AFRICAN AMERICAN LITERATURE Afro American Literature- Harlem Reinassance. The New Negro- What is he?

Philip Randolph And Chandler Owen The first distinction- nationality- not race. He does admitt that there is a Negro art- l!es...we sho!ld classify it as r!ral art" l!es..# lac$ american m!sic% r!ssian m!sic% a class diference not a race different. &mp!lse ehind the reinassance- the pro!d of eing lac$- accepting we are different is a way to eing segregated. Class difference% nationality difference. 'ass c!lt!re- they read the same maga(ines they ha)e the same clothes% cars% ho!ses% they go to the same ch!rch we can*t spea$ a o!t racial differences. His family free from generations. &ncreasingly conser)ati)e- +,-.- /lac$ and conser)ati)e. North- he married a white woman% He said they li)ed e0actly in the same way. He doesn*t spea$ a o!t sla)ery at all% he ref!se to e a )ictim. We were )ictimi(ed !t we also achie)ed these things. Assimilation. Any difference that lac$ people ha)e% they sho!ld forget. 1omething immat!re a o!t american c!lt!re. T.s 2liot% 3ames% for e0ample% the c!lt!re is the 41 is not sophisticated eno!gh. +,5+- He p! lished% he serialises a no)el called 6 /lac$ empire7. 1impathetic with 'cCarthy. He was more and more conser)ati)e with the time. /!t he accepts that eing lac$ s!pposes some diffic!lties% in the north and in the so!th. He is a classist- Coleridge% P!sh$in% 3ames Weldon 3ohnson. He ta$es his tone from H.O 'en$en% a colonist. The same short of writing. They were so incompetent 8 white mass co!ntry- we helped to !ild this co!ntry. He want to spea$ to any hidden racism they may ha)e. THE NEGRO ARTIST AND THE RACIAL MOUNTAIN- by Langston Hughes & want to e a !ni)ersal poet- not negro poet. Therefore% with that way of thin$ing% he is !nli$ely to ecome a great poet% eca!se in his ho!se% white people are considered etter than lac$ people. Art- the artist has his own )ision% yo! cannot di)orce what yo! prod!ce to who yo! are. &nterest in Negro History. He agrees with 1ch!yler- o!r lac$ middle class lifestyle is e0tremely similar to the white middle class life. /!t there are some differences9 1till the negro ha)e some differences that we cannot ignore. W.E.B Du Bois- Criteria of Negro Art Art is not 6 el arte por el arte7 it has an intention- to s!pport something% to e0press an idea... An autobiography of an E -colore! man.- "ames Wel!on "ohnson New Negros- fol$s- masses-there was a short of generation- +:;+ orn inn the so!th- in a middle class family- he didn*t ha)e pro lems with white racism. 'iddle class- f!ction of ed!ctaion- his mother a teacher- ed!cator- middle class. /lac$ people- segregation- he was the most powerf!l lac$ man. &nd!strial ed!cation- training lac$ men and women- y contrast- !ni)ersity- a school which stressed classical ed!cation- gree$ and latin and the rest of academic s! <ect li$e in Har)ard. =! /ois- Talented ten- 3ohnson he himself participating- He was a reinassance men- most well$nown as a poet- The a!to iography- his only no)el. Negro National Anthem. A songwriter. A diplomatic- politician- first lac$ secretary- wor$ed in !ni)ersity and also was a lawyer. Anonymo!s- real life doc!ment- not had an inmediate response. 5 ways- Re-writing of short narrati)e- modernist fiction. Towards the end- &n these pages- the writer- initiated. >irst of all- the fact that is written as a a!to iography- " 1?A@2 NARRAT&@2 TRA=&T&ON#. Anonimo!sly- that tradition- fiction written y African- Americans. The re-writing starts in the first chapter. & was orn in Aeorgia-The narrator tell as m!ch as he can a o!t what he $nows a o!t his short of family. He can tell !s the town...2B2'P?AR of the sla)e narrati)e. He doesn*t $now the date- spring- he doesn*t $now who his father is- isolaton- di)orced from family ties. & was orn..not m!ch information- he doen*t really $now his name of his mother- geneological isolation- he won*t mention the name of the town. 3!st W.2./ =! ois. =o!glas- gi)es detail. He was so eloC!ent. +,5D-

ED% sla)e narrati)e -Dth cent!ry also- 1o!th 8 north mo)emet- from ignorance to $nowledge3ac$son)ille- Atlanta- he said9 And this is how & $new what lac$ness what for me. Narrator- 1itting down- reading a lot of oo$- 4ncle*s Tom ca in" la ca aFa del tGo Tom# This wor$ of Harriet /eecher 1towe has een the o <ect of m!ch !nfa)ora le criticism. &t has een assailed% not only as fiction of the most imaginati)e sort% !t as eing a direct misrepresentation. 1e)eral s!ccessf!l attempts ha)e lately een made to displace the oo$ from Northern school li raries. &ts critics wo!ld r!sh it aside with the remar$ that there ne)er was a Negro as good as 4ncle Tom% nor a sla)e-holder as ad as ?egree. >or my part% & was ne)er an admirer of 4ncle Tom% nor of his type of goodnessH !t & elie)e that there were lots of old Negroes as foolishly good as heH the proof of which is that they $nowingly stayed and wor$ed the plantations that f!rnished sinews for the army which was fighting to $eep them ensla)ed. /!t in these later years se)eral cases ha)e come to my personal $nowledge in which old Negroes ha)e died and left what was a considera le fort!ne to the descendants of their former masters. & do not thin$ it ta$es any great stretch of the imagination to elie)e there was a fairly large class of sla)e-holders typified in ?egree. And we m!st also remem er that the a!thor depicted a n!m er of worthless if not )icio!s Negroes% and a sla)e-holder who was as m!ch of a Christian and a gentleman as it was possi le for one in his position to eH that she pict!red the happy% singing% sh!ffling Idar$yI as well as the mother wailing for her child sold Idown ri)er.I & do not thin$ it is claiming too m!ch to say that Uncle Tom's Cabinwas a fair and tr!thf!l panorama of sla)eryH howe)er that may e% it opened my eyes as to who and what & was and what my co!ntry considered meH in fact% it ga)e me my earing. /!t there was no shoc$H & too$ the whole re)elation in a $ind of stoical way. One of the greatest enefits & deri)ed from reading the oo$ was that & co!ld afterwards tal$ fran$ly with my mother on all the C!estions which had een )ag!ely tro! ling my mind. As a res!lt% she was entirely freed from reser)e% and often herself ro!ght !p the s! <ect% tal$ing of things directly to!ching her life and mine and of things which had come down to her thro!gh the Iold fol$s.I What she told me interested and e)en fascinated me% =ar$ hair% )ery longeye-lashes. 4ncle Tom*s ca in- m!sic% importance of m!sic% again% e)er after his moment% his friends diffently- he responds differently. He decides he is going to go so!th. Constr!ction- reg!lation-tipically again a narrati)e- migration to so!th to north- here we ha)e a migration from north to so!th. =ialect- he spea$s standard english- dialect- e)en if its m!sical3ac$son)ille- >lorida- more a city as he had e0pected- he met there C! ans% something that he co!ld not had met efore. The man of the oarding ho!se of 3ac$son)ille>4NCT&ON O> '41&C AN= &=2NT&TJ &N TH2 NO@2?K An a!to iography of an e0-colored man " day -#. A re)ision of sla)e-narrati)e. 'odernist no)el. The narrator lea)es 3ac$son)ille to New Jor$. &dentity- his mo)ement- the grat migration- /oston% Whasingtonand New Jor$- target place. This mo)e from 3ac$son)ille to New Jor$- another moment- ironic writing -north- he gains $nowledgenot the $ind of literacy he ta$es- medic co!rse st!dent- a lot of people o!ndage there- they went there and they co!ld not stop gam ling. Chapter @&&&. Contract-wor$ing y the millionaire- he loaned me to some of his friends. =escription of sla)ery-no greater freedom- ohemian !nderworld life% he is wor$ing for the millionaire% in a $ind of contract that sometimes seems related with sla)ery. 'ass mo)ement of so!theners. >rom at least +:LD +,-D-5D- '!lato-tragic. '!lato-a woman. They don*t wanna e forced to choose etween lac$ or white. Those moment in 3ac$son)ille- lac$ time- he left the lac$ woman he is going to marry and he left for New Jor$. When he met his father and his white children he is aware that he is not treated li$e them eca!se he

