Their Eyes are Watching God Chapter 5

Jody is able to act the way he does because of many reasons. First, he has a since of authority about him that makes people do what he says. While he doesn't ever hit anyone or do anything other than tell people what to do and when, people say " you kin feel the switch in his hand when hes talking to yuh." He has a sort of authority and presence that follows him everywhere he goes, and it makes people listen and do what they are told. Janie fell into this authority and sweettalk the first time she met him, and thats how she ended up here. Also, the first thing he did when he got to Eatonville was start building the town up. He bought land that was uncommonly big for an African-American to buy, and this awed everyone in the town. From there they slowly started listening to everything the Mayor said. Once they realized that he was a very bossy man, it finally hit them that they were following him like a puppet and at that point it was too late. He already had them all wrapped around his fingers. Another reason he can act the way he acts is because he is different from the people he is surronded by, and everyone knows it. He obviously has alot of money, and he isnt afraid to use it. Also, he has a better education, and is a very literate man. He has done alot for the city, so while people don't nessecarily like doing everything he says, they look around and notice that before he got their, Eatonville was nothing, and now it has grown up.