ial situation than herself, is yet another instance in which Janie defies the rules of society in the quest for her own happiness. The marriage Janie and Tea Cake is met with much disapproval, as the townsfolk believe that Tea Cake is only interested in her money. After a warning from her friend and confidant, Phoeby, Janie declaresNaw, Pheoby, Tea Cake ain't draggin' me off nowhere Ah don't want tuh go. Ah always did want tuh git round uh whole heap, but Jody wouldn't 'low me tuh. When Ah wasn't in de store he wanted me tuh jes sit wid folded hands and sit dere. And Ah'd sit dere wid de walls creepin' up on me and squeezin' all de life outa me. Pheoby, dese educated women got a whole heap of things to sit down and consider. Somebody done tole 'em what to set down for. Nobody ain't told poor me, so sittin' still worries me. Ah wants tuh utilize maself all over (Hurston 112).Rather than follow the rules of society, Janie follows her heart in what proves to be a successful attempt to find true happiness with Tea Cake. Despite his eventual tragic death, Janie has no regrets about her relationship with Tea Cake. Despite the forces working against her, Janie finds true love in a man looked down upon by the people around her. Following the death of her third husband, Janie's strength and independence from societal expectations are further reinforced. As she walks back through the town that she left only two years earlier, women sitting upon their porches comment upon her overalls and make "burning statements with questions, and killing tools out of laughs," but Janie does not concern herself with the people of the town (Hurston 2). Janie disregards conventional values and aspirations, and in doing so finds true happiness with Tea Cake. Much like Janie, Lily Bart in The House of Mirth feels great pressure, from her mother and from others around her, to marry a wealthy man who can support her and keep her out of "dinginess." How...
