Why study harlem?

I feel that studying the harlem renaissance is still worthwhile because it was a time when blacks were finally liberated and slowly gaining rights along with women. It showed the harsh brutalities they had to face along with the many stereotypes they had to fight against to build a strong respectable reputation as a black community. People began to embrace who they were and were proud of their heritage. It was a time where black writers and musicians and artists were finally becoming recognized for their contributions to society. We need to study the harlem renaissance to understand what the blacks had to go through and what they had to face in society in order to make a change.

End of book

The ending of the book Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston took me by surprise. I was shocked to find out that Tea Cake has beaten Janie. I do not know the reasons behind him beating her other than to possibly show control over her as any man does to a woman they beat. I really can't say as though I was shocked to see that Janie just took it instead of standing up for herself. I feel this came from her past and how Joe use to control her by not allowing her to speak in public or even really be seen for that matter. I feel as though she just took this as a fact of life. She has been controlled before so it is nothing new now. I feel she like many other woman have fallen into this trap with abuse. Whether it is emotional, mental, or physical people do not leave. They feel that their love can change the man and that they will see the error of their ways and yes that is nice to think but more than likely will never happen. Granted Jody never gave her the freedom to do what she wants and with Tea Cake she can have a say she can use her voice so in a way she found herself and her strength. I feel that since she was able find her inner strength and find her voice that even though he beats her it is better than what she had before where she had no voice. I can speak from experiece that if a man beat me I could never stay with him. My boyfriend of over two years decided he was going to hit me one day and quickly after that I left him. There was no way I was going to stay around any longer to find out what else he would have done and that is why I cannot see how Janie would stay with this man. It doesn't matter how much you love someone if they can raise their hand or hurt you in any way one time they can do it again and more than likely will.

Zora Hurston

Reading the packet handed out by the teacher I was quite surprised. The lady that was writing this article was trying to find accurate information on voodoo practices of the Southern Blacks in the 1930's. As she went around trying to find materials she was very let down by white racist anthropologists and folklorists she thought she could trust. When she audited a class she heard Zora's name mentioned for the first time and wanted to find out more about her but the teacher just quickly talked about her and spent more time on the more famous writes and poets of that time.

While reading Zora's work the thought of being racially and cultrually inferior to whites never crossed her mind which pleased me. Since it seems that all the things we have read up to this point was just about how blacks have been racially segregated, and inferior to the white race. In Zora's writings she would talk about a superior society which is a nice change of pace.

Many blacks have forgoteen about their southern heritage but after Zora's book Mules and Men changed all that. It completely changed how Blacks felt and thought. By reading her book it "gave back all the stories they had forgotten or of which they have grown to be ashamed of which was told to them years ago by their parents and grandparents which would make them weep or laugh." It showed them just how great these stories are. I haven't read Zora's book but I think it would be very interesting and a great read.

Their Eyes Were Watching God

I think that it is a nice change of pace reading a novel now instead of all those poems. Just starting out with this book I find it to be a little challenging to read but interesting as well. I just liked the scene where all the ladies are gathered on the porch to talk about Janie and how she was seen earlier leaving town with a young man who's name is Tea Cake which (which made me laugh) and now she was seen walking alone. I just found it to be interesting how they immediately jumped to the conclusion that Tea Cake left her for a younger woman when that isn't the truth after all. It turns out that she can't be with him at that place anymore cause she isn't happy there. I felt that they were just so quick to judging her since she is beautiful with long beautiful hair and they were just jealous of her. And just because she walked by and didn't bother to stop and talk to the ladies on the porch doesn't mean she is withdrawn or impersonal she probably just didn't want to talk to them. It is good that Phobe stood up for Janie though!

While I was reading this it reminded me of Autobiography. In this book Janie did not know that she was black. In fact she thought of herself as white until she saw that picture of herself. Just like in Autofbiography of an Ex Coloured man. He never knew he was different from the others until the teach pointed it out. I think this just goes to show you just how color blind children are. To children everyone is the same it isn't until you have the influence of environment and parents that children begin to become racist and prejudice.