is lac$. Rag-time- association with m!sic. A few chapters into chapter &. He was freer eca!se he play them y ear. /lac$ m!sic- fol$ songs- imply he is playing lac$ m!sic- to the others he has to loo$ to the notation. 3ac$son)ille- the ca$ewal$. He left the lac$ identity ehind- her mother*s songs- lac$- her death-sym ollic. &n 3ac$son)ille- when he left for New Jor$ also left his lac$ identity. &*m lac$ or &*m white% he was in a carriage for white people- he o)erhear the con)ersation a o!t with the proffesor% the <ewish !sinessmen and the old !nion soldier. He doesn*t say anything. What do yo! thin$ a o!t this?The soldier is against a o!t the treatment lac$ people had. He is an o ser)er. '!sical performance. Collecting spirit!als. Chap B- the man he fo!nds in the ship in the ret!rning to the 1tates from 2!rope. 6 1hiny7*s grad!ation speech a moment when he was happy for eing lac$. Passes as white or passing for negro. 1la)e- he had to $eep going playing and playing doing a h!ge effort. ?ang!age that s!ggest sla)ery. &*m going to e a white man. No ody $nows that he is lac$. 1hame for my co!ntry- the only ci)ili(ed place where people are !rnt ali)e- we get a clear condemnationscene of r!tality- Jo! are a white man% y ed!cation% y taste% rag-time to classical% he goes ac$ and forth% y lood% fail foolishness to the millionaire. 1ociety- for society is white. /ecome a negro- & will e a no)elty. /iratial. Alienation-modernist no)el- dollars- s!ccess. =! ois- d!sty desert of dollars... A Selected Timeline of the (Earl ! Ne" Ne#ro $%&' >e . -D >rederic$ =o!glass dies se)eral ho!rs after speech at womenMs rights rally 3!n. -: >irst $nown mention in print of term 6New Negro7 in Cleveland Gazette 1ep. +: /oo$er T. WashingtonMs Atlanta 20position 1peech catap!lts him to national prominence &da /. Wells-/arnettMs in)estigati)e pamphlet A Red Record condemns lynch lawH her analysis dispro)es the common <!stification for lynching and est. white menMs desire to maintain economic% political and social control as the primary moti)ation for lynching and other forms of racial )iolence $%&( 4.1. 1!preme Co!rt !pholds 6separate !t eC!al7 doctrine in Plessy v Fer!"son 3osephine R!ffin% 'ary Ch!rch Terrell% Wells-/arnett% Anna 3!lia Cooper and Harriet T! man among fo!nding mem ers of National Association of Colored WomenMs Cl! s $&)$ /oo$er T. WashingtonMs a!to iography U# From $lavery f!rther cements his stat!s as leading spo$esman of the raceH as director of the 6T!s$egee 'achine7 he wields significant infl!ence in the 1o!th and nationally &n T%e $o"ls o& 'lac( Fol( W.2./. =! /ois challenges WashingtonMs emphasis on ind!strial ed!cation and economic progress at the e0pense of f!ll political and social eC!ality =! /ois% Wells-/arnett% Terrell and R!ffin among charter mem ers of NAACPH following year =! /ois est. T%e Crisis as the official <o!rnal of the organi(ation Arth!r 1chom !rg and 3ohn 2dward /r!ce est. the Negro 1ociety for Historical Research 3ames Weldon 3ohnsonMs A"tobio!ra#%y o& an E)*Colored Man p! lished anonymo!slyH it is ass!med to e a real-life acco!nt of passing O!t rea$ of WW& in 2!ropeH 4.1. enters the war in April +,+;H more than 5DD%DDD African American soldiers ser)e in segregated !nits and mostly in s!pport roles% !t the 5..th% 5;+st

$&)* $&)& $&$$ $&$+ $&$,

and 5.,th &nfantry "a.$.a. Harlem Hellfighters# Regiments among those that see significant com at 'arc!s Aar)ey est. the 4ni)ersal Negro &mpro)ement Association in 3amaica% mo)ing its headC!arters to New Jor$ in +,+; $&$' $&$( Carter A. Woodson and 3esse 'oorland est. Association for 1t!dy of Negro ?ife and History Angelina Weld Arim$NMs anti-lynching play Rac%el staged in Washington% =.C.H it is the first f!ll-length play written% prod!ced and performed y African Americans in the -Dth cent!ryH according to the editors of +o"ble Ta(e, A Revisionist -arlem Renaissance Ant%olo!y% this drama sho!ld e regarded as the te0t that initiated the Harlem Renaissance 3ames Weldon 3ohnson coins term 6Red 1!mmer7 to descri e widespread racial )iolence across the 4.1.H incidents occ!r in more than 5D cities and towns% !t Chicago% Washington% =.C. and 2laine% Ar$ansas see the worst )iolence Cla!de 'cOayMs poem 6&f We '!st =ie7 p! lished in left-wing <o!rnal T%e Liberator and is immediately hailed "and reprinted in m!ltiple lac$ p! lications# for its depiction ofPcall for militant resistance to oppressionH se)eral contemporaries "and many later scholars# credit the poem% which is later incl!ded in 'cOayMs collection -arlem $%ado.s "+,--#% with initiating the Harlem Renaissance Thro!gho!t this period% on into the +,EDs% h!ndreds of tho!sands of African Americans mo)e from the r!ral 1o!th into cities in the 1o!th and the North "esp. Chicago% Cle)eland% Philadelphia% Pitts !rgh% =etroit% New Jor$ and later ?os Angeles% Oa$land% 1eattle#. &n the end% more than one million lac$s will relocate. This period of !r ani(ation% $nown as the Great Mi#ration% is prompted y a n!m er of factors9 The racial terrorism and stifling social% political and economic inhi itions of the 3im Crow 1o!thH many will find that life in ig cities entails its own hardships% !t still life in the North offers m!ch greater political% economic% social and ed!cational freedom and opport!nity A s!ccession of nat!ral disasters " oll wee)il infestations% dro!ght and flooding# thro!gho!t the +Ds and -Ds% in con<!nction with plantersM grad!al mo)e towards mechani(ation% ma$e sharecropping% esp. cotton c!lti)ation% e)en more !ntena le The o!t rea$ of World War & in +,+E leads to ind!strial la or shortages as many white immigrants ret!rn to their nati)e co!ntries to fight% and once the 41 enters the War in +,+;% white men are drafted into the armed forces. ?a or recr!iters and lac$ newspapers li$e the C%ica!o +e&ender/ promising etter wages and wor$ing conditions and the e0panded opport!nities mentioned a o)e% enco!rage lac$ 1o!therners to come north to fill these )acated positions. An a"tobio!ra#%y o& an E)*Colored man Frenc%/ $#anis%/ German* modernism based aro"nd Ne. 0or(* T $ Eliot/ Gertr"d $tein/ $%er.ood Anderson Fitz!erald/ Fa"l(ner/ associated .it% t%e lost !eneration T%at version o& modernism IN res#onse to .%at %a##ens in 1ar 1orld I 1aste o& li&e Reactin! .%at t%ey #ercieved to be a .aste o& ener!y and talent En!a!in! a .ar&are Primitivism Nat"ral instincts -arlem Reinassance 'lac( #eo#le* ancestral #ast Modernist literat"re* certain t%in!s* alienation Comm"nication is

