Self- Acceptance is an important characteristic to have. Self- Acceptance is defined as being realistic about oneself and at the same time comfortable with that personal assessment. (Farlex Dictionary) Zora Neale Hurston wrote several works promoting self- acceptance. A few of many works written by Hurston are How It Feels to be Colored Me, The Glided Six Bits, Jonah’s Gourd Vine, Their Eyes Were Watching God, and Color Struck. She chose characters throughout her works that were not perfect: “She did not write to “up lift her race,” either; because in her view it was already uplifted, she (like Claude McKay) was not embarrassed to present her characters as mixtures of good and bad, strong and weak. Some of the other Harlem writers thought …show more content…
By Zora Hurston being an African American female she was considered to be a double minority. Minority is a smaller number or part, especially a number that is less than half the whole number. (Oxford Dictionary) Since there were a small percentage of African Americans living in the United States, African Americas were labeled as minorities. Though Hurston is labeled a double minority she did not accept how society tried to view her as an individual through her entire race. Hurston assured her readers that she had a self-found identity and rejected sobering over the suffering of her ancestors. “Someone is always at my elbow at my elbow reminding me that I am the granddaughter of a slave. Slavery is sixty years in the past… The operation was successful and the patient is doing well, thank you. (2125) Hurston argued that she appreciates how things have changed from what her ancestors overcame, but she was not victim of slavery and has no reason to feel as if she is a …show more content…
When I set my hat at certain angles and saunter down Seventh Avenue, Harlem City, feeling as snooty as the lions in front of the Forty Second Street Library… I am merely a fragment of the Great Soul that surges within the boundaries. My country right or wrong.” (2127) Hurston did not allow her individuality to be predicted by anyone other than herself and expressed her love for America although American citizens from the past did degrading things to her ancestors. During the time period known as the Great Migration, African Americans, moved from southern states to northern states hoping to gain financial stability for their families. Since slavery was not permitted in northern states African American thought that they could escape prejudice actions from whites. Though all whites did stereo type Africa Americans because of their race during this time period in America history many did: “During this period, white people differed from colored to me on in that they through town and never lived there. They like to hear me “speak pieces” and sing and wanted to see me dance the parse-me-la and gave generously of their small silver for doing these things, which seemed strange to me for I wanted to do them so much that I need bribing to stop” (Hurston
In Hurston’s essay, she mentions her family didn't what her to make contact with white people. It is the turning point of this essay. She had a great enlightenment when she realized: the society isn't treating us differently, it’s us who see ourselves differently. Anyhow, she has been very proud to be an African American. The entire essay is written in an encouraging way, which leads the reader to brainstorm the position of ourselves in this
This piece of autobiographical works is one of the greatest pieces of literature and will continue to inspire young and old black Americans to this day be cause of her hard and racially tense background is what produced an eloquent piece of work that feels at times more fiction than non fiction
It is strange that two of the most prominent artists of the Harlem Renaissance could ever disagree as much as or be as different as Zora Neale Hurston and Richard Wright. Despite the fact that they are the same color and lived during the same time period, they do not have much else in common. On the one hand is Hurston, a female writer who indulges in black art and culture and creates subtle messages throughout her most famous novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God. On the other hand is Wright, who is a male writer who demonstrates that whites do not like black people, nor will they ever except for when they are in the condition “…America likes to see the Negro live: between laughter and tears.” Hurston was also a less political writer than Wright. When she did write politically, she was very subtle about stating her beliefs.
Both Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes were great writers but their attitudes towards their personal experience as an African American differed in many ways. These differences can be attributed to various reasons that range from gender to life experience but even though they had different perceptions regarding the African American experience, they both shared one common goal, racial equality through art. To accurately delve into the minds of the writers’ one must first consider authors background such as their childhood experience, education, as well their early adulthood to truly understand how it affected their writing in terms the similarities and differences of the voice and themes used with the works “How it Feels to be Colored Me” by Hurston and Hughes’ “The Negro Mother”. The importance of these factors directly correlate to how each author came to find their literary inspiration and voice that attributed to their works.
In “The Gilded Six-Bits,” Zora Neale Hurston uses several techniques to characterize Joe and Missy May, the main couple throughout the story. Hurston uses her own life experiences to characterize Joe and Missy May and their marriage. She also shows their character development through her writing styles and techniques, which show reactions and responses between Joe and Missy May to strengthen the development of their relationship. Hurston supports her character development through her writing style, her characters dialect, and includes experiences from her own life to portray a sense of reality to her character’s personalities.