Then when it talks about how when Janie was 16 she would often sit under a pear tree thinking about the budding fertility of spring which I felt is also a sexual reference to herself and the tree is almost like a standard that she has. A tree is strong, sturdy, it is the ideal love she is longing for. Now I could be reading too much into that and maybe I am totally off base when I say that but it seems with everything we have read you have to look inbetween the lines, through the lines, etc.

I was upset reading the part about Janie with Johnny I think his name is and Nanny catches her with Johnny and decides to quickly marry her off to a man named Logan just to be sure she is taken care of. I can understand her reasoning behind it all it just all seemed unfair.

I have liked this book so far and hopefully it stays good!

Hughes poems

With everything that we have read for class so far I have to say I like Langston Hughes poems the best. I feel that they are an easy read, easy to interpet and just a lot better than our other readings. The poem that I really liked and I feel many people can relate to is "Mother to Son."

This poem is about a mother talking to her son about perserverance and never giving up. She talks about her life and how is was not easy for her. She had encountered many obstacles, sometimes she would be walking in the dark which I took as she was trying to find a path to follow that is different than the one she is on. This new path is dark because it's unknown she is taking a risk with her life going places she is unsure of but will not allow herself to look back. The life she had at some parts contained splinters, the boards we all torn up meaning that she experienced pain. With the boards torn up the path her life was on became difficult where she had to keep going on and find a new way to obtain her goals in life.

She is telling this to her son so that he will not give up and to let him know that life is not all about apple pie in the sky. There will be heartach, there will be trials. At some parts you will have to find your own way when the path you are on has roadblocks or is all torn up. That even though the path you choose is not clear right now keeping marching through the darkness and you will find the light. Though you don't know where you life is leading you now everything always seems to work itself out in the end so don't ever look back and keep going because it will make you a stronger person.

I think that this poem relates to all of us. No one knows where our lives will take us. Right now we may see a path and we can see the end and it all looks great but something happens that throws us on a different, unexpected and unfamiliar path. We could choose to turn around to what is comfortable and familiar or keep moving forward and see where this new path in life takes us.

Countee Cullen

Out of all the poems I read from this handout I think that my favorite ones that stuck out to me were Tableau and Incident.

In the poem Tableau I just found it to be interesting. Here you you have two boys one white and one black walking arm in arm. They know they are different but to them it doesn't mean anything. To these boys all they cared about was their friendship and the fact that the other one was of a different color didn't bother them. The only ones who seems to have a problem with them are the older people. It says how "from lowered blinds the dark fold stare, and here the fair folk talk, indignant that these two should dare in unison to walk." To me this just shocked me and really made me realize that racism is mostly the adults fault. To these boys color meant nothing but to the older people it meant everything and "how dare these two walk together." Give me a break they are friends and just because someone's skin is darker than yours doesn't mean they are any better or worse.

Then I read the poem the Incident and this really stood out to me as well. Its about this boy going to Baltimore for the first time and on the ride up there someone called him a nigger. He went on to stay in Baltimore for a few more months but the only thing that he remembered was this one incident on the ride up. This goes to show you just how hurtful words are and things that are said out of the "norm" or hate have a lasting impact. As you can tell this boy didn't remember any fun interesting things he did all he could remember was that hurtful word spoken to him that one day. This just makes me realize that even I have to make sure I watch what I say. Granted I would never say a word like that to anyone still things you say do hurt and do cut deep.

Brownies Book

I found this booklet handed out by the teacher was interesting. The story that stood out to me though was called Jury. In this story it is about a young black boy writing to an editor of a magazine asking him to in his magazines about what jobs black boys can do. This boy wants to draw up houses and have other people build them. The reason he wants to draw up houses is because he saw a white boy doing it and thought it would be fun. As, he was speaking to the boy the boy laughed at him and said "colored boys don't draw houses."

I was shocked at this remark. I realize that back them racism and prejudice was part of everyday life and for most kids it was engrained in them since birth by their parents, but to laugh at someone just for expressing a desire to draw houses is rediculous. This just really shocked me it was as if they were saying that the only thing that black people can do or know how to do is pick cotton or tend to the houses as well as all the other jobs that went along with slavery. It saddened me in a way that you could actually see how restricted of a life blacks led.