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Michelle Joseph is a Toronto-based blogger, podcaster, and now author of “Words with Michelle: Inspirational Conversations with Today's Black Canadian Changemakers.” Her journey as a storyteller is inspiring, authentic, and filled with wisdom for anyone looking to amplify community voices and pursue creative passions.
The Harlem Renaissance was an intellectual, social, and artistic explosion centred in Harlem, New York, spanning the 1920s. During the time, it was known as the "New Negro Movement," named after the 1925 anthology. During the early twentieth century, the movement also reflected a broader push for racial pride and cultural identity among African American communities.
Amidst the Renaissance, various factors contributed to its birth and growth, including the Great Migration, where thousands of African Americans moved from the South to the North, a more concentrated racial pride, and the influence of Caribbean immigrant communities. This efflorescence not only fostered a black cultural identity but also impacted American culture in general.
In an effort to delve into this transformative era, here are ten varied and influential books that capture the spirit of the Harlem Renaissance:
1. "The New Negro" edited by Alain Locke (1925)
While the Harlem Renaissance waned with the Great Depression, the social changes it affected were instrumental in laying the groundwork for the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960s. The New Negro remains a cornerstone of African American literature and a vital document for understanding the cultural history of the 20th-century United States.
The New Negro: An Interpretation is an anthology of fiction, poetry, and essays edited by Alain Locke, which was published in 1925. Alain Locke, a distinguished philosopher, writer, and educator, is often referred to as the "Dean" of the Harlem Renaissance. His work as an editor of this compilation helped to define the contours of this influential cultural movement that spanned the 1920s and 1930s.
Often considered the definitive anthology of the period, this compilation features essays, poetry, and fiction from key figures of the Harlem Renaissance. Locke's collection announced the arrival of the New Negro Movement and its cultural expressions.
The anthology contains Locke's titular essay, The New Negro, in which he articulates the philosophical underpinnings of the movement: it's marked by militant advocacy of dignity and a refusal to submit quietly to the practices and laws of Jim Crow racial segregation.
The New Negro includes contributions from some of the most prominent African American writers of the time, including:
- Langston Hughes
- Zora Neale Hurston
- Claude McKay
- Jean Toomer
2. "Their Eyes Were Watching God" by Zora Neale Hurston (1937)
Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston, published in 1937, is an important work of African-American literature and a seminal piece in women's literature. It explores the life of Janie Crawford, an African-American woman in her early forties, who narrates her life story to her best friend, Pheoby Watson, over the course of the novel. The narrative spans Janie's life from her youth to her last relationship, focusing on her search for self-fulfillment and a sense of independence, mainly through her relationships with men.
The story is set in rural Florida in the early 20th century and unfolds in a flashback structure. Janie reflects on her journey toward finding her voice and her sense of self. Throughout the novel, we see her experience different kinds of love and relationships with three markedly different men.
The title, "Their Eyes Were Watching God," reflects the novel's exploration of themes such as the search for selfhood, the nature of love, the role of women in society, the experience of African American culture, and the interplay between destiny and will. Hurston's use of dialect and a strong narrative voice brings authenticity to Janie's story, highlighting the oral traditions of African American culture.
Although the novel was initially received with mixed reviews, it has since gained status as a classic in American literature. Its portrayal of the inner life of a black woman was particularly groundbreaking at the time of its publication, and it continues to be celebrated for its literary merit and its profound insight into human life and relationships.
3. "Cane" by Jean Toomer (1923)
This part-narrative, part-drama, and part-poetry novel is a literary masterpiece that crosses traditional genre lines to create a vivid mosaic of Black life in the rural South and urban North. Published in 1923, the book is a collection of sketches, poems, and short stories, and it played a crucial role in the Harlem Renaissance. Toomer's work is renowned for its portrayal of African American life, focusing on the experiences of its characters in both the Southern and Northern United States.
Toomer's innovative style combines the modernist aesthetics of fragmentation, stream of consciousness, and varied narrative techniques with a rich exploration of African American folklore, music, and oral traditions. Caneis is celebrated for its unique structure, lyrical prose, and powerful examination of race and identity in early 20th-century America. It's considered a turning point in African American literature and continues to be a subject of academic study and literary critique.
The book examines complex issues such as race, identity, and social upheaval. Racial identity is a particularly significant theme, with Toomer refusing to adhere strictly to one racial category, instead embracing a more universal human identity even as he delves deeply into the African American experience.
