African American Literature

The Harlem Renaissance was “variously known as the New Negro movement, the New Negro Renaissance, and the Negro Renaissance, the movement emerged toward the end of World War I in 1918, blossomed in the mid- to late 1920s, and then withered in the mid-1930s. The Harlem Renaissance marked the first time mainstream publishers, critics took African American literature seriously, and that African American literature and arts attracted significant attention from the nation as a whole (1).”

The Harlem Renaissance acted as the crossroads for black to interact with others and expand their contacts, even internationally. Also, African Americans began to change their image from rural to urban. In other words, they were transforming themselves from peasants to sophisticates. The Harlem Renaissance allowed for African Americans to be a force in America even if they couldn’t be employed and seen as equals to whites. It was so influential that African Americans began to gain power in northern cities such as Chicago and Philadelphia. The Harlem Renaissance phenomenon sparked the idea of “New Negro” and led to the drive for change, giving a sense of Black Nationalism and the ability to express their ideas and concerns in ways they were

Harlem Renaissance was undoubtedly a cultural and social-political movement for the African American race. The Renaissance was many things to people, but it is best described as a cultural movement in which the high level of black artistic cultural production, demanded and received recognition. Many African American writers, musicians, poets, and leaders were able to express their creativity in many ways in response to their social condition. Until the Harlem Renaissance, poetry and literature were dominated by the white people and were all about the white culture. One writer in particular, Langston Hughes, broke through those barriers that very few African-American artists had done before this

African American Literature and the Harlem Renaissance differed mainly in their themes. African American Literature and the Harlem Renaissance derived during different time periods, therefore they were involved in different events. African American culture grew in the 1920’s and 30’s because according to Alain Locke, the black community was able to express themselves and gain determination. The Harlem Renaissance was known as the birth of the “New Negro Movement”. There was an unprecedented explosion of literature, music and other artistic forms created and inspired by African Americans wanting to stand up for themselves and have a voice. The theme of the Harlem Renaissance resulted in a complex idea of

The Harlem Renaissance was an intellectual and literary period of growth promoting a new African American cultural identity in the United States. The years of 1920 and 1990 and “were clear peak periods of African American cultural production.” During these years blacks were able to come together and form a united group that expressed a desire for enlightenment. “It is difficult not to recognize the signs that African Americans are in the midst of a cultural renaissance” (English 807). This renaissance allowed Blacks to have a uniform voice in a society based upon intellectual growth. The front-runners of this revival were extremely focused on cultural growth through means of intellect, literature, art and music. By using these means

History.com (2009) describes the Harlem Renaissance movement as “a literary, artistic, and intellectual movement that kindled a new black cultural identity.” The 1920s and 1930s emcompass a time in history where blacks found themselves ostracized from mainstream society. It was uncommon to see the expressions of black artistry in everyday life, especially on a literary level.

One of the many revolutionary eras in history was the Harlem renaissance. This was a sudden cultural revolution that was realized in the 1920s and it became popularly known as the “Harlem Renaissance” or “The New Negro movement”. This is a particular era that the African American people draw pride in. the era saw a cultural, social, music and art explosion of epic proportions This was aimed at shifting the stereotypical view of black people as uneducated, intellectually deprived farmers to one of a complex, organized and intellectually equal to the whites. The Harlem renaissance took place in 1920s thru 1930s. This era saw a phenomenon rise in famous black writers and marked the onset of blues, musical theatre, blues, dance and poetry. The new art caught on an appealed to the whites as well. Harlem became a cultural and literature center. The African Americans artists and writers were gaining recognition from the white. [2]

The Harlem Renaissance was a turning point for many African Americans. A vast amount of literature was created specifically for this group during this era. It was a period when the African American "was in vogue" and "white thinkers and writers were devoting a considerable amount of attention" to them (Taylor 91, 90). For the first time, African Americans were being told that it was okay to be proud of who they were. This new consciousness and self-awareness was prominent in many works of literate, but several writers began exploring the darker side of this movement with literature that concentrated on the negative aspects of race relations in America. Nella Larsen's novel Passing concentrates on this

