African American Literature : The Black Poets

The Merriam Webster dictionary defines “African American,” as an American who has African and especially black African ancestry. Being born in the United States and being American I have always been classified as African American, because my skin was dark, my hair was tightly coiled and because my parents were black. As a black child growing up here believed I was African American because my parent were African. I knew Africa from the Lion King and National Geography. I knew of the music because it played on a loop in our Georgia home, when I was trying to watch Disney or Nickelodeon. I knew of the food, because I was made to eat it instead of McDonalds. So to me, Africa and Africans where distant, it belonged in the world of fairytales.

In a time when Africans were stolen from their native lands and brought through the middle passage to a land that claimed was a free country, a small African girl, who would later be known as Phillis Wheatley, was sold in Boston in 1761. In the speech, “The Miracle of Black Poetry in America”, written by June Jordan, a well respected black poet, professor and activist, wrote the speech in 1986, 200 years after Phillis walked the earth, to honor the legacy of the first black female poet for the people of the United States. Jordan, passionately alludes to the example of Phillis Wheatley’s life, to show the strength and perseverance of African-American people throughout difficult history and how they have overcome the impossible.

The first poet I chose from the Harlem Renaissance was the American poet, Countee Cullen This 1920s artistic movement produced the first large body of work in the United States written by African Americans. (Brown, 2012) The work, Yet Do I Marvel, took a racial theme, lynching of a black youth for a crime he did not commit. The poem is stark and makes reference to Sisyphus and speaks of how life is a struggle up a never ending stair. It speaks to God as if to wonder why, knowing that God is benevolent he does not stop the unreasoning actions of brutes against, “flesh that mirrors him”, meaning the black race. (Brown, 2012) This line is important as it shows that the black consciousness is coming to recognition of their own worth taken

DuBois was considered to be the inspiration for the literary movement known as the “Harlem Renaissance.” Du Bois also believed that if a small group of young black Americans could stay and retain the information in college educations, then they could be leaders of the race and encourage other black Americans to do the same and to reach a higher level of education. Contrary to Booker T. Washington. W.E.B. Du Bois assumed that if you wanted to achieve something and be good at it, you have to just got for it without turning back. Altered from Booker T. Washington, Du Bois understood that not all black men could go to college, but he believed that the ones that could, should, and should be able to succeed. There were six black institutions, and they were “Atlanta, Fisk, Howard, Shaw, Wilberforce, and Leland, and in those six institutes, only seven hundred and fifty were black college students.” Du Bois take on a trade school was different then Washington’s take on a trade school. Du Bois had said that “trade schools cannot teach people skills and how to fund themselves while keeping industries on a commercial basis.” W.E.B. Du Bois had said that he thinks that there should be social change, and that this could happen if there was a small group of college educated blacks that would be called “the Talented Tenth.” With this Du Bois says: "The Negro Race, like all races, is going to be saved by its exceptional men. The problem of education then, among Negroes, must first of all deal with the "Talented Tenth." It is the problem of developing the best of this race that they may guide the Mass away from the contamination and death of the worst."

The second half of the eighteenth century introduced a new expression to the literary world. The new expression was a voice that belonged to the African American writers. The African American writers wrote with a flair and brought a new perspective to the realm of literature. Literature, as America had known it, consisted of works from Christopher Columbus, John Smith, William Bradford, and Mary Rowlandson; these writers captured the essence of life, through their eyes. Through their eyes, the readers were able to see what life was like for Christopher Columbus through his letters capturing details of the voyages. Another famous writing in the eighteenth century was a voice from a different perspective than voyages but, it was a voice dealing with savages, as they were called. This voice was the voice of Mary Rowlandson, one of the first female writers in American Literature. Rowlandson’s narrative was based on her captivity with the Indians and the reestablishment of her life after she was returned to her hometown. Through narration and translation, the Native Americans were able to capture their literature in their native tongue. What type of literature could the Native Americans have to contribute to the literary world? The Native Americans, like other cultures, have stories that have been passed down from generation to generation, in the form of oral expressions. The oral expressions the Native

The Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s was a period of blooming writing and human expressions. Scholars of African-American writing have been perceived by the most astounding honors, including the Nobel Prize to Toni Morrison. Among the topics and issues investigated in this writing are the part of African Americans inside the bigger American culture, African-American society, bigotry, bondage, and social balance. African-American composing has had a tendency to join oral structures, for example, spirituals, sermons, gospel music, soul, or rap.

the United States against their free will. Blacks from the Caribbean and other areas of the world

For many Blacks, writing was a way to escape the realities of life when life was weary. The blues, for instance, were an open way to express feelings about sadness, hard times, and all the things that can happen when humans are unkind to another. The blues, like much of the Harlem Renaissance poetry, was filled with strong images of hatred, sexuality, and yet tenderness and a longing for a better time and better place. Perhaps better than any other music in history, the blues speaks about poverty and making ends meet, merging poetry with music to convey even more universal sadness (Wintz, 2007).

One of the greatest turning points in American history was the Progressive era due to the advancements and social responses led by women and people of color. Many depictions of this era through secondary sources can be used to see the conflicts faced by the individuals of the time period and the political movement that ensued right after. Many favorable outcomes resulted from this time period including the start of reformation from women and people of color, and new entertainment source being literature. The nineteenth century was coming to an end, and new obstacles were coming into play. Urban growth, mass migration, currency deflation, and social issues all led to the

In today’s society we face a lot of issues, but there is one issue that stands out to me most. Which these two poems address, that is injustice towards other race in America. In Langston Hughes “I Too” and “The Weary Blues” the trouble of unjust towards African Americans, weigh on the speaker’s mind. Each poem reflecting on the same issue just a little bit differently.

All three of the poems discussed in this essay relate to the struggles suffered by African Americans in the late 18th century to the early 19th century in many different ways. They had to live under harsh

The Harlem Renaissance was a time where creativity flourished throughout the African American community. At the time many African Americans were treated as second class citizens. The Harlem Renaissance acted as artistic and cultural outlet for the African-American community. The Harlem Renaissance, otherwise known as “The New Negro Movement” was an unexpected outburst of creative activity among African Americans In the poems Harlem by Langston Hughes, America by Claude McKay, and Incident by Countee Cullen all use frustration and hope as reoccurring themes to help empower the African-American population and realize the injustices they face day to day. The Harlem Renaissance was a period marked by great change and forever altered the

The Harlem Renaissance was a wonderful allotment of advancement for the black poets and writers of the 1920s and early ‘30s. I see the Harlem Renaissance as a time where people gather together and express their work throughout the world for everyone to see the brilliance and talent the black descendants harness.

My name is alesia Johnson. I am a fashion design major in my third year. I have never taken an African-American literature class before, but I have done some reading in the past. I am very eager and excited to learn more about different authors. One of my favorite African American literature authors is Langston Hughes, in his time he was very influential when it came to black life and culture and I enjoy reading his poems.

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