Is this a brief summary of Their Eyes Were Watching God?

Question

i tend to ramble on in my papers and i hope that this summary isn't too long. Please take a look at it

Hurston opens with a shagged Janie walking into town being subject to gossip from the locals. She begins telling her story to Phoebe Watson, starting with when she lived with Nanny who, Janie believes, restrained her from being happy. Her grandmother, who endured the harshness and sexual abuse from a slave-owner, wants Janie to marry the prosperous Logan Killicks so that Janie can live comfortably. Although Janie eventually relents, she soon discovers that she has neither love nor passion for him because Logan commands Janie to do hard field work on his farm. Janie later meets a more attractive man named Jody and becomes flirtatious with him. Janie eventual leaves Killicks and travels with Jody.

Janie believes that she has found happiness and contentment in Jody, but he soon becomes strict and dictator-like when he establishes the town of Eatonville. Jody becomes obsessed with running the town and he harshly reprimands Janie for her “blunders”. Though she realizes her despondency, she is unable to confront him, for fear Jody would lose his reputation as leader and would consequently leave Janie without a place to live. When Jody is on his death bed, however, Janie is able to accuse Jody of his misconduct and faults such as his unattractiveness and harsh and suppressive qualities.

After Jody dies, Janie meets an older attractive man called Tea Cake. Janie leaves Eatonville to live with Tea Cake in Jacksonville where she later marries him. There are some problems and gossip, but Janie is able to live happily and peacefully with Tea Cake. A few years after they relocate for work, their marriage takes a turn for the worse when Tea Cake falls victim to the then untreatable rabies. His mental and physical health soon deteriorates, leaving Janie fearing for her own safety. In a heartbreaking act of self-defense, Janie shoots and kills Tea Cake when he attempts to shoot her with a rifle. After a jury which is all white finds her not-guilty, and Janie returns to Eatonville. Janie closes the book by admitting she can find peace in the memory of Tea Cake.

Also If you have read the book and think i have something wrong please tell me.

Is this too long?

Answer 1

You aren't "rambling" because all of your facts are related to one another and you're not going off in random directions with random topics. Your summary is very good as it is.

It depends really, what your teacher (if this is an assignment) expects of a summary. Mine usually tells me that a summary should be pretty short.  So at a glance, yours seems too long. A brief summary should be around one paragraph long, or 5-10 sentences. A more concise summary would be like yours.

Your facts are correct though, so the only thing you need to do is edit your summary so it's shorter. Perhaps you should include something about Janie's independence too, and how she seeks independence even while depending on a husband. In your short summary, focus on giving a basic analysis of the story in addition to giving the basic plot line.

Hope that helps! Great word choice, btw.