The modernist technique is apparent in Toomer's lyrical and fragmented style, which reflects the fractured nature of the characters' lives and the disruptions of societal change. Stream of consciousness gives readers direct access to the inner worlds of the characters. At the same time, the interplay of poetry and prose emphasizes the richness of African American oral and musical traditions.
Cane is renowned for its beauty and its stark, sometimes painful, representation of the lives it portrays. Through its experimental form and poignant storytelling, the book invites continued discussion and analysis, making it an enduring work in the canon of American literature. As a keystone of the Harlem Renaissance, it helped to redefine African American narrative and identity in the arts, influencing countless writers and artists who followed.
4. "Home to Harlem" by Claude McKay (1928)
As a seminal novel of the period, this book captures the vibrancy and challenges of life in Harlem through the story of a young soldier returning home from World War I to find a community brimming with creativity and turbulence.
Home to Harlem is a novel by Jamaican-American writer Claude McKay, first published in 1928. It holds a critical place in literature as it contributed to the Harlem Renaissance, the cultural, social, and artistic explosion that took place in Harlem, New York, in the 1920s and 1930s.
The novel follows the story of Jake Brown, an African American soldier who deserts the United States Army and returns to Harlem, eager to re-immerse himself in the bustling neighbourhood he calls home. The book provides a narrative of his experiences with love, work, and the quest for a life of fulfillment in the midst of a vibrant but challenging urban environment.
The prose of Home to Harlem stands out for its vivid and colourful depiction of the daily life of African Americans during the period. McKay captures the dialect, music, culture, and social scene of Harlem with an authenticity that had rarely been seen in literature until then. Through Jake's interactions, the reader encounters a variety of characters, each representing different aspects of Harlem life—a reflection of the diversity and complexity of the black urban experience.
Home to Harlem was groundbreaking for its unflinching portrayal of the harsh realities faced by Black people, including discrimination, poverty, and the search for identity. At the same time, it also celebrates the resilience, creativity, and spirit of the Black community.
Indeed, Claude McKay's depiction of Harlem is not without its controversies; his frank portrayal of sexuality and nightlife in Harlem was met with criticism by some prominent figures of the Harlem Renaissance, who felt that it painted a negative image of African American life. Despite the critique, McKay's work is often lauded for its honesty and its contribution to showcasing the full spectrum of African American urban life during this transformative era.
Home to Harlem is an important piece of African American literature and plays a significant role in portraying the black experience during the early 20th century. It continues to be studied and celebrated for its artistic merit and its historical significance within the broader context of the Harlem Renaissance and the development of African American literature.
5. "The Weary Blues" by Langston Hughes (1926)
"The Weary Blues" is a poem written by American poet Langston Hughes, first published in 1926. A pioneer of the Harlem Renaissance, Hughes was known for incorporating the cadence of jazz and the blues into his poetry to authentically capture the African American experience.
Showcasing Langston Hughes’s talent as a poet, this collection of poems covers a range of topics from pride in African American culture to the hardships of life in Harlem, infused with jazz and blues rhythms.
The poem "The Weary Blues" describes a scene where the speaker listens to a blues musician playing in a club on Lenox Avenue in Harlem. The musician's song reflects his pain and the struggles of black Americans during the early 20th century. Hughes uses vivid imagery and repetition to mimic the music's rhythm, creating a melancholic yet captivating atmosphere that allows readers to feel the music as if they were there.
The poem is not only a literal expression of the blues but also a reflection of Hughes's own thematic concerns, such as identity, resilience, and the enduring spirit of the black community in the face of adversity. The musicality in the language of the poem celebrates African American culture and its significant contribution to the broader American cultural landscape.
The publication of "The Weary Blues" granted Langston Hughes significant acclaim, and it remains an important work in American literature. It reflects the lived experience of African Americans and the richness of their musical and oral traditions. The poem and the larger collection of the same name deal with complex themes such as racism, disenfranchisement, pride, and hope, showcasing Hughes’s ability to intertwine social commentary with art.
6. "Plum Bun: A Novel Without a Moral" by Jessie Redmon Fauset (1929)
Plum Bun: A Novel Without a Moral by Jessie Redmon Fauset, published in 1929, is a significant work in African American literature and part of the Harlem Renaissance. Jessie Redmon Fauset was an influential editor, poet, essayist, and novelist who helped shape the literary movement that flourished in Harlem between World War I and the mid-1930s. The Harlem Renaissance was known for its artistic explosion of African American culture, encompassing literature, music, stage performance, art, and intellectual debate.
