Harlem Renaissance: Outburst of Creativity The Harlem Renaissance was an artistic movement in American history wherein the uniqueness and creativity of African American culture was celebrated. Situated in the black community in uptown New York, the Harlem Renaissance developed a body of artistic talent which had never been seen in America (Ferguson, 24). Instead of wallowing in self-pity, African Americans ignited an explosion of culturist pride. They asserted themselves by embracing their racial identity, appreciating their heritage. Harlem became home to black people, many of whom had dreams and aspirations of expressing their individual artistic talents.
Even thought there was not much more opportunity in the North, at least there was racial tolerance, something the African Americans of the South were craving. When the Harlem Renaissance started, many prominent figures emerged from the myriad of writers, thinkers, artists, and musicians of the time. W.E.B Du Bois was an African American thinker and sociologist, who was very prominent in the Harlem Renaissance. He was at the forefront of the civil rights movement during this time and helped create the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) (“W.E.B Du Bois”). Another famous figure of the Harlem Renaissance was Langston Hughes.
The Harlem Renaissance was a time period where culture became a big issue in the African American community. More writers, poets, play wrights and other artistic figures came into place. Through this time (early 20th century) the term New Negro became more developed. The term originated from the 19th century as a sort of nick name for newly arrived slaves. The New Negro term included “violent resistance to oppression and the conservative anti-protest orientation of Booker T. Washington.” (Ferguson, 3) Writers had a big influence on the community throughout newspapers, magazines, etc; and most writers believe d that the New Negro should exemplify creativity, independence, strength, power, equality, and improvement.
In Hughes' work involving the black race, he challanged the stereotypes by expressing not only the "nitty-gritty" reality, but the hard working blacks as well. Langston Hughes' writings relate specifcally with his experiences with racial discrimination, and being black in a white-dominated society. A lot of Hughes' work was very personal and based on his thoughts about himself or life experiences, opinions, or ideas. In Hughes' poem, "As I Grew Older" (Rampersad) Hughes is speaking about his dream, which has to do with something psychological since he had a very confusing childhood involving a broken family and moving from one home to another. But in this poem, Hughes talks about how his dream had become so unreachable, that he almost forgot about it completely, and if you don't have a dream, what are you living for?
In the first chapter he discusses the after effects of the civil war and the governments response. African Americans simply wanted it to be possible to be black and American. The Emancipation Proclamation freed them, yet they still held a weak place in society. The Freedman’s bureau was established for black suffrage. However, the bureau was only temporary and didn’t live to it’s full potential.
CHAPTER ONE African American musical and literary tradition 1.1 Vernacular tradition Ruminating over musical genres such as jazz, blues, and hip-hop, we can see that they are the essential components to the evolution of African American vernacular literature. Many scholars claim that African American culture developed into such a popularity, which can be observed nowadays, because of the vernacular. As Gates--McKay claim “since the first black people in America were slaves, and were not allowed to read or write, African American vernacular traditions began as completely oral communications in the form of church songs, blues, jazz, rhythm and blues, and hip hop” (Gates--Mckay 2004: 3). Continuing, it is said that the African American vernacular began as spiritual and secular works, which portrayed the struggles of the slaves and black population over the centuries. Through the years, African American vernacular has advanced into the most widely listened musical genre in America’s youth today.
Blues music has its inclination to African-American community of the USA. It is a kind of vocal or instrumental music which is generally based on blues notes. The concept aroused from the spirituality, chants, work songs and ballads. The African influence is greatly felled in the notes and call-and-response patterns of music and lyrics. The American and Western music is more inclined to this music genre.
Having a black heritage was seen as positive and black poets, musicians and authors thrived in Harlem. The speaker has likely been encouraged by living in Harlem, and therefore sees his black identity in direct contrast to “you”, the white identity of his instructor. This is a parallel link between the races Hughes does not address. He fails to show how similar an affect a poor neighborhood will have on any
Harlem Renaissance is very colorful and the picture itself tells a story. “Art Throughout the Harlem Renaissance depicts the colorful nature of time of the Harlem Renaissance.”(Framing America: A Social History of American Art 152) “Artists such as Palmer Hayden paint more than a picture in their artwork; they paint a story that can be interpreted in many different ways. (Framing America: A Social History of American Art 225) Hurston’s language helps one to understand African-American culture depicted in Harlem Renaissance paintings. “Most of dese zigaboos is so het up over yo’ business till they liable to hurry theyself to Judgment to find out about you if they don’t soon know. You better make haste and tell ‘em ‘bout you and Tea Cake gittin’ married, and if he taken all yo’ money and went off wid some young
African-American literature, music, and art flourished inside Harlem, and these works were used to disprove the racial stereotypes associated with African-Americans (Doc E). The Harlem Renaissance did not eliminate all the problems the African-Americans had, however.