Even as Joe is dying, he still tries to exert his control over Janie. He bans her from his sickroom and refuses to allow Janie to care for him. Joe does not desire Janie's pity; he wants Janie to feel guilty for standing up to him in front of the townspeople even though it was years ago. Janie, however, will not allow Joe to manipulate her even as he is dying.
Again, Janie stands up to Joe. After entering Joe's room, she refuses to leave, even when he demands that she do so. Janie insists that the man she ran away with 20 years ago is gone, and Joe is "whut's left after he died."
Joe has never been able to accept Janie for who she truly is. His refusal has been the basis for their marital troubles. Joe forbid Janie to speak for herself and to be her own person. He wanted Janie to be the woman that he wanted her to be. For several years, Janie kept her feelings to herself and obeyed Joe. On two occasions, in the store and as Joe is dying, she exerts her independence by standing up for herself.
Also in Chapter 8, Hurston employs a metaphor for death. Death, according to Janie, is "a strange being" with a sword "waiting for the messenger to bid him come." Hurston uses this powerful metaphor to show that Joe feared death and would only die when "the icy sword of the square-toed one had cut off his breath and left his hands in a pose of antagonizing protest."