The novel Plum Bun is notable for its exploration of race, identity, and the complexity of the African American experience. The story centers around a young, light-skinned African American woman named Angela Murray. Because of her complexion, Angela can "pass" as white, giving her access to opportunities and social circles commonly denied to Black people at the time.
The narrative follows Angela as she moves from her family home in Philadelphia’s black community to New York City, where she attempts to live as a white person. She experiences the freedoms and privileges associated with being white but also confronts the moral implications and emotional turmoil that come with denying her true identity. Throughout the book, Fauset examines themes such as racial passing, the colour line, ethnic identity, sexism, and class issues.
Plum Bun reflects many aspects of Jessie Redmon Fauset's own life experiences as an African American woman of light complexion. She was known for her keen insights into the lives of middle-class African Americans, the struggles of women, and the realities of racial prejudice. Her work contributed to questioning the concept of race and the exploration of identity, a hallmark of the Harlem Renaissance.
As with many Harlem Renaissance texts, the novel draws attention to the cultural vibrancy of African American communities and critiques the racism and limited opportunity structures that existed in early 20th-century America. The title "Plum Bun" refers to a nursery rhyme and is a metaphor used within the text, symbolizing the illusory nature of the "sweet" life that Angela seeks through passing as white.
Like other figures of the Harlem Renaissance, Fauset's contribution to American literature provided a voice for African Americans and an articulation of the black experience that countered the pervasive racial stereotypes of the time. Her work continues to be studied for its literary merit and valuable portrayal of American social history.
7. "Black No More" by George S. Schuyler (1931)
Black No More is a satirical novel by African American author George S. Schuyler, first published in 1931. The story is set during the Harlem Renaissance in the United States when questions surrounding race, identity, and equality were fiercely debated in the African American community and beyond.
The premise of Black No More is grounded in speculative fiction. It involves the invention of a scientific procedure that can make black people appear to be white, thus "solving" their racial problems—at least on the surface. This process, created by a black scientist named Dr. Junius Crookman, became widely available and was commercialized as the Black-No-More treatment.
The story follows the experiences of Max Disher, a black man who undergoes Crookman's procedure and becomes a white man named Matthew Fisher. As a white man, Fisher can navigate society differently, gaining access to opportunities that were previously out of reach due to the colour of his skin. However, his transformation also leads him into a complex web of deception as he enters into a relationship with a white woman who is a member of a white supremacist group.
The novel uses biting humour and irony to explore the absurdity of race as a social construct and criticizes the notion that racial problems could be addressed simply by changing one’s skin colour. Schuyler's work delves into the racial dynamics of the time, examining how the transformation of black individuals into white ones affects various aspects of American society, from personal relationships to business and politics.
Black No More critiques the idea of racial purity by exposing the hypocrisy of white supremacists who unknowingly embrace people of African descent as one of their own after the transformation. The story also looks at how the treatment disrupts the status quo, affecting both the black community, which begins to decline as more individuals opt for the treatment, and the white community, which grapples with the fear of racial indistinguishability.
The novel's themes remain relevant today, as it provides a unique perspective on the historical context of race relations and encourages readers to reflect on the ongoing issues of identity, equality, and the concept of race itself. The biting satire and incisive social commentary have ensured that "Black No More" is remembered as a significant work in African American literature and the broader landscape of American speculative fiction.
8. "Quicksand" by Nella Larsen (1928)
In a semi-autobiographical novel, Larsen explores the life of Helga Crane, who, like Larsen herself, is of mixed heritage. The work explores her experience with race, identity, and finding a place to belong in America and Europe during the Harlem Renaissance.
Helga's mixed-race identity places her in a unique position in society—she experiences a sense of disconnection from both the white and black communities. This experience echoes Larsen's own life, as she, too, was of mixed descent and lived through the complexities of racial identity in early 20th-century America.
Throughout the book, Helga travels between various communities and geographical locations, including the American South, Harlem in New York City, and Denmark. In each place, she seeks to find a sense of belonging and acceptance, striving to escape her persistent dissatisfaction and unease. However, Helga finds that the racial prejudices and social expectations in each society she enters confine and define her in ways she struggles to accept.
Larsen's exploration of the contradictions and restrictions surrounding race and gender issues in the early 20th century was groundbreaking. "Quicksand" provides a vivid look at the inner struggles of someone living between two worlds and the emotional quicksand that can come with a lack of a clear sense of self or belonging.
