Oprah took a classic work of literature and butchered it beyond recognition, where even the main purpose of Zora Neale Hurston's writing was not obvious. She altered the storyline by changing the roles of the characters, which then affected their relationships. She removed significant scenes and symbols, thereby changing the meaning of the story. The reason behind the novel was very explicit, but Oprah managed to defeat the purpose. Throughout history, many key symbols represent substantial meaning. The door represented a momentous change in Janie's life but it wasn't even mentioned in Oprah's rendition. Instead, Oprah used water to symbolize the change in Janie's life. When Janie first kissed Johnny Taylor over the door in the book, it represented a significant change in Janie's life in that her childhood was taken away from her. She was officially a woman in Nanny's eyes. “Yeah, Janie, you got your womanhood on you…Ah, I want to see you married right away” (Hurston 15). She was then forced to marry Logan Killicks and from there the door played another important role in the story. She met Joe Starks near the door in the book and this meeting gave another side to Janie's life; A better life than today. The omission of the door in the film caused Janie to lose their symbolic meaning, Janie kissing Johnny Taylor, Janie marrying Logan killicks, Janie meeting Joe and other important scenes. When recreating a story from book to film, symbolism is an unavoidable element or the overall meaning and purpose of the story is no longer indistinguishable. That being said, Oprah removed from the story the most significant sign of every important event that happened in Janie's life and middle of paper......rah changed the overall theme of the story and also changed the importance of the title by changing the meaning of the novel. Oprah's version of the story was not the one Zora Neale Hurston had wanted her readers to interpret. She made many changes to the story that changed the overall purpose of the story. Works CitedCeptus, Barbara. “Our eyes were looking at God, Halle or Oprah.” La Prensa de San Diego. Center for Applied Research, April 1, 2005. Web. November 20, 2013. Hurston, Zora N. Their Eyes Were Watching God. New York, NY: HarperCollins, 2000. print. Miller, JDove. "Film versus book: Their eyes were looking at God. Web. November 20, 2013. Their eyes were looking at God. Dir. Darnell Martin. Perf. Halle Berry. Harpo, 2001. DVD.