begin returning, and Mrs. Turner’s brother arrives to chase after Janie, according to his sister’s plan. It is then that Tea Cake conceives a plan that involves slapping Janie. For him, slapping his wife is an assertion of his role as […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 17Summary and Analysis Chapter 16
Summary Planting and harvesting are seasonal, and when the season ends, the migrants leave. Tea Cake and Janie stay on, and she becomes friendly with Mrs. Turner, an unattractive, overbearing woman who, with her mousy husband, runs a restaurant. The two women visit frequently, and Mrs. Turner expresses an attitude […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 16Summary and Analysis Chapter 15
Summary One day, an overweight girl named Nunkie attempts to make a play for Tea Cake, and Janie is instantly jealous. Tea Cake goes through the motions of trying to resist the young girl, and Janie chases her away. When Tea Cake tries to talk to Janie, she hits him. […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 15Summary and Analysis Chapter 14
Summary The Everglades and Lake Okeechobee are Tea Cake’s territory. He knows the work, the bosses, the workers, and the camps. He and Janie arrive early so that they can get a room at a hotel where they will have access to a bathtub. Work in the muck is very […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 14Summary and Analysis Chapter 13
Summary Janie boards a train in Eatonville and goes to Jacksonville to marry Tea Cake. It leaves too early in the morning for many of the townsfolk to see her depart, but those who do report to the others how beautiful she looked. Tea Cake is a man of his […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 13Summary and Analysis Chapter 12
Summary The townsfolk become indignant when Janie, whom they consider to be Mrs. Mayor Starks, appears at a Sunday School picnic with Tea Cake. They become even more upset when Tea Cake and Janie begin to hunt, fish, dance, go to the movies, and seem to act like they are […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 12Summary and Analysis Chapter 11
Summary When Tea Cake visits, he is always welcome. He helps Janie in the store by frying fish, making corn bread, and entertaining customers by playing the guitar. One evening while Janie is relaxing, he begins combing her hair. He urges her to look at herself in the mirror, where […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 11Summary and Analysis Chapter 10
Summary Just about everyone in town has gone to a baseball game when Mr. Vergible Woods, better known as Tea Cake, arrives at Janie’s store. He discovers that he has come to the wrong town for the baseball game, but he stays to visit with Janie. He is a tall, […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 10Summary and Analysis Chapter 9
Summary Janie spares no expense for Joe’s funeral. Even people from neighboring towns attend his funeral. She does what is expected of her as a widow, but she hides her true feelings behind the required mourning attire. Inwardly, Janie feels no sorrow. Janie’s first act of freedom is to burn […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 9Summary and Analysis Chapter 8
Summary Joe and Janie’s meaningless marriage is now shattered. Joe moves out of their bedroom, and as his illness progresses, he refuses to let Janie take care of him. He also stubbornly refuses to see a medical doctor, preferring instead to seek cures from quacks and charlatans. Janie, who doesn’t […]
Read more Summary and Analysis Chapter 8