Logan and the lack of community



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"'Ah wuz thinkin' real hard about is; about you and me.'
'It's about time. Youse powerful independent around her sometime considerin'.'
'Considerin whut for instance?'
'Considerin' youse born in a carraige 'thout no top to it, and yo' mama and you bein' born and raised in de white-folks back yard...Don't you change too many words wid me dis mawnin', Janie, do Ah'll take and change ends wid yah! Heah, Ah just as good as take you out de white folks' kitchen and set you down on yo' royal diasticutis and you take and low-rate me! Ah'll take holt uh dat ax and come in dere and kill yuh! You better dry up in dere! Ah'm too honest and hard-workin' for anybody to yo' family, dat's de reason you don't want me!'...She wasn't even angry...what was she losing so much time for? A feeling of sudden newness and change came over her. Janie hurried out of the front gate and turned south. Even if Joe was not there waiting for her, the change was bound to do her good." (31-32)

Isolation
The defining difference between Logan and Janie's other two husbands rests solely on two things: her desire to be with him in the first place, and the very isolation, physical and emotional, that the marriage brings. There is not the typical community surrounding the relationship of Janie and Logan. This very difference further implores how very unwanted this marriage is. There is no focus from other individuals, there is no town-talk and gossip nor is there judgment passed on Janie for her choices by others. The only judge is Logan. Logan's character restricts Janie to chores and tedious activities while simultaneously restricting her from growing and developing into the powerful and strong young woman she needs to be.
The community surrounding this marriage only that of Janie herself and Logan. This ultimate isolation lasts only briefly, and here we see Janie's tendency to long for independence, which Logan in no way provided.
Janie's marriage to Logan is brief and painful, restrictive and oppressive, confining and depressing. The lack of community seems to be one of the many reasons why the union between the two did not succeed. Without community, there is no format and observation that motivates the couple- there is no real outside force to compare and evaluate Janie's actions, there is no audience.
Throughout the novel, much of the plot is revealed through the eyes of the community surrounding Janie. Without the community, we find that most of Janie's detailed feelings and actions are withheld from the text. Not only is Janie's marriage to Logan brief, but the description of it is as well. Janie is not weak and easily influenced by the thoughts and opinions of others. However, much of her relationships are indeed reflected by community as her husbands respond adequately to the "duties" and expectations the communities have of Janie and their relationship.
 

Inspiration to leave
Janie is still a young girl, with no real idea of what the future will bring. This first marriage propels Janie into a decent down a path of self-discovery, where she still holds enough independence to make her own choices.  The lack of community (read: isolation) during her relationship with Logan, coupled with her youth and seemingly "nothing to lose" attitude, give Janie the ultimate push to leave whatever ties she has and gain experience through change. Her abrupt decision to leave Logan and peruse a greater chance gives the reader a glimpse of her true nature- that of a curious and independent young woman. (Although Joe learns how to suppress this urge in Janie, his continuous insults reawaken Janie's "spark".)

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