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#roblematic/ almost so to ma(e yo"rsel& clear T%is is not #ro!ress #er%a#s More civilized Per%a#s t%is is not t%e case 1e are loosin! somet%in! Fra!mentation Period be&ore t%is victorian era* Geor!e 2r.ell I& .e can't be certain* .%at t%ey re#resented Fiction A &irst #erson narrator Modernism associated .it% E"ro#ean and sc%olars Modernism Use o& t%e &irst #erson &or t%e &irst time in an A&rican*American narrator Isolated Anonimo"sly It .as ta(en as a a"tobio!ra#%y/ alienation/ isolation/ &ra!mentation Gree( and roman Al.ays loo(in! at onesel&* .%enever* an American* A Ne!ro* one o& t%e most &amo"s &orm"lation, do"ble concio"sness not ori!inal to +"'ois +"'ois/ 1illiam 3ames* -arvard Ne. scienti&ic "nderstandin! +"'ois* a #ositive t%in! or a ne!ative t%in!4 Also seen as !i&ted Positive* t%e #ers#ective o& an o"tsider A b"rden*internal str"!!le !oin! on T%e m"lato* %e embodies bein! bot% blac( or .%ite A m"ltao met%a#or o& all blac( #eo#le Modern man is isolated/ alienated Feelin! as %e %as sold %is birt%ri!%t &or a mass o& #otta!e Is t%is a tra!edy4-e doesn't die* '"t s%all .e still read it as a tra!edy4 -is sort o& Ne!ro dies Leaves a #art o& %imsel& die/ %is Ne!ro #art -e is sort o& an observer $omet%in! %as been lost %ere 1%at I sold my birt%#lace &or .asn't .ort% it Cane*#"blis%ed 5678 * 3ean Toomer Com#lete circle or #artial* so"t%* nort%9 C%ica!o : so"t% Readin! t%is section* -e s#ent a time o& %is li&e in Geor!ia and it is ins#ired in t%at Is a mi) o& novel/ #oetry Toomer t%o"!%t very care&"lly %o. .as %e !oin! to str"ct"re %is .or( $"nset is im#ortant 1omen alienated Cane and cotton Eyes* Fern* described as t%ey ta(e everyt%in! in/ t%e co"ntryside/ t%e #eo#le/ d"s(/ #ine trees $e) -o. .e s%o"ld re#resent t%e race Present t%e best beca"se .%ite &ol(s are .atc%in! 1omen are t%ere/ st"c( t%ere/ seein! train!s !o/ Est%er still t%ere .%ile 'arlo !oes Men* able to move* .omen not ;arint%a* s%o"ld be read alo"d It .as intensely mobin! &or 3ean Toomer beca"se %e %ad %eard t%is son!s $#irit"als/ bl"es $ort o& elements o& t%e nat"ral .orld T%e s"nset* almost all stories %a##en in s"nset Not s"nrise in t%e &irst section 'ob $tone and Tom* Red Moon* violence* t%eir &i!%t %a##ens 'arlo in t%e cl"b at ni!%t* related to se)* Est%er !oes to see 'arlo T%e ot%ers at s"nset* anyt%in! can %a##en in bet.een Ni!%t* moment o& violence* Est%er's attem#t to sed"ce 'arlo All t%e ot%er .omen are %avin! se) and s%e is not $%e is sort o& #layin! $%e is t%e da"!%ter o& t%e ric%est color man in to.n Not every man is !oin! to deserve Est%er Et%er* re#ress %er se)"ality* s%e is middle class In t%e so"t% #eo#le are %avin! se) Environment Est%er s%e %as to (ee# %ersel& se#arate* s%e doesn't &it in $%e is a.(.ard 'ec(y* le!endary stat"s* loosely abo"t %er 'arlo rea##ears All set in t%e same to.n Is %e al.ays t%e same #erson4 -er tale is t%e cr"dest melodrama/ .%o is %e4 God abandoin! &or t%e ni!!er4 Insider4 2"tsider4 $e) is nat"ral in t%e so"t% Fern +istr"st o& nort%eners T%ey don't sort o& (no. %o. is t%e narrator Maybe li(e a li!%t s(inned or a collective voice*a #artic"lar (ind o& blac( men more t%an a #artic"lar 1%o t%e narrator is isn't im#ortant &or t%e .riter/ %e is <"st #art o& it T%ere is an I .%o &"ctions as a recordin! camera ;arint%a* s#oilt d"e to men attentions at a yo"n! a!e All !irl* m"latoes* s(in li(e d"s( Circle o& li&e and deat% T%e blac( ri##ers* ryt%m rymes #er&ect Insistin! ryt%im 'lac( ri##ers* drivin! a mo.er Even t%o"!%/ moment o& violence/ t%e %"man and t%e mac%ine Mac%ine can do it c%ea#er* loss o& t%e %"man element &or Toomer 'lood*b"rnin! moon 1omen* st"c( in #lace T%ey never act"ally do anyt%in! e)ce#t sittin! t%ere Most o& t%e .omen c%aracters* evidence/ t%ey .ant to #"t %er into t%e corner Ima!es o& &lame and b"rnin! 'asic &eelin! o& section one* +"s(* #"ll over* a certain .ay/ .e %ear .%at's !oin! on Evidence o& ind"strial #rod"ction Cane&ields/ cotton&ields Melanc%oly* relie&* a sense o& des#air* no c%an!e

