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The influence of civil rights movement
The influence of civil rights movement
The influence of civil rights movement
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A time period plays a major role in a poets writing as well as their ability to put out relatable content. They have the ability to turn their experience into lessons for future generations. Nikki Giovanni, an African American women living during the Civil rights movement was able to capture the attention of Americans all over the world through her poem, “ Nikki- Rosa” where she describes the life of a colored women through the use of imagery. Yolande Cornelia Jr. prominently known as Nikki Giovanni was born in Knoxville, Tennessee on June 7th, 1943. She grew up during the 1960s —- The Civil Rights Movement— a time period where blacks were racially profiled as inferior. Nikki Giovanni along with others black equality groups such as, SCLC …show more content…
and SNCC (source one) fought long and hard for equal rights through the use of sit in demonstrations, freedom rides and voting rights. After a couple years of living in Knoxville the amount of violence was getting out of hand and Giovanni and her parents moved to Cincinnati, Ohio. After a few years Giovanni enrolled in Fisk university, an all-Black college located in Nashville. However, she was quickly asked to leave due to conflict between her and the schools dean of women because her behavior did not “ fit those of a Fisk woman” (source 2)… she returned back to Fisk again in 1964 and successfully was able to change her behavior which allowed her to become a leader in political and literacy activities on campus ( source 2). Giovanni graduated magna cum laude with a degree in history and chose to continue studying at University of Pennsylvania, school of social work under a grant from the Ford foundation while also taking classes at University of Columbia’s school of art ( source 2). Not only that but she also received a National Foundation for the Arts Grant and served as assistant professor of English in the SEEK program of Queen’s college( source 1). It is clear that Nikki Giovanni had become extremely successful throughout her career. It was her need of prospering that pushed her to the extremes. She once said, [“Teaching] enriches my life, I mean it keeps reminding all of us that there are other concerns out there, it widens your world.
. . . I have certain skills that I am able to impart and that I want to, and it keeps me involved in my community and in a community of writers who are not professional but who are interested. I think that's good” (source 2). Giovanni has made it her goal to inspire others and that is why her publications and services to the community have never gone unnoticed, some examples of her achievements include: being cited as one of the “most admired women” in Amsterdam News, Mademoiselle, Meritorious Plaque for service, life membership of National Council of Negro Women ( source 2) and so much more. Giovanni is characterized as a woman that is independent, optimistic and extremely self- expressive. She was against the idea of early marriage and relationships in general, she would rather concentrate on her writing and herself which was very different compared to society's standards during this time period. Some of her statement striked an interest in many feminist for example she once told an interviewer , “ I had a baby at 25 because I wanted to have a baby and I could afford to have a baby. I did not get married because I didn’t want to get married and I could afford not to get married.” (Source
5). Her characteristics are what motivated her to become a poet. She wanted to “follow her intellectual and imaginative gifts rather than to stifle them in a typical middle- class situation” ( source 1). Giovanni was influenced by oral tradition passed on from her grandmother and mother. Nikki Giovanni’s poem, “ Nikki- Rosa” is one of her top publications due to the abundance of imagery found throughout the text. The poem is about what it was like growing up black and all the pain that came along with it.However she refused to look at it negatively. She stated, “ Childhood remembrances / if you’re Black / with no inside toilet / your father's pain / sells stock / dream goes… ” ( source 4). Giovanni is pointing out all of the problems she faced such as alcoholism in her family and poverty. However she continues saying, “ though you’re poor / it isn’t poverty that concerns you / your father’s drinking / makes any difference / but everybody is together…” ( source 4) She quickly turns the negatives into positives because at the end of the day all that matters is happiness and being together, instead of bringing others down we should celebrate their cultures. At the end of the poem Nikki states that, “ blacks love is black wealth.” ( source 4) this means that despite all the hardships faced, having a caring family will always be most important. Money is not a necessity.
Giovanni & Lusanna-by Gene Brucker In the story Giovanni and Lusanna , written and researched by Gene Brucker, there is a woman who has taken her alleged husband to court, because he has married another woman. The story is a factual account of what transpired during this court case and the remainder of Giovanni¹s life. There are several similarities between their world and ours, but for the most part we live in a totally different environment. Our standards of living have greatly improved, but more than that our society has grown more tolerant toward the people who deviate from everyday standards.
