Harlem Renaissance

Alan R. Diaz
Professor Michael Malone
ENC1102
27 July 2011
Harlem renaissance: writings about black experiences
One of the most important cultural movements throughout the history of this country is without any doubt the Harlem Renaissance. This movement saw the birth of many literary figures which represented the mentality as well as the cultural aspects of the life of African Americans atthe time. Not only the Harlem Renaissance saw the rise of great literature, but also it contributed to the development of great African American musicians. All these authors and musicians centered their work in showing the experiences of African Americans as well as they called for what would be a more humane treatment. However, the most important message they sent with their work was a concernford black identity, as well as a strong message about equality between races and civil rights.
In the musical aspect, the movement saw the evolution of jazz, as many jazz musicians moved north to an area in Harlem called San Juan Hill, due to this area cheap housing and new opportunities. Nevertheless, musicians started to experiment with their cultural roots and capabilities, generating amazingresults. At the time, Jazz mainly used brass instruments, but during that period of time added instruments like the piano, which was an instrument something that helped to be more attractive to blacks as well as to whites, and to reach more people.
Jazz singers used the music to send messages and express their feelings towards the racism and other aspects that affected the African Americancommunity. Singers like Billie Holiday, used poems in their works to illustrate those issues. “Strange fruit” is a famous song recorded by Mrs. Holiday in 1939. The song is based on a poem written by man named Abel Meeropol. Ironically, Mr. Meerpol was a white Jewish, who was horrified by pictures of the multiple lynching that were taking place. The poem talks about how southern trees bear strangefruits, which are basically the bodies of black men tortured and hanged by white supremacist groups. The poem basically denounces the multiple lynching and atrocities that blacks were subject to, especially in the south of the country. The song enjoyed a great popularity and multiple civil rights organizations quickly adopted the poem as a theme for various movements.
At the same time as musicians andwriters, visual artists started to explore and display more of that black identity movement within their work. We can cite artists such as Jacob, which throughout its career depicted many aspects of the African American culture. One of the series of works Mr. Lawrence did is called “The Great Migration”, which is a series of paintings that illustrate the wave of African Americans that migrated tonorthern cities in search of a better life and job opportunities.
One of the most interesting aspects of the Harlem renaissance is its literature. In the literature is where we can find all those works that tackled the racism and the segregation that reigned during that period of time.
Langston Hughes is perhaps one of the most important authors of the Harlem Renaissance, a cultural movement ofthe 1920s and 1930s, in essays such as “Salvation” and poems “Harlem,” Hughes explores the range of themes – segregation, identity and racial pride – that are emblematic of the movement. In his works, Hughes argues for – as do other Harlem Renaissance writers and artists – the notion that African-Americans must pursue their dreams and resist “conforming” to norms in society that would limit theirfreedom and expression
In his personal essay, “Salvation”…., we can appreciate a style of writing where he writes a narrative of personal experience as a black teenager. In this short story he talks about one of the most central matters in black society at the time, which was religion, but also touches it from the point of taking right decisions even if they go against with the rules and...