$omet%in! is #assin! on * $on! o& t%e $on* s#irit"als/ land/ even i& t%ere is %i#ocrisy -e .ill ma(e s"re t%at t%e c"lt"re .on't die o"t Cane* memorial o& t%is c"lt"re* ind"strialism/ modern .orld ;arint%a's so"l %as been corr"#ted by t%e attention o& a lot men* se) is nat"ral b"t s%e d"m#s t%e baby ;arint%a (ills %er baby $mo(e t%at &loats over t%e to.n/ &rom b"rnin! a c%ild in t%e &irst story to b"rn Tom in ='lood*b"rnin! moon> > T%e smo(e c"rls "# and %an!s in odd .rait%s abo"t t%e trees/ c"rls "#/ and s#reads itsel& o"t over t%e valley> T%e &ace* a sort o& violent deat% A t%eme* t%e .%ite .itc% $%e loo(s bea"ti&"l in t%e o"tside b"t s%e is a vam#ire $"!!estion* .%iteness doesn't e)ist "ntil yo" #er&orm violence a!ainst blac( 1%ite and 'lac( to!et%er/ t%ey cannot be se#arated Nobody .ant to really tal( abo"t T%ere is se#aration* .%ite to.n and blac( to.n b"t yo" can't #"t t%em a#art T%e &irst &o"r descri#tion T%e das% Eyes Foc"sed in .omen's &aces 'odies are not incidental T%ey are #er%a#s less im#ortant 1%en Est%er &aints* Portrait is Geor!ia* blister9 am#olla: somet%in! bad P2RTRAIT IN GE2RGIA -air*braided c%estn"t/ coiled li(e a lync%er's ro#e/ eyes*&a!ots/ Li#s* old scars/ or t%e &irst red blisters/ 'reat%*t%e last s.eet scent o& cane/ And %er slim body/ .%ite as t%e as% o& blac( &les% a&ter &lame Pa!e 8? Closin! o& a circle* cane* %an!in! over everyt%in! T%e cane* se)/ violence Cane* central met%a#or 1e (no. t%at t%e man interested in ;arint%a is blac( b"t .e don't (no. i& %e is li!%t or not P"r#le* ima!es o& decay and deat% T%en also an association .it% nat"re, oa( trees Tom* s"!!estion 'ob $tone and Lo"isa F"ll moon risin! 'ob $tone 1%ite man .%o is t%reatin! %er $%e loves t%em* 'ob can !ives %im t%in!s t%at Tom can't/ b"t s%e loves t%em9 se): not love I& it is not love s%e is in bi! li(e 1it% Tom s%e co"ld live $%e .on't be able to marry 'ob T%ey are basically t%e same T%ey ran t%is to.n T%ey are basically t%e same b"t 'ob calls %im ni!!er/ and .it% t%at social di&&erent it seems t%at %e %ad started t%e &i!%t Lo"isa doesn't do anyt%in! abo"t it $%e (no.s Tom is !oin! to (ill 'ob T%e .oman <"st does not%in!/ s%e <"st sin!s 2#en secrets Everyone (no. .%at is %a##enin! It's t%ere A sort o& %i#ocrisy T%ey don't really care &or %er 1omen silent T%ere is no real di&&erence bet.een t%is #eo#le Race distinctions are &alse Moment o& violence 0ell Lo"isa Tom is !oin! to come Nort%* + C $#irit"al and bl"es Ni!!er* lo.er class blac( $econd section Nort%* Urban*1as%in!ton +C $event% street* narrator a Ne!ro* movin! to Emotion/ movement In .%at .ay is sevent% street re#resentative4A sort o& vitality @itality* movement 2t%er .ays A@E0 +e&inite di&&erences o& li&e in t%e nort% $e)"al* associated .it% nat"re* someone .%o doesn't (no. %er o.n mind Avey silent/ .%at t%e narrator re#resented is %im tal(in! to Avey Avey doesn't (no. .%o s%e is Fern/ Est%er and t%e .omen &rom t%e so"t%/ Avey is slee#in!/ s%e doesn't #ay attention to %im/ s%e is not listenin! 1%asin!ton is not a #lace &or yo" Avey <"st let t%in!s %a###en to %er/ b"t s%e is sli!%tly able to resist listenin! to .%at s%e m"st do/ constr"ctin! a relations%i# Male c%aracters/ narrator/ t%eir o.n iss"es 3o%n %as <"st arrived to t%e t%eatre T%eatre* 3o%n/ donAt #ay attention to .%at yo"r body

+ean* middle class blac(* any &ail"re &rom t%e em#loyees can be really concernin! to %im* .ill o& .%ite #eo#le* %e &inds %imsel&/ .%ite #eo#le very &ar #resence/ .e don't see .%ite #eo#le* blac( sc%ool/ blac( comm"nity T%ey don't li(e me aro"nd %ere* Le.is t%in( it isn't !ood &or %im to remain %imis &eelin! -e ima!ines %is relations%i# .it% +oris as s%e .as interested in %im/ even i& s%e is not Middle class a&rican* american* t%ey do anyt%in! to %old on to t%eir %o"ses Middle class* t%ey lost somet%in! vital in t%e second #art -e is st"c( A sort o& s#lit in %is concio"sness Re&"sin! #assion T%ey %ave im#rove .%en it comes to material/ b"t t%ey %ad a loss in t%eir blac( lives/ t%ey don't live any (ind o& #assion Cane a circle* &orm sim#le &orm to com#le) to sim#le* so"t%*nort%*so"t% ;A'NI$ Le.is (no.s .%at t%e constraints are T%ey tal( and la"!% abo"t t%e lync%in!/ abo"t t%e c%"rc% ;abnis .ants m"c% more b"t %e doesn't (no. %o. to !et t%at/ read a lot o& boo(s in colle!e b"t %e #re&ers t%e tools Ne"rotic Intellect"al @ery ne"rotic -e doesn't (no. %o. to deal .it% t%e sort o& str"ct"res o& a blac( to.n/ or even .%en %e %ears s#irit"als -alsey %as avoided t%at Pict"res o& %is &amily/ (abnis* individ"al item &lotin!/ not connection T%e stoty end .it% s"nrise -alsey %as !ot "# early T%ey %ave a disc"ssion abo"t Fat%er 3o%n 1%at is it &at%er4 ;abnis* o"tsider* -AR@E$T $2NG* -e is %"n!ry/ -arvestin! in t%is conte)t maybe money4 T%ey are losin! somet%in! essential T%ey !ain somet%in! b"t t%e also losed somet%in! ;no.eld!in! .e !ain b"t .e also lose Rea#er s%o"ldn't be %"n!ry beca"se %e is %arvestin! b"t .%at %e %arvest is not satis&yin!%is so"l Met%a#oric Modernist te)t, one t%in! connects to t%e ot%er/ e#isodic B"ality to t%e .or(/ s(etc%es/ #oetry, s%ort/ ima!istic .or(s bein! #resented/ alienation may be a modernist t%in! -o. can #eo#le can relate to ot%er #eo#le/ tro"ble comm"nicatin! Fail"re o& comm"nication Alienation 0o"t%&"lness* ma(e it ne.* Ezra Po"nd It is not as el"sive as T%e .aste Land/ b"t t%e meanin! o& t%is is not immediatly clear El"siveness a symbol o& its modernity First $ection
Cane is not organi(ed li$e most no)els are. &t is an impressionistic piece% with many character s$etches% stories% and poems that are similar in theme% lea)ing readers with an o)erall impression rather than an e0perience of ha)ing followed a !nified narrati)e. Tho!gh the smaller parts of Cane do not follow a contin!ing plot% and only a few minor characters are carried o)er from one chapter to the ne0t% the oo$ still falls into three distinct sections% which Toomer en)isioned as leading readers in a circ!lar progression. The first section ta$es place in r!ral Aeorgia% and concerns itself with the li)es of poor lac$s% especially foc!sing on women who li)e in this en)ironment. &t starts with the rief% poetic story of Oarintha% a lac$ woman who is noticea ly ea!tif!l from childhood on. The men all wor$ hard for money to gi)e to her% implying that their ignorance of who she really is and her naQ)etN wor$ together to repress them all. 6Oarintha7 is followed y a poem% 6Reapers%7 a o!t a reaping machine with sharp lades eing drawn thro!gh a field y lac$ horses and c!tting a field rat in half. The following poem% 6No)em er Cotton >lower%7 is a o!t one winter% a time of dro!ght% when cotton !ne0pectedly loomed% gi)ing hope that led to lo)e. The oo$ then pic$s !p with the story of /ec$y% a white woman who has two lac$ children.No ody in this small town $nows who the fatheror fathers of these oys might e% and oth lac$s and whites ostraci(e /ec$y% altho!gh some charita le people try to help her o!t% donating land% l!m er% and food that no one else wants. The oys grow !p to e town !llies% ferocio!s to oth lac$s and whites. One day /ec$yMs ho!se is fo!nd collapsed% with her !nder the wrec$age% !na le to s!r)i)e social disappro)al li$e the rat mowed down y the reaper. Two more poems follow9 6>ace%7 which gi)es a portrait of a st!rdy old woman% and 6Cotton 1ong%7 which pro)ides a /i lical-so!nding chant that might e s!ng y wor$ers in the field. The ne0t story% 6Carma%7 concerns a woman whose h!s and hears that his wife has een !nfaithf!l% and he goes to confront her a o!t it. After the ens!ing arg!ment% Carma r!ns o!t of the ho!se and into the cane field. Hearing a g!nshot%he gathers a gro!p of neigh ors to loo$ for her% and when she t!rns o!t to e fine% he feels fooled% and% fr!strated% slashes the nearest man with a $nife. He ends !p in prison% in what the story descri es twice as 6the cr!dest melodrama.7 61ong of the 1on7 is a poem that presents the s!n and earth% with Negro sla)es% who sang% identified with nat!re. 6Aeorgia =!s$7 contrasts the foc!sing on the people and machinery that ha)e ta$en o)er the land in the decades since sla)ery. These lead into the story of 6>ern%7 a girl of lac$ and 3ewish roots who is presented as almost totally a prod!ct of her en)ironment. The story is l!shly told% with little action9 the !nnamed narrator ecomes infat!ated with >ern and goes to her% as$ing her to wal$ with him in the cane fields% !t once she is o!t there she is