Literature was a big part of the in the Harlem Renaissance, African American were finally getting their ideas out about racism and started to talking about the their struggles being black or evan half black in United States. Writers at this time were very versatile from writing poems, novels, short story, and scripts. Some famous writers of the time is Zora Neale Hurston famous for writing “Their Eyes Were Watching God” and many others great novels this one mainly was about women’s rights and racism in America. Then there was Langston Hughes, he was an extremely great artist that has influenced so many people today though his writing, he was a social activist, poet, novelist, and a play writer. On of his poems that really stuck out to me was this short Poem that he wrote call “Cross” which first appeared in the crisis in 1925, it goes “My old man’s a white old man And my old mother's black. If ever I cursed my white old man I take my curses back. If ever I cursed my black old mother And wished she were in hell, I'm sorry for that evil wish And now I wish her well My old man died in a fine big house. My ma died in a shack. I wonder

While reading literature, we manage to forget that they have true roots to what is being written and what they actually represent. When looking at the similarities of how literature is represented it obvious to see that there are certain socially constructed groups presented. Although these socially constructed groups do vary throughout literature, they still tend to be very similar. In Alice Walker’s short story “Everyday Use,” Lorraine Hansberry play “A Raisin in the Sun,” and Langston Hughes’s poems “Harlem” and “Theme for English B” they evaluate the social construction of African Americans. What makes these authors so alike is the similarities that they share; being that they were all born in the early 1900’s, are all of African American ethnicity, and acknowledge the social construct of African Americans in these works. Looking at each of these works of literature they represent the struggles that African Americans faced when trying to be seen as equal, by allowing these works to be shown in different insights towards the battles faced in their movement towards being seen as equal.

The Harlem Renaissance was a cultural movement in the 1920s that led to the evolution of African-American culture, expression through art, music, and literary works, and the establishment of African roots in America. Zora Neale Hurston contributed to the Harlem Renaissance with her original and enticing stories. However, Hurston’s works are notorious (specifically How it Feels to Be Colored Me and Their Eyes Were Watching God) because they illustrate the author’s view of black women and demonstrate the differences between their views and from earlier literary works.

Harlem was important for many reasons but the one reason it is truly known for is the Harlem Renaissance. The Harlem Renaissance was a time of revival among African Americans which inspired a new movement of racial consciousness. It was centered on the works of African-American writers, artists, and musicians in the Harlem fostering a new appreciation for black culture and became known as the New Negro movement. The Harlem Renaissance was shaped significantly by the Great Migration. These African-American intellectuals, activists and artists rebuffed the stereotypes that had bound the “Old Negro” and called for a renewed examination of black life and culture that depicted their lives.Writers like novelist Zora Neale Hurston, poet Countee Cullen, and novelist and songwriter James Weldon Johnson produced great masterpieces which defined a new perspective of African Americans in American society. The Great migration was essential to the birth of the Harlem Renaissance as the Harlem Renaissance was to the post World War II Civil Rights Movement. The Harlem Renaissance had inspired a new African American consciousness which paved the way for Civil Rights

A group of people who had at one point held no power and position in society were now thriving in the nation, as they spread their culture and ideas. It was the start of an era known as the Harlem Renaissance. This was a more than a literary movement, it was a cultural movement based on pride in the Africa-American life. They were demanded civil and political rights (Stewart). The Harlem Renaissance changed the way African Americans were viewed by society. It, “changes the image of the African-American from rural, undereducated peasants to one of urban, cosmopolitan sophistication”. This era expanded from the early 1920s to the mid 1930s (Wikipedia). It generated great pride in the people

From the 1920’s to the mid 1930’s a literary, intellectual, and artistic movement occurred that kindled the African Americans a new cultural identity. This movement became known as the Harlem Renaissance, which is also known as the “New Negro Movement”. With this movement, African Americans sought out to challenge the “Negro” stereotype that they had received from others while developing innovation and great cultural activity. The Harlem Renaissance became an artistic explosion in the creative arts. Thus, many African Americans turned to writing, art, music, and theatrics to express their selves.

The role of African American literature in recent years has been to illuminate for the modern world the sophistication and beauty inherent in their culture as well as the constant struggle they experience in the oppressive American system. When writers such as Langston Hughes, W.E.B. DuBois and Alice Walker present their material, they manage to convey to a future world the great depth of feeling and meaning their particular culture retained as compared with the culture of their white counterparts. Without this attempt at preservation, much of the richness of this community might have been lost or forgotten. At the same time, they illuminated some of the problems inherent within their society, including lack of education, lack of