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Definition of Stream of Consciousness
Stream of consciousness is a style or technique of writing that tries to capture the natural flow of a character's extended thought process, often by incorporating sensory impressions, incomplete ideas, unusual syntax... read full definition
Stream of consciousness is a style or technique of writing that tries to capture the natural flow of a character's extended thought process, often by incorporating... read full definition
Stream of consciousness is a style or technique of writing that tries to capture the natural flow of a character's... read full definition
Chapter 2
Explanation and Analysis—What? How? Why?:
This book contains a narrator that describes the nature of Janie's mind and her thoughts on many occasions, so there are multiple moments in this book that could be described as a "stream of consciousness." With this sort of narrator with access to Janie's mind, whenever the narrator describes Janie's thoughts at some length is an example of a stream of consciousness. The most sustained example of this is early in the book and in Janie's story to Pheoby, when she describes when "her conscious life had commenced":
It was a spring afternoon in West Florida. Janie had spent most of the day under a blossoming pear tree in the back-yard. [...] It had called her to come and gaze on a mystery. From barren brown stems to glistening leaf-buds, from the leaf-buds to snowy virginity of bloom. It stirred her tremendously. How? Why? It was like a flute song forgotten in another existence and remembered again. What? How? Why? This singing she heard that had nothing to do with her ears. The rose of the world was breathing out smell. It followed her through all her waking moments and caressed her in her sleep. It connected itself with other vaguely felt matters that had struck outside her observation and buried themselves in her flesh. Now they emerged and quested about her consciousness.
Chapter 11
Explanation and Analysis—At the Newel Post:
During Janie's first meeting with Tea Cake, there is a moment in which the narration slips into Janie's mind during dialogue, giving readers insight into her thoughts on Tea Cake. This is a special kind of narration called free indirect discourse, in which a narrator that is usually independent of any character suddenly enters a character's mind, and, as a result, the reader gets a chance to know that character's thoughts. Thus the reader sees, for a moment, Janie's stream of consciousness. In this scene, Tea Cake says he likes Janie, then:
Unlock with LitCharts A+At the newel post Janie whirled around and for the space of a thought she was lit up like a transfiguration. Her next thought brought her crashing down. He's just saying anything for the time being, feeling he's got me so I'll b'lieve him. The next thought buried her under tons of cold futility. He's trading on being younger than me. Getting ready to laugh at me for an old fool. But oh, what wouldn't I give to be twelve years younger so I could b'lieve him!
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