Their Eyes-Sense of Community

In Their Eyes Were Watching God there was a great sense of community. Hurston wrote about neighborhood friends convening in one location almost everyday to talk about everything and nothing at the same time. In the South this sense of community in African American culture is still present. In Hickory, North Carolina there is more than one location to convene partly because this area is not as small as the communities present during the time of Their Eyes. Many of the men gather in the barber shop, or Uncle Johnny's fish camp; and the women usually are together at someone's home cooking and gossiping. Community gatherings give African Americans a sense of belonging in a world that hasn't always accepted them. It gives them a chance to relax and finally be themselves.