Langston Hughes wrote during a very critical time in American History, the Harlem Renaissance. Hughes wrote many poems, but most of his most captivating works centered around women and power that they hold. They also targeted light and darkness and strength. The Negro Speaks of Rivers and Mother to Son, both explain the importance of the woman, light and darkness and strength in the African-American community. They both go about it in different ways.
The narrator also discusses about a girl about the same age as her would have never been the “right kind of American.” Minorities such as the African Americans, Dominican Americans and any other ethnicity that came to America were looked right under the microscope. This perplexed me I do not understand why they are treated unfairly by the “True Americans.” There is no such thing as True Americans and that this poem definitely targeted it's audience through racial discrimination rather than cultural changes within a neighborhood in Queens, NY. Another Poet had a much refined and unique style of another part of New York City, he is one of my favorite poets Langston Hughes.
Aaliyah Dana Haughton was born on January 16, 1979, in Brooklyn, New York . Raised in Detroit , Michigan . Aaliyah Dana Haughton started voice lessons shortly after she learned to talk As a young actress/singer competed successfully on the television program Star Search at age 11. That same year, she performed with R&B legend Gladys Knight, the former wife of her uncle and manager, Barry Hankerson, at a five-night stand in Las Vegas.
Humanity is defined as the quality of being humane. This is something that people struggle with on a day to day basis. Hawthorne shows these struggles through his characters. Giovanni, the main character in “Rappaccini's Daughter”, shows this through being shallow in his love for Beatrice. Throughout their relationship, Giovanni faces the reality that there is something wrong with Beatrice. He begins to have suspicions that she is poisonous like the flowers in the garden, and this begins to taint the love he has for her: “At such times, he was startled at the horrible suspicions that rose, monster-like, out of the caverns of his heart, and stared him in the face; his love grew thin and faint as the morning-mist; his doubts alone had substance” (1346). Ultimately, Giovanni is left to grieve the death of Beatrice because he did not trust Beatrice, and allows doubt to overcome him. Other literary critics have found this to be truth as well, such as the literary critique on “Rappaccini's Daughter”. Katherine Snipes, the author of Masterplots II: Short Story Series, Revised Edition, writes, “Giovanni falls from grace not entirely through the machinations of a satanic scientist. ...He falls not because of Beatrice's evil nature, but because of his own shallow capac...
“Poetry, like jazz, is one of those dazzling diamonds of creative industry that help human beings make sense out of the comedies and tragedies that contextualize our lives” This was said by Aberjhani in the book Journey through the Power of the Rainbow: Quotation from a Life Made Out of Poetry. Poetry during the Harlem Renaissance was the way that African Americans made sense out of everything, good or bad, that “contextualized” their lives. The Harlem Renaissance, also known as the Black Renaissance or New Negro Movement, was a cultural movement among African Americans. It began roughly after the end of World War 1 in 1918. Blacks were considered second class citizens and were treated as such.
During the time period of the emancipation proclamation multiple black authors were becoming educated enough to write works of poetry. Such works have influenced and persuaded the minds of white people all over America to this very day. It also gave their own people a work of art to turn to for their own history. The poets have ventured into modern day eras also, and still have the same topics at hand. The main idea of these poetry pieces was on their ancestors in Africa but also of course of the modern problem of slavery. Langston Hughes was the first influential black poet. Lucille Clifton and Colleen McElroy are modern poets but is a black woman who has other views on slavery but also very similar looks on their historical past. All of the poets all mentioned their historical background in Africa. Langston Hughes, Lucille Clifton, and Colleen McElroy all wrote about their ancestors and of slavery, and some of the same references were of the rivers, and the connection between the people even though they are literally worlds apart; a difference between the poems was the desire for freedom and the freedom that was already existing in the modern day poetry of Lucille Clifton and Colleen McElroy.