o)erwhelmed with her powerf!l feelings a o!t the place and she faints. The poem 6N!llo7 follows% gi)ing an impressionistic pict!re of pine needles falling in the Aeorgia forest. 62)ening 1ong7 is a poem a o!t a narrator and a woman% Cloine% who la(ily do(es off in his arms as the moon rises. The story 62sther7 follows the mat!ration of a yo!ng woman% from nine to si0teen to twentytwo to twenty-se)en. 2arly in life% she witnesses a man% Oing /arlo% fall into a religio!s trance in the street% and as years pass 2sther ecomes more and more con)inced that /arlo is destined to e her lo)er. The story ends when% years later% she goes to offer herself to him% and he and the people he is partying with la!gh at her. There are two more poems9 6Con)ersion7 contrasting an ancient African religion with Christianity% and 6Portrait in Aeorgia%7 which offers a physical description of a weathered woman who li)es in this land. The last part of this section is 6/lood/!rning 'oon%7 a story a o!t ?o!isa% who is co!rted y two men% one white and one lac$. When the white man attac$s the lac$ man% the white man is $illed. A white lynch mo comes% capt!res the lac$ man% and !rns him ali)e.

1econd 1ection
The second section% which was written at the reC!est of ToomerMs p! lisher in order to ring Cane to a decent oo$ length% ta$es place in the North% in Chicago and Washington% =.C. &t opens with the s$etch 61e)enth 1treet%7 a mi0 of poetry and prose that descri es !r an life in the section of Washington where lac$ people li)e% emphasi(ing fast pace and the old-fashioned elief in Aod. 6Rho ert%7 the following character s$etch% shows a strong% s!ffering man% his legs ent y a childhood disease% who ears his hardships as if wearing his ho!se aro!nd on his head.The story 6A)ey7 presents a girl whom the oys hanging aro!nd on the Washington street corner fantasi(ed a o!t% imagining what she does when she goes !pstairs to )isit her oyfriend. The narrator of the story finally manages to date her% and s%e seems only va!"ely interested in ret"rnin! his affection% leading him to the self-comforting concl!sion that she is <!st too la(y for serio!s commitment. After years pass% he meets her again% and ta$es her o!t to a secl!ded spot in the par$% !t she falls into a deep% fatig!ed sleep. Two poems follow9 6/eehi)e%7 which compares the city to a eehi)e% with one ee wishing to fly away to 6a far-off farmland flower%7 and 61torm 2nding%7 which !ses similar imagery of ees and flowers% !t here they are )ictims of the )iolence of a ea!tif!l th!nderstorm. The story 6Theater7 is a rief piece of two !pwardly-mo ile !r an lac$s% 3ohn and =orris9 3ohn is the rother of a theater owner% and =orris dances in the chor!s at the theater. 1he is attracted to him. Watching her dance% he dreams of eing her oyfriend% !t she thin$s that the )acant loo$ on his face while he is loo$ing at her means that he does not care for her% so she lea)es efore he has the chance to tal$ to her. The poem 6Hot ?ips Are Copper Wire7 shows ToomerMs ama(ement at the telephone% a relati)ely new in)ention then. 6Call 3es!s7 presents a womanMs so!l as something separate from her% following her aro!nd li$e a dog. 6/o0 1eat7 is a relati)ely long story a o!t a man% =an 'oore% who is dating a schoolteacher% '!riel. He is s!re that she is repressing her tr!e nat!re% and he tries to force himself on her9 first physically% on the co!ch of her home% and then later y sho!ting to her in a crowded theater. &t ends with =an going o!t of the theater to fight with a man he has offended% !t then wandering off% ha)ing forgotten his anger once he is o!t of doors. The poem 6Prayer%7 which follows% is a meditation on the nat!re of the h!man so!l% followed y 6Har)est 1ong%7 a poem that presents modern !r an people as reapers of the har)est of the worldMs greatness. The last part of 1ection Two is the story of /ona% a white woman% and Pa!l% a m!latto9 /ona is interested in dating Pa!l% and he li$es her% !t he is hesitant a o!t a relationship eca!se he cannot elie)e that /ona% raised in the 1o!th% wo!ld not loo$ on him with some pre<!dice. &n the end% he decides to cast his worries !t while he was deli erating she has left.

Third 1ection
The final section of the oo$ is comprised entirely of the no)ella 6Oa nis%7 the story of a man of mi0ed ethnicity% li$e Toomer% who has gone to Aeorgia to teach and finds himself attracted to the ea!ty of the land and rep!lsed y the !gliness of the way lac$s are treated. At first% he is <!st lonely% wor$ing for a school that has strict r!les for its teachers% with his eha)ior closely monitored. He sees the irony in this% noting that 6where they !rn and hang men% yo! cant smo$e.7 &n the second part of this section% Ralph Oa nis interacts with some of the local people% important men in town. They tell him stories a o!t the lynchings they ha)e seen% which ma$es him paranoid% afraid that the local whites will find him too old and come to get him. He r!ns home to hide% and when his friends find o!t what is othering him% they la!gh and gi)e him a drin$% which gets him fired. Oa nis ends !p wor$ing in the repair shop of his friend% Halsey. The local )al!es ha)e dragged him down% ma$ing him gi)e !p his intellect!al interests and ta$e on physical la or% which was considered the place of lac$ men in the 1o!th. While wor$ing at the shop% he sin$s e)en f!rther% spending the night drin$ing with some friends and the prostit!tes that they ring o)er% so that in the morning% when it is time to go to wor$% he is helpless and cannot e)en stand !p on his own. This leads ac$ to the eginning of the oo$% with downtrodden Aeorgia lac$s trapped y society into a cycle of ignorance% drin$ and l!st.