Larsen’s writing—characterized by its modernist style and psychological depth—gives the reader insight into the complexities of identity formation, which rigid social structures make even more difficult.
The themes of "Quicksand" remain relevant to discussions of race, gender, and identity today, making Nella Larsen's work an enduring part of the American literary canon.
9. The Complete Poems of Claude McKay
The Complete Poems of Claude McKay is an anthology that encompasses the full range of poetry written by Claude McKay. McKay's poetry captures his varied experiences as a Jamaican immigrant in the United States and his role as an essential voice in the Harlem Renaissance. His poems are noted for their lyrical quality and thematic depth, addressing issues such as racial discrimination, the quest for equality, cultural pride, and universal brotherhood.
McKay's earliest poems reflect his Jamaican heritage and are often written in Jamaican dialect, providing a glimpse into the life and culture of his homeland. His later poems, written in standard English, engage more directly with the challenges and experiences of black life in America. McKay utilized both traditional forms, such as the sonnet and free verse, to express his ideas, showcasing his technical skill and versatility as a poet.
McKay's best-known poems include "If We Must Die," a call to resistance and dignity in the face of oppression, and "America," which explores the poet's complex love-hate relationship with the United States. This poem acknowledges life's harsh realities in America while recognizing the strength drawn from facing these adversities. Other notable poems include "The Harlem Dancer," "Outcast," and "The Lynching," which address themes of beauty, alienation, and racial violence, respectively.
The anthology is important for its literary merit and its role in documenting the historical context in which McKay wrote. His work is a valuable source of insight into the experiences of the African diaspora during the early 20th century.
10. "God Sends Sunday" by Arna Bontemps (1931)
God Sends Sunday is a novel by Arna Bontemps, an African American poet, novelist, and a noted member of the Harlem Renaissance. First published in 1931, it was Bontemps' first novel. The book offers a candid portrayal of the life of a Black jockey named Little Augie, who rises and falls in the world of horse racing at a time when Black Americans were often relegated to the background in literature or portrayed through the prism of stereotypes.
Little Augie, the protagonist of God Sends Sunday, is based on a real-life jockey, and the narrative provides an in-depth look at his experiences in the horse racing world during the early part of the 20th century. This was a time when African American jockeys were quite successful and prominent in the sport before being pushed out by segregation and rising racism.
Bontemps' novel explores the characters' ups and downs while also touching on the broader social context of the period, including the systemic racism and economic challenges faced by African Americans. The book is a character study and a social commentary, enriching its portrayal of Black life with cultural depth and authenticity.
The novel's title, God Sends Sunday, refers to the end of the week, which can be seen as a metaphor for relief or reprieve from the toil and trouble of the workweek – for Little Augie, a respite from the struggles and hardships of his life.
Arna Bontemps uses his narrative to preserve African American folk traditions, integrating the language, rhythms, and colloquialisms of the time, which adds an essential layer of cultural history and helps convey Black individuals' lived experiences at the time.
God Sends Sunday is often noted for its lyrical style and the way it captures the dialect of its characters without compromising their complexity or humanity. As a result, the novel is significant as a piece of literature and as a document reflecting the nuances of Black life and the African American oral tradition in the early 20th century. It stands as an essential work in the corpus of African American literature, and through its realistic portrayal of its characters' lives, it contributes to a more nuanced understanding of the era's social and cultural landscape.
These works provide a multidimensional look at the Harlem Renaissance, a period that defied racial stereotypes and fostered an irrefutable sense of black cultural identity. Each book is a testament to the enduring legacy of an era that celebrated African Americans' intellectual and artistic achievements. By exploring themes of racial pride, resistance to oppression, and celebration of African American culture, these writers helped shape American cultural and social history. To truly understand and appreciate the contributions of the Harlem Renaissance, immersing yourself in these literary works is a profound way to begin.
An interview with Keith Boykin — CNN political commentator, New York Times best-selling author, and former White House aide to President Bill Clinton — about his new book RACE AGAINST TIME: The Politics of a Darkening America.
Keith Boykin is a New York Times best-selling author, CNN political commentator and former White House aide to President Bill Clinton. In his newest book, RACE AGAINST TIME: The Politics of a Darkening America, Boykin offers a nuanced, in-depth account of political maneuverings from Washington to the streets, showing how Republicans, Democrats, and even populist movements have placed the United States in this predicament by failing to address and in some ways adding to the dire realities of racism that threaten their nation.
