Many comparisons can be drawn between the novels Meridian, by Alice Walker, and Their Eyes Were Watching God, by Zora Neale Hurston. The protagonists of both books are African-American females searching in a confused, bewildered world. Meridian is the story of the title character’s life from childhood to the Civil Rights Movement while Eyes chronicle Janie’s ever-evolving character from life with a white family in the Deep South to her return ‘home’ to Eatonville. Meridian and Janie’s constant need to identify and connect with their community while maintaining a sense of self-actualization drives main character development and catalyzes many important events in both work