$%a$espearean 1onnet rhyme scheme a prostit!tes sway a fl!tes day

c calm d form c palm d form e f e f g g 1elected poems of C?A4=2 'cOAJ9 He co!ldn*t stand the racism of Ala ama% he made it to Oansas% agric!lt!ral st!dies. He ga)e !p and he went to New Jor$ and ecame a <o!rnalist and writer. His literary )en!es downtown% in Areenwich @illage. ?ot of his poetry p! lished in a)ant garde maga(ines% )en!es associated with left wing" socialists#. He tra)elled to 'orocco% 1pain... 'cOay wasn*t in the 41 in the Harlem*s Reinassance% he wasn*t a participant in the Harlem Reinassance. 'o)e from the r!ral% the peasant to the city. >ormally ea!tif!l poetry% a short of !ni)ersal. Harlem 1hadows +,--- he wanted a place to sit!ate efore he died. Harlem 1hadows9 african american girls- prostit!tion. The morning come in the middle in the poem% not li$e in Cane% in Harlem 1hadows% how 'cCay has !sed the night and the )eil? 1e0!al acti)ity in the streets% the )iolence and se0 in the night. Criticism at ignorance of c!lt!re?White reast- what white men do to these lac$ women can*t e o$. Areyness. /lac$ women degradation- and how white society imp!lse them to that degradation. HAR?2' =ANC2R P! lished n an a)ant-garde maga(ine-;th art. Not women !t A&R?1. &napropiately yo!ng prostit!es. They ha)e een p!shed into this eca!se of finantial neccesity. Jo!thf!l energy. 1ha$espearean sonnet. Aca a con !n se0teto. He has a different approach when he descri es the women% he seems her with racial solidarity% the others don*t see a sort of person !t a se0!al lac$ woman. He sorts of $now what is she thin$ing. &> W2 '41T =&2 A lo)e poem for an ideal. &s it necessarily a racial poem? 'en% their general feeling- lynching.There is a lynching here% what can we do a o!t it? Are we <!st going to e home and do nothing? =epicting in<!stice. Red 1!mmer- ac$gro!nd. O!t rea$ of )iolence etween la ors. /attlecry. Where)er that in<!stice happen to e% Winston Ch!rchill.A call to arms% a call to resist. &n the face of in<!stice- not e0plicit- Porters- lac$ men. We-men. This is <!st not a poem to the h!man spirit% !t manhood. Animal imagery. /eing a man and eing an animal. =eh!mani(ing of poetry. Opressor are e)en more deh!mani(ed y what are they doing. =eh!mani(ing force. &t*s etter dying or yo!r feets than in yo!r $nees. There is the manhood C!ality that is eing missed. Pride in s!r)i)al. A>R&CA- poem y Cla!de 'cOay Cla!de 'cOay- &f we m!st die- 2thiopi- +,5E 'A??&2 3ON21- TH2 >2T&CH2. African mas$9 a moti)e. Ang!lar lines. Redisco)ery. Ha)ing effects in mainstream art world-Picasso. 'cOay>a)o!rite form- 1ha$esperean sonnet. A/A/ C=C=. 2tophia and 2gypt% ne)er the western !t the 2A1T2RN A>R&CA. >emale imagery.Harlet? Why does it !se this partic!lar theme? Africa is now selling herself- harlet- prostit!te- coloniali(ation is the reason. 1la)ery. He rew- all!ding the African-American. That is not the most o )io!s. Coloni(ation more. Not only political

!nderstanding% !t a o!t this sort of religi!ms. At the end of his life he changes from eing atheist and then mo)ing towards Religion% he con)erted to catholicism. CO4NT22 CO??2N Part of the Harlem Reinassance% not li$e Cla!de 'cOay or 3ean Toomer. 1he was really in that gro!p. P! licR en la re)ista OPPORT4N&TJ. ?eading lights of Harlem Reinassance. A dinner and the iss!e of 14R@2J ARAPH&C% sociological <o!rnal9 Harlem mecca of the new negro. A german portrayed Negro art )ery originally and well. His paternal grandmother raised him and then he was adopted y a negro Harlem ch!rch and then he started eing part of the Harlem lac$ elite% he went to Har)ard. Adopted him a ministry. He grad!ated in Har)ard and he p! lished in American 'erc!ry% in )ery good maga(ines% not only in negro ones. Jet do & 'ar)el @ery fond of traditional forms in poetry. C!llen a sort of liric poets% his fa)o!rite poet is 3ohn Oeats. Aod leds mysterio!s ways that we can*t !nderstand. &nescr!ta le his ways are. 2)en if society p!sh him ac$ down his singing is a way of s!r)i)ing% of e0pressing himself. The mole contin!es lind% s!ffering for the o!tside. Tantal!s and 1isyph!s- they did ad things and they were tort!red for that.He ecomes more religio!s% more a elie)er when he is older% when he was yo!nger he didn*t elie)e it. We cannot !nderstand why to ma$e a poet lac$ and id him sing?/eing an afro american poet doesn*t let the poet freedom to tal$ a o!t other themes not connected with eing a negro. /lac$ 'agdalens All!sion to 'ary 'agdalene- a prostit!te. He is adressing fallen women% lac$ prostit!tes.There is no one who defend this women% li$e 3es!s sa)ed 'agdalen.Hipocresy of the people that see themself totally )irt!os. The women that draw their s$irts aside- the poet criti(ise them% their hipocrisy% the chaste clean ladies. He is f!ctioning as a protector. The 'agdalenes desdein the chaste women. They don*t seem as powerless as in 'c$ay*s poem. Representation is important. /lac$ men felt that had to protect lac$ women% as white felt that had to protect white women. H2R&TAA2 The poet Homose0!al or ise0!al% a $ind of darling. He married =!/ois*s da!ghter. They went to Paris together. They were di)orced short after. Close emotional connection. What is Africa to me? What is the yesterday*s snow?What is the dilemma for the spea$er of this poem? He ne)er went to Africa. His $nowledge of Africa is second hand. The so!nd of the rain% !nci)ili(ed. He comes from there !t he is ci)ili(ed. Christianity-pro)e of his ci)ili(ation% !t he lo)es at the same time paganism% and that endargers his ci)ili(ed side. African-American m!sic de)elops in Africa. People dancing. /iological- his ody- there is a connection. &nheritage. &NC&=2NT Ratial initiation% the oy didn*t $now a o!t his ratial identity. He <!st remem er that he was lac$. Another $id called him nigger. And that was significant for him% eca!se !ntil that moment he didn*t reali(ed what s!posses to him to e lac$. &t is a moment of dramatic $nowledge. ?i$e in an a!to iography of an e0-colored man. They ta$e their lac$ness as something negati)e% in a negati)e sense 6 nigger7. They ha)e to reorgani(e their thoghts a o!t themsel)es. This moment of innocence is destroyed y initiation. 1ame age% same incident% same awareness. /altimore*s history different% !r an. One of the largest lac$ ci)il pop!lation efore the war. Parents wanted to preser)e his

