1. The Harlem Renaissance
Zora Neale Hurston and Their Eyes Were Watching God

2. What was it?
An unprecedented period of literary, musical, and artistic production among African Americans that reached its peak in the 1920s and lasted through the early 1930s.
Centered in the Harlem section of Manhattan in New York City

3. Why did it take place?
Southern blacks needed to escape the South for many reasons:
Poverty
Racial violence
Lack of freedoms
The “Red Summer” of 1919
4 million KKK members
Anti-Black riots in 26 cities

4. A New Identity: “The New Negro”
Rejection of beastlike or sentimental stereotypes
A collective identity arises
Better educational/employment opportunities arise
Pride in their race; highlight contributions to American culture
Provided entertainment opportunities for the community

5. Literary Contributors
Langston Hughes:
Praised blackness, embraced the common man as his subjects, and blended elements of jazz and blues into his writing
Arguably the most famous African-American poet of all-time
Zora Neale Hurston
Literary works reflect a love of black language and manners
One of the first writers to present African Americans as complete, multifaceted human beings

6. Claude McKay
-- Used poetry and prose to protest racial injustice. Helped launch the Harlem Renaissance
Countee Cullen
-- A well-known poet who won many poetry awards after graduating from Harvard.
James Weldon Johnson
-- Successful Broadway songwriter. Wrote “Lift Every Voice and Sing” became known as the African-America “national anthem.”

7. The End of an Era
Depression of the 1930s brought an end to the Harlem Renaissance
Contributors had to find steadier jobs
However, the spirit lived on…
Gwendolyn Brooks – Pulitzer Prize, 1950
James Baldwin – Essays on racism
Toni Morrison – Nobel Peace Prize: Literature
Dr. Dre, Jay-Z, Beyoncé and Snoop can all trace success back to the Renaissance

8. Zora Neale Hurston Lived in Eatonville, Florida, as a child
America’s first all-black town
Known for her candid portrayal of the struggle and courage of African-Americans in the rural South
Refused to honor gender roles in her writing
Fell into obscurity during the 1940s
Worked as a maid in the 50s
Died penniless in 1960 and was buried in an unmarked grave

9. Their Eyes Were Watching God
Story follows Janie Crawford Killicks Starks Woods as she balances love and independence in the backwoods of Florida in the early-mid 1930s
Themes:
Language
Love
Community
Independence
Race/Racism
Religion/Spirituality