What I feel is truly remarkable about this author is that despite all the scrutiny and anguish that she faces like most of her race at the time she does not take a negative attitude towards white people and she actually chooses to ignore the general racial segregation. Her charming wit and sense of humor despite all the hardship is what attracts the reader. Hurston does not let her social disadvantages stop her from trying to achieve her aspirations and dreams. She does not see being colored as a disadvantage, but accepts it as a challenge to excel and be unique.
Beneath the lies a hidden history of unorganized, everyday conflict waged by African-American working people. Once we explore in greater detail those daily conflicts and the social and cultural spaces where ordinary people felt free to articulate their opposition and power in African-American "folk" communities. Folklore's function as an everyday form of resistance in the Jim Crow South. Zora Hurston, narrative frame is far more supple than has previously been acknowledged. She gave the title Mules and Men a depiction of comparison of African Americans in the South(niggers) to mules. The mule is a work horse that is not used for speed, but known for eats weak minds and strong back. Hurston brings a clear view of the strong minds that enable this culture to thrive.
Typically minority groups are thought of in the context of race; however, a minority group can also consist of gender and class. The struggles facing a minority group complicate further when these different facets of minority categories are combined into what is sometimes called a double minority. Throughout American history, African American women have exemplified how being a double minority changes the conditions of being a minority. In Reminiscences by Frances D. Gage of Sojourner Truth, for May 28-29, 1851, a speech by Sojourner Truth is recalled where she poses the question-"Ain't I a woman" (Lauter 2049). Truth speaks for women's rights in this speech, but her question becomes more interesting when applied to African American women because they move from being a double minority to a single minority with this statement. Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl, Song of Solomon, and Push demonstrate in their African American female characters the impact of having a double minority status.
She even talks about how they were being generous to her. For example, Hurston says, “During this period, white people differed from colored to me only in that they rode through town and never lived there. They liked to hear me “speak pieces" and sing and wanted to see me dance the parse-me-la, and gave me generously of their small silver for doing these things, which seemed strange to me for I wanted to do them so much that I needed bribing to stop, only they didn 't know it” (539). Hurston would soon find out that when she had to leave her small town to go to a boarding school because of family changes that the real world is full of racism and discrimination towards colored people. I think this is when she realizes that she is
Hurston, Zora Neale. “How It Feels to Be Colored Me.” Writer’s Presence: A Pool of Readings. 5th ed. Ed. Robert Atawan and Donald McQuade. Boston:Bedford/St. Martin’s, 2006. 166-170. Print
Hurston does not concern herself with the actions of whites. Instead, she concerns herself with the self-perceptions and actions of blacks. Whites become almost irrelevant, certainly negative, but in no way absolute influences on her
In conclusion, Hurston was a modernist writer who dealt with societal themes of racism, and social and racial identity. She steps away from the folk-oriented style of writing other African American authors, such as Langston Hughes, and she addresses modern topics and issues that relate to her people. She embraces pride in her color and who she is. She does not hate the label of “colored” that has been placed upon her. She embraces who she is and by example, she teaches others to love themselves and the color of their skin. She is very modern. She is everybody’s Zora.
It is important to not that the direction of Brooks’s literary career shifted dramatically in the late 1960’s. While attending a black writers’ conference she was struck by the passion of the young poets. Before this happened, she had regarded herself as essentially a universalist, who happened to be black. After the conference, she shifted from writing about her poems about black people and life to writing for the black population.
Steptoe is the epitome of this because she convinced herself that black people cannot listen to country music or be even be associated with it because of how society defines them. She also disengaged herself with it because she thought that the only people who listened to country music were white racist people. Hurston would call her out on this and explain that yes this happens, we do “colorize” people, but it is not something that should define a person. What defines a person is who they are on the inside, not by the stereotype, and definitely not what society thinks. Hurston wrote this essay to inspire future black generations to look past the stereotype and imagine a world in which we were only defined by our identity. She states “No one on earth ever had a greater chance at glory. The world to be won and nothing lost” (Hurston, 418). She is inspiring these colored communities to show the world that they are not defined by the slavery, racial slurs, and that we should not belong to the “...sobbing school of Negrohood” (Hurston, 417). When Steptoe finally defines herself by her country music, and by her band, and although that’s all she should define herself by she still knows that the world may not see her
Even as a child, Thelma Lucille Sayles, or Lucille Clifton, realized how notable African Americans were. However, throughout her lifetime, Clifton has encountered discrimination against her race on multiple occasions, but her poetry, for both adults and children, show resilience against any racist remarks made. With a heavy influence from growing up in an African-American household and experiencing the Civil Rights Movement, Lucille Clifton’s writings focus on the importance of African Americans, especially women, in communities (Hine 1-3).