innocence as m!ch as possi le. ?ANA1TON H4AH21 The Negro 1pea$s of Ri)ers- He contin!ed eing prod!cti)e after Harlem Reinassance% he st!died in Col!m ia% his writings were )ery well $nown in the lac$ comm!nity. His ho!se in Harlem has a landmar$. Co!ntee C!lleen died early% and the leading writers of the Harlem reinassance died early% or in other cases it was scandal what silenced one of them. Nella ?arsen% a similar $ind of scandal. 1! stantial low. And afterwards% she was acc!sed of plagiarism. 'elancholy% he cannot get closer to Africa% he is )ery far% America. &f he had african identity% it wo!ld e fragmented. H!ghes% )ery yo!ng writer who goes to Harlem. He goes to Col!m ia ma<oring in mechanical engineering% it alo!d him to e in Harlem. /lac$ people ha)e een here from the )ery eginning. We were here frm 2den. Negro spirit!al. 1!r)i)al% strengh% longe)ity. Reference to sla)ery% african sla)es. 'ississipi is the ri)er which sym oli(es the sla)ery for the african-american. >rom the eginning to this moment. 2thiopia% 2gypt% a new image OPPORT4N&TJ maga(ine p! lished a lot of wor$ of the poets of the Harlem*s reinassance. 3a(( and l!es. Rhithym. &ntrod!ced to Harlem pro)iding ill!stration. =anse Africaine% the tri e feel% the fire% a )ery tri al scene. That stirs yo!r lood" it pro)o$es e0citement or passion#. Primiti)ism of the period. /lac$ people were not in)ol)ed of modern ci)ili(ation. Positi)e. They weren*t in)ol)ed in World War &. A andon% eing sort of nat!ral. 1ense of mo)ement. He won first pri(e in Opport!nity literary conte0t. The Weary /l!es &ncorporating l!es lyrics. /l!es% sweet l!es% heart of Harlem in certain way% crying o!t the in<!stice. There is not way o!t !t & will $eep going. ?oss of hope. He slept li$e a roc$ or a man that*s dead. 1!ggestion of the power of this song% not only for the player !t also for the Nina 1imone- 'issisipi godamn. He wish he had died% he can*t e happy no more. He doesn*t die. /!t the last line can e interpreted li$e he had died. He p!ts his pain in creati)e e0pression. & will $eep going. Things that ca!se teh weary l!es- transform it in something powerf!l. Cele rating this performance. Afro- American fragment- mo)ement- Africa distant% rest of the poem% a different $ind of connection. 2ffect of the dr!ms. We don*t regard yo! as a rother% he wasn*t doing the wor$ the lac$ men of Africa were doing. An attempt to reconnect. The dr!ms that remain% this sort of m!sic% ma$es one recogni(e it. 1ense% connection thro!gh the m!sic. Co!ntee Colleen religion more than m!sic. &n this case% the m!sic. 1pea$er in)ol)ed in this poem. 1omething retained% iological. Three cent!ries remo)ed. The m!sic of the dr!ms rings it ac$. Three cent!ries% not iological% not rooted in one*s lood. What e0actly is that connection?&nternational flow of ideas. & still feel something there. There is some retain in c!lt!re. ?ANA1TON H4AH21 The l!es that &*m playing-p! lised +,5E- short stories a o!t the s!ffering of lac$ people y white people. &nteraction. All the stories are tragic. >rom the h!moro!s to the tragic. How lac$ and white people interact. The Negro Artist% Oceona- historical% strong name% she seems to represent ?angston H!ghes. 1he is the heroine. Oceola- enormo!s talent% pianist !t down to earth. 1he doesn*t thin$ herself as an artist. =!/ois decided action. H!ghes changed his politics. H!ghes relationship to his patron. 'rs. 2llsworth. 1he was the patron of the Harlem Reinassance*s artists9 'ig!el Co)arr! ias% ?anston H!ghes...His relationship with her ended adly. 1he was a wealthy woman% she was interested in the c!lt!re% ?angston H!ghes was interesting for her eca!se he was an anthropologist. 2llsworth wanted the primite% and that was not what ?angston H!ghes co!ld

pro)ide her% he didn*t want% he was orn in Oansas. Ha)ing a compromise with a patron limits the freedom of the art. 6 Jo! are s!pposed to li)e for yo!r art7 Aay relationship? 1omething more than the interest for the art. Oceola- her toy% she wants to present her for her friends% she $ind of has more people li$e that.White money made possi le the Harlem Reinassance. 1he is a good pianist !t she needs the refinement. Oceola says & can do oth. Her ody is in the m!sic.- )ery different !nderstanding of art. No connection to real life. Oceola my connection with the past. 1he has a passion for art. 1he a)oids all romantic relationship. Hostility to Pete%as a lac$ man. 1he is a widow. 1! limation. /est things o!tside of one*s ody. 'r. 2llsworth% she has ne)er een to Harlem and li)ed in NJC all her li)e. Women em ody the race. A lot of what*s going on in Cane% for e0ample. ?angston H!ghes was raised y her grandmother% when he is a teenager with her mother. Women important% what is going to happen with the race% metaphor. Oceola a male% when we tal$ a o!t resisting% playing her l!es. A lac$ woman is resisting. A!tho iography of an e0-colored man- i(arre- the millionaire- homoerotic conte0t. S!estion a o!t ART AN= ART&1T&C >R22=O'. Tora H!rston- her childhoold in an old lac$ town. The artist has to create the m!sic that she wants to. An artist commited to her art. +5 she lefts. 1ort of stories. Circ!s. 1he made her way to Whasington =C. 'ason- recogni(es the first anthropological wor$ of a lac$ american. '!les and 'en- 'ig!el Co)arr! ias teh co)er*s painting. White life woman% p! lished in +,E: Tora Neale H!rston% had a pro lem eca!se they said she had had a relationship with a ten year old $id% afterwards% s<e chose silence. Poor% wor$ing as a maid% comm!nity doesn*t $now that she has een a writer. Alice Wal$er. >amo!s essay. =etails going so!th and locate a gra)e so she co!ld p!t a mar$er there. +,-.-p! lished. 1tereotype of women% writes )ery personally% what had happened in her life% she writes a o!t this comm!nity% spirit!al% imitation% lac$ of originality. 4p and down. Ways in which her fellow writers- what ?angton H!ghes said a o!t her% scholarships% talented anthropologist% dar$ie% performance of the primiti)e. =ialect he !ses. Watermelon% lac$ people eat watermelon% r!ral lac$ people% Cane also does that. A way of life that is fading away. Her academic life is collecting these $ind of story. New Orleans% the importance of lac$ fol$ c!lt!re. 'ost of Herston*s wor$% not important for the action of the story. Con)ersing. What is significant? Tal$ a o!t sin% 1W2AT Cr!elty- pro lematic relationship% a !ssi)e% he scares her $nowing that she hates sna$es. Herston these $inds a o!t stereotypes. No white people. The person who is commiting the m!rder is the pro lem% not the white racism. 1he is a readwinner. Not political in a clear way% !t she is deno!ncing the )iolence in a lac$ comm!nity. 1he ends !p $illing her. Herston here is e0ploding. Onew the stereotype. Her eyes were watching Aod- no message% no tho!ght. 1he is criticing her own c!lt!re. Toomer so!th% an a!to iography of an e0 colored man- to the so!th to reco)er their negroness. =omestic )iolence rings it o!t% her concern% lac$ women. Aood )s. 2)il. =esh!mani(er% women are not in the same le)el in the comm!nity. Herston interested in that. 1tory foreshadows what is going to happen. 1care to death of sna$es. /y the end of sory% the sna$e% $eeping in a ho!se. =elia is not scared% she has not died. He <!st says gar age to her% whats wrong with him? A !si)e% !pset. Racism what promotes thsi anger. +L years together% no children. 4no de ellos estNril% ella estNril o el impotente. They are s!pposed to ha)e children. Res!lt of not eing mothers. 1tories. Not eno!gh conte0t. Chasing all other women. 'en feel some $ind of wea$ness or lac$. Preference a o!t the lighter s$in women. That comes a o!t downgrading dar$ s$ined woman% !t she is not <!st that !t also fat. They only care eno!gh to tal$ a o!t it. =elia $ills him. =elia ref!ses to mo)e. Alimpse% confront% she is willing him to li)e with her. 1he finally changes her life% my happiness is more important% my life. TH2 A&?=2= 1&B/&T1 Conflict- fa$e gold. =epicts a happy marriage. Perpet!ating stereotypes of lac$. They are sta le% they are happy together. /!t he one day% finds her with a man. 'issie 'ay is prostit!ting herself%

