Delia's Trek Toward Freedom Anonymous College

Hurston’s Sweat is a short story that represents not only the constraints of a racially divided society but also, and more notably the oppression of women in a patriarchal society. Delia is a microcosm for women of the time, physically inferior, meek at times, but irrepressible no matter how demeaned she feels. Sweat as a feminist text delves into ideas of intersectionality, the oppression of women and African Americans, and presents an uplifting narrative of a way towards freedom. Delia is a resilient character, one who must overcome the abusive nature of her husband and the fears that belittle her existence to that of a victim. Hurston uses this text as a symbolic way of portraying freedom, the snake represents both masculinity, as it is a phallic symbol, and it represents the power that Sykes holds over Delia, sweat to Delia is not only the result of her physical labor, it is the source of her power, as work gives her the ability to obtain independence and take back control from her physically superior husband.

Early on in the narrative it becomes evident that through Delia’s physical body she manifests her authority and her contrasting repression. While this notion is vital to the story, it also becomes clear that...