Poetry is a versatile avenue from which waves or ripples can be made potentially. A writer of poetry has the ability to make their readers feel a while wide array of emotions and situations synonymous with the human condition. I, at first, was completely turned off to the idea of poetry at first because all I was exposed to early on by way of poetry were bland professions of love or lust or seemingly simple poems I was forced to process down to a fine word paste. Edgar Allan Poe was interesting, but it was a tad bit dry to me. But, after reading poems the Harlem Renaissance gave me a bit of hope for poetry. To me, the poetry written during that time period has a certain allure to it. They have serious depth and meaning that I, myself and empathize
Demi Lovato is a famous singer, songwriter, and actor born in 1992 in New Mexico. Although she was on “Barney & Friends” as a child, most people know her from her years as an actress and an occasional singer on disney channel. She co-starred in the famous movie series “Camp Rock” and also in the television series “Sonny with a Chance.” After these acting positions, Lovato began a career in singing. She has released many albums and has had many hit songs such as “Heart Attack” and “Cool for the Summer.” In 2012 and 2013, Lovato was a judge on “The X Factor” (Wikipedia). Singing is a huge part of Lovato’s life, and she pours her heart and should into her lyrics.
The Harlem Renaissance gave African American women new opportunities in literature. “The Harlem Renaissance was the name given to the cultural, social, and artistic explosion that took place in Harlem between the end of World War 1 and the middle of the 1930s.” (Wormser) It was a challenge for women poets during the Harlem Renaissance because they were both black and women. (Walton) Jessie Fauset, Georgia Douglas Johnson, Regina Anderson, and Nella Larson all played important roles in the Harlem Renaissance. (Lewis) These women inspired many generations of women to come. (Walton)
Two well regarded and recognized poets, Maya Angelou and Alice Walker, wrote lots of different renowned poetry that is appreciated for its beauty and its truth. Both poets are African American woman, although in different times, many of their words rang true to one other. Their work can be compared and contrasted by understanding the poems as two separate pieces of work, and then looking at how each are similar and different in their own respects.
Nikki Giovanni’s poem entitled “Nikki-Rosa,” depicts a personal reflection of Giovanni’s life growing up. The poem concentrates on the fact that people have different childhood memories depending on their social status’. Giovanni reconstructs her most powerful memories and creates an identity of what the black population stands for. She establishes the different ways in which black families were rich, which did not necessarily include an abundance of wealth. In addition to, she compared these non-monetary riches to the memories of those who were raised with a silver spoon.
Poetry is very difficult to interpret because everybody has a different approach, understand, meaning and point of view. My next writer is an African Americans whose poem is” Black Art” by Amiri Baraka “Black Art”. In the poem “ Black Art “, the poem is dedicated to African American to wake up and reverse the situation , by taking control over everything . The author urges the audience to be conscious and unconscious about African-American. Amiri is saying I need to see all the hardworking of the African American not just word but reality, proof, demonstration, and action been taking. In addition, in a poem the author express his anger; frustration to the audience how he feels and the action need take
The Harlem Renaissance was a transformable period in time when poetry changed a nation of African-Americans to an incredible level. Langston Hughes was one of the leading black writers in that time period, and wrote many different types of literature. He wrote, and created a new literary art form called jazz poetry. Literature is a powerful element that can inspire, teach, and entertain. All three of these words lead to social change. David Walker was one of many African American writers who succeeded in inspiring, teaching, and entertaining when he wrote. He was among the early African American protest writers who was against slavery. He also created an appeal on the slavery issue. He knew that he would spark an uprising, but he wanted to see a change. According to Walker, “"America is as much our country, as it is yours.--Treat us like men, and there is no danger but we will all live in peace and happiness."(Walker, 1) Though he writes to try
In this essay I will be arguing how Langston Hughes and Maya Angelou similar writing styles affected their community and brought to light a positive way of thinking. Langston Hughes was an American poet, social activist, and novelist from Missouri. Hughes played an influential role in the Harlem Renaissance era. Hughes was known for being conscious and it echoed in his work. He used music as well as imagery to tell the world the struggles that African-Americans endure in their era. Hughes poems told stories that were relatable and reflected his community. Maya Angelou was an American poet, actress, civil rights activist, along with many other things. As a civil rights activist, Angelou worked alongside with Dr. Martin Luther King Jr. and