The Harlem Renaissance New York, New York Ashley Duell & Molly Smith

What is it the Harlem Renaissance?  “Harlem Renaissance refers to an era of written and artistic creativity among African-Americans that occurred after World War I and lasted until the middle of the 1930s Depression.” resource pageresource page  Referred to as the capital of Black America  Changed the identity and history of African-Americans and the American culture as a whole

What is it? - continued  The African-American culture was transformed. Other racial cultures could now better understand African-Americans through their style, productions, expression, and thoughts which were expressed by:  Literature  Music  Dance  Art  Social commentary in neighborhoods  Night clubs, community centers, cafes, galleries, publishing houses sprung up all over Harlem  Energy and excitement

The Beginning Migration of African-Americans from 1919 to 1926 to northern cities in the United States was a major factor that lead to the beginning of the Harlem Renaissance. Literary discussions in Manhattan came to be known as ‘The New Negro Movement.’ resource pageresource page

Langston Hughes

Hughes’ Life  Born in Joplin, Missouri in 1902  Raised by his grandmother because his parents divorced when he was very young  Moved to New York when he was 20 to go to school at Columbia  Finished his schooling at Lincoln in Pennsylvania  Traveled for many years working odd jobs after college  Died in New York in 1967

Hughes and the Harlem Renaissance  Very influential poet during the Harlem Renaissance  Used his poems to “embody his racial ideals” and “portray black characters” (resource page)resource page  His essay “The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain” became a manifesto for the current generation of black artists  His whole life he was a radical democrat, an idealist, and a civil rights advocate

Famous Quotes for Hughes “We younger Negro artists who create now intend to express our individual black- skinned selves without fear or shame… We know we are beautiful. And ugly too… we stand on top of the mountain, free within ourselves.” -Langston Hughes Describing Harlem in the 1920s…"not so much a place as a state of mind, the cultural metaphor for black America itself.” (resource page)resource page Hughes once said the city of Harlem was "a great magnet for the Negro intellectual." (resource page)resource page

Zora Neale Hurston

Zora’s Life  Born January 7, 1891 in the black town of Eatonville, Florida – Died January 28, 1960 in Florida, penniless  One of five children, mother died when she was a child  When her father was remarried the children were sent to boarding school. She father told the school to adopt the children  To finish high school, Zora went to Baltimore to Morgan Academy.  She continued to education by attending Howard Prep School and Howard University, in Washington D.C.. She called I the “Negro Harvard”

Zora and the Harlem Renaissance  Zora moved to New York City when “Harlem became a cultural Magnet that attracted unknown musicians, artists, poets, and novelists; here they were free to develop their abilities.” (resource page)resource page  Zora used her unique style of writing to express her experiences and feelings as a black woman in a dominate white male society.  Zora became good friends with Langston Hughes, but their friendship ended over a dispute about a collaborated play they had written together. Many believed that the end of their friendship marked the end of the Harlem Renaissance.

W.E.B. DuBois

W.E.B DuBois Life  Born in Great Barrington, Massachusetts on February 23, 1868  Well educated man  Attended Fisk University (3 years) and Harvard University (5 years)  Taught at Wilberforce University and Atlanta University. While working there he wrote many of his books including: The Philadelphia Negro and The Suppression of the African Slave-Trade  Became a US Senator in  Moved to Ghana, and died there in 1963

DuBois’s Influence in the Harlem Renaissance  Became known as the “Father of Pan Africanism” because he a was spokesperson for African-American legal rights (resource page)resource page  At the Niagara Movement led by DuBois he addressed the right for African-Americans to vote and promoted their rights.  His books are considered the ground-breaking work that inspired the Renaissance.”  DuBois helped form the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP) which effects from it can still be seen today  His actions showed American that “black people were not inferior to whites simply because of their race.” (resource page)resource page

E.E. Cummings

Cummings’s Life  Born in 1894, Cambridge, Massachusetts and died on September 3 rd,  His mother played a lot with her children and introuced him to the joys of writing  Wrote poems and drew as a child  Was an ambulance driver in France right before World War II and was imprisoned for three months which became the inspiration for his first book The Enormous Room  Died in North Conway, New Hampshire on September 3, 1962

Cummings’s Career  Among his greatest achievements was being recognized by the Academy of American Poets for his transition from failure to greatness in 1950  Always love visual arts and studied painting in Paris  Most successful works are his love and religious poems  Was said to show a “fresh way of looking at reality” (resource page)resource page  Published nearly one thousand poems in his lifetime

Cummings and the Harlem Renaissance  In the 1940s, people started to rebel against the previous generation of poets and began thinking of Cummings’s poems as reflections of their own ideas about life  His work was finally recognized after two decades

How did the Harlem Renaissance Effect Today?  The Harlem Renaissance allowed African-Americans to embrace their ethnicity through music, art, and literature. Today African-Americans don’t have to feel ashamed of their cultural and heritage.  Many American Classical Literary pieces came from the Harlem Renaissance. We study and analyze them everyday.  African-Americans gained a better sense of equality during the Harlem Renaissance. Our country is making racial issues something to just remember rather than experience.

Resources   ings_life.htm ings_life.htm   on.html on.html  ml ml 