Many cultural movements existed in the 1920s and the earlier and later years. Harlem Renaissance was one of them. It was first known as the New Negro Movement before it was renamed to the present name by Alain Locke. This movement involved many cities. However, since Harlem was the biggest city, the name originated from it. It was about new expressions by African Americans who lived in the urban centers of Midwest and Northeast states of the United States (Bloom 21). These people were also the ones who were affected by the Great Migration of African Americans. In addition, this movement was centered in Harlem which is a neighborhood in New York City. It was not only African Americans who were involved in the movement. A number of black writers and francophone speakers from Caribbean and African colonies who lived in Paris France were influenced (Bloom 23).
This renaissance is believed to have started in the early 1919 and spanned to mid-1930s. However, the ideas which drove this movement lived much longer and have influenced many African American leaders as well as other leaders as well. The genesis of this movement stems from the struggle of many African Americans in their search for social identity after much slavery which had gone ahead up to the end of Civil War (Bloom 27). The former slaves struggled to emancipate themselves and participate in civic duties, cultural and economic self-determination and political equality. After the end of Civil War, there rose Ku Klux Klan which was an Act that gave African American congressmen the freedom of speech. This was just the beginning of black struggle in both the United States and other countries. It laid a foundation for the Harlem Renaissance which is the main topic of discussion (Bloom 30).
Zora Neale Hurston was an American folklorist, author and anthropologist in the time when the Harlem Renaissance was coming to be. She was born on the 7th of January 1891 and passed away on the 28th of January 1960. Of all the four novels which she wrote during her lifetime, Zora is best known for her 1937 novel called “Their Eyes Were Watching God”. Hurston was born in Notasulga (Huggins 10), Alabama. Her mother was called Lucy Ann Hurston while her father was called John Hurston. The mother was a school teacher whilst the father was a Baptist preacher, a carpenter and a tenant farmer. She was the fifth born in a family of eight children. Hurston first met with literature in 1901 when some northern school teachers visited her town and left the young lady with a number of books which she says opened her mind to the wonderful world of literature (Huggins 13).
Hurston arrived in New York City in 1925. This is the time when the Harlem renaissance was at its peak. As soon as she had arrived, she became one of the writers at the center of the movement. Hurston’s short story by the name “Spunk” was selected to be a publication of The New Negro, a publication of short stories, poetry and fiction focusing on African American and African literature and art. In 1926, a literary magazine called Fire was produced by Hurston, Wallace Thurman and Langston Hughes who called themselves Niggerati. This magazine featured very many artists and writers of the Harlem Renaissance. Hurston eventually moved to Eau Gallie, Florida in 1929 and wrote “Mules and Men”. This book was published in 1935 (Huggins 76).
Black struggle has been a long road. The Harlem Renaissance was just one of them. Writers including Hurston were literary giants who sought to bring the struggles of the black community to the fore. They used their talents and standing in the society to influence other black people to fight for their identity and their socio-economic wellbeing. They received a lot of support from their readers and followers but the white folks never really gave them a chance. For example, in 1875, after the Civil War, African Americans were denied the freedom to exercise their political and civil rights. The whites terrorized the black community with gangs and vigilante groups and forced segregation. Most African American literary giants arose from generations which lived in losses and gains after the Reconstruction which was present after the American civil war. Their parents and grandparents had been slaves. They thus had an experience of bitterness and disillusionment which drove them to find ways of self-expression. Literature was one of them and Zora Nearle Hurston was one of the black literary giants that arose during this period.
The Harlem Renaissance was characterized and pushed forward by the racial pride that existed at the time. The idea of the “New Negro” which was basically a coined phrase to mean the more educated and enlightened Negro was the main idea. Many African Americans became intellectually endowed and stared fighting for the rights of the other black people. The pervading stereotypes and racism that promoted socialist or progressive and social and racial integration was challenged. The creation of literature and art was to serve to “uplift” the race. Hurdson and others like her come in to “uplift” their race by their literary works and publications. In Hurdson’s own words, she said that sometimes she felt discriminated against (Hurtson 104). This was in reference to the fact that there was segregation between blacks and whites and other minority races at that time as well. She goes ahead and poses a legendary question. She asks herself why anybody would deny themselves the pleasure of her company was beyond her comprehension.
The Harlem Renaissance was a successful undertaking in its own right. The leaders of the movement who included Langston Hughes and Zora Nearle Hurston among others succeeded in bringing the Black Experience within the corpus of the cultural history of the United States. This renaissance did not only involve the explosion of Black culture but also elevated the Black culture to international standards. It changed how the United States and the world viewed African Americans. The migration of Blacks from the south to the north completely changed the image of African Americans and how they were viewed from the undereducated, rural peasants to the cosmopolitan, urban sophistication. This new identity resulted into a greater social awareness and African Americans eventually became world players and contributed to the well-being of the society at large (Hurtson 130).
Black struggle has been a long road. The Harlem Renaissance was just one of them. Writers including Hurston were literary giants who sought to bring the struggles of the black community to the fore. They used their talents and standing in the society to influence other black people to fight for their identity and their socio-economic wellbeing. They received a lot of support from their readers and followers but the white folks never really gave them a chance. They thus had an experience of bitterness and disillusionment which drove them to find ways of self-expression. Literature was one of them and Zora Nearle Hurston was one of the black literary giants that arose during this period. She therefore contributed a great deal to what the Harlem Rennaissance achieved. Together with other black leaders, she contributed to the ideas propagated by the movement. This is what linked her to it. The pieces of literature, the public lectures and the great migration from the south were all as a result of what these black literary giants did. Zora Nearle Hurston was a deft writer and a great leader who though failed in her own personal life at some point, contributed so much for the Black Struggle. This contribution is forever written down in history and her legacy lives on.
Works Cited
Bloom, Harold. The Harlem Renaissance. Philadelphia: Chelsea House Publishers, 2004. Print.
Huggins, Nathan I. Harlem Renaissance. New York: Oxford University Press, 1971. Print.
Hurston, Zora N, and Alice Walker. I Love Myself When I Am Laughing and Then Again When I Am Looking Mean and Impressive: A Zora Neale Hurston Reader. Old Westbury, N.Y: Feminist Press, 1979. Print.