!t that was real? 1he sleeps with 1lemmons% her h!s and fo!nds it o!t. A sna$e in the gardenAdan and 2)e- she cheats on her h!s and. Aold% shiny things aro!nd it. Woman% 'issy 'ay% impressed y this g!y% she is st!nned y the gold. 2ase that 'issy 'ay e)erything is perfect for this short of shinyness. 2n)y% she tries to corr!pts him. There were no more trips. 'issy 'ay% a possession. 1he is a trophy. >a$e- gold piece. 'issy 'ay% possession circ!ltaing among these men. At the eginning of the story she says don*t elie)e it and then she elie)es it. /y the end of story% reconciliation% something is lost% it is 3oe*s $id the oy is clearly hims. He really lo)es 'issy 'ay when he fo!nd o!t she was sleeping with another man% 1lemmons. When the child she gi)es irth to is his $id% there is a short of reconciliation. R&CHAR= WR&AHT- /l!eprint of Negro Writing"+,5;# Harlem Reinassance 8 he difference- association with mar0ism% com!nist p! lication New 'assesRep! lication after the s!cces of his no)el 4ncle of Tom*s Ca in. &n +,5,- The Negro Newer- 4nderstanding of the reinassance% a misreading. Contin!ation. 'at!re !t not doing anything )ery different. 'at!ration of the New Negro. Representing a sharp rea$ from the past% what is the pro lem is with what came efore? Harlem Reinassance% pro lem with the way African American lit in the 41% inferiority comple0 in Harlem Reinassance% passig y collecting lac$ness. African american writing directed towards the masses. @ery infl!enced y nat!ralist writers% part of nat!ralism% en)ironment sha$es and determines who yo! are. The society had made him this way. Arew !p in the so!th. 1!ggestion% limitation% arg!i ly associal. Targeted to white a!diences. >ellow h!man eings. ,,. 1hall Negro writing e for the Negro masses% molding the li)es and concioo!sness of those masses towards new goals % or shall it contin!e egging the C!estion of the Negroes* h!manity? Comm!nist party <!mped when nine men where acc!sed of raping two white women% they were condemned to death e)en if there was no e)idence of that. Com!nism concerned as racism as a pro lem in the 41% after the Areat depression. 'ar0ism- race to class. Not race pro lem% a class pro lem. &nitially% negro religion a re)ol!tionary form. Negro str!ggle for the religion of the plantation. Character- religio!s% passi)e. >orm him% potentially re)ol!tionary form. Not atheist !t )ery critical of religion. Arg!ing a )ersion of =!/oises Art for propaganda. 'ar0ist. /lac$ people need to mo)e eyond race. Not only Negro nationalism. No attempt 8 for mar0ist% are yo! part of the proletariad% ratial differences% iss!e% class difference% directed towards negro people- they want to go eyond that characteri(ation. Re)ol!tion against the capitalist class. ?ess concerned a o!t political organi(ing. ?ower class white people. 1oemething that H!ghes does not specify. &magination of these writers. He was str!ggling% he failed% he tried to get a <o . He failed to get a <o . He didn*t ha)e eno!gh weight. >rom his childhood. Romaticising% somehow% sort of c!lt!ral form% white s!premacy. Hegemony% !pper class. 'oments of rea$% role of Negro art different% affiliation with mar0ism% economics rather than race. 1ort of contin!ity. 6 The ethics of li)ing 3im Crow 6 in American 1t!ff. +,5;. he can*t e0pect confort from her mother. A!to iography. /etrayal to the yo!ng Richard Wright and what he o tain is teh reinforce of 3im Crow. =on*t attract any notice. =eli)ery oy. /eing worried to go to white neigh oorhood at night. Tell yo!r oss that yo! can*t do deli)eries here. The police% if they want to% they can hit him% he represents danger% eing a lac$ oy in a white neigh o!rhood. 2)en if yo! follow the r!les that doen*t mean yo! are safe. /lac$ women se0!al e0plotation% lac$ in an other way%. /lac$ people*s se0!ality controled y white men. Wright*s ed!cation. The owner% opport!nity for yo! to learn something. ?a or. 2ffort. He sho!ld e learning something. He can*t say can yo! s! stit!te? The li rarian. Jo! can*t e)en $now the titles of oo$s eca!se that is percei)ed as a threat. White g!y% see? Wright point it o)er and o)er again. All of yo!. Aather% yo!ng man castrated. He is l!c$y that happened to him% it can happen to yo!. Jo!r s!r)i)al they don*t feel li$e dealing with yo! today. Not life at all. /are life. Contended. People in power allowing yo! to s!r)i)e. Wright comprimes this.

The Ethic- of Li.in# /im Cro" IThe 2thics of ?i)ing 3im CrowI descri es Wright*s own e0periences growing !p. The essay starts with his first enco!nter with racism% when his attempt to play a war game with white children t!rns !gly% and follows his e0periences with the pro lems of eing lac$ in the 1o!th thro!gh his adolescence and ad!lthood. &t descri es his e0perience of pre<!dice at his first <o . While wor$ing at an optical factory% his white fellow employees !lly and e)ent!ally eat him for wanting to learn <o s$ills that co!ld allow him to ad)ance. Wright also disc!sses s!ffering attac$s y white yo!ths and e0plores the many hypocrisies of white pre<!dice against lac$s. These incl!de lac$ men eing allowed to wor$ aro!nd na$ed white prostit!tes while ha)ing to pretend they do not e0ist. Whites ha)e e0ploitati)e se0 with lac$ maids% and yet any se0!al relations etween a lac$ man and a white woman% e)en a prostit!te% is ca!se for castration or death. Wright also del)es into the more s! tle h!miliations inherent in the 3im Crow system% s!ch as eing !na le to say Ithan$ yo!%I to a white man% lest he ta$e it as a statement of eC!ality. Ric%ard 1ri!%t Richard Wright*s new )iew of African-American writing after the Harlem Renaissance./y +,5;% when Richard WrightMs important essay 6/l!eprint for Negro Writing7 was p! lished in the New Challenger <o!rnal% the Harlem Renaissance had een o)er for years. The Areat =epression had ta$en its toll on African-American writing and other arts. Wa)es of lac$s contin!ed to po!r into Chicago% New Jor$% and other northern cities. >or many of them% po)erty and discrimination dominated their li)es in their segregated neigh orhoods. Richard WrightMs family had enco!ntered this when they mo)ed from the 1o!th to ChicagoMs 1o!th 1ide in +,-;. /y the time he wrote 6/l!eprint%7 these and other e0periences had led Wright to the Comm!nist Party. This clearly infl!enced his approach to his own writing% incl!ding his no)els and storiesUalternately descri ed as social realism or nat!ralismUand to the writing of other African Americans. &n 6/l!eprint for Negro Writing7 Wright does not mince words. He egins with 6Aenerally spea$ing% Negro writing in the past has een confined to h!m le no)els% poems% and plays% prim and decoro!s am assadors who went a- egging to white America.7 As a comm!nist with an international )iew% he arg!es against what he calls the 6pro lem of Negro nationalism.7 He says% 6Negro writers m!st accept the nationalist implications of their li)es% not in order to enco!rage them% !t in order to change and transcend them.7 &n other words% Wright wants more from African-American writers than ?angston H!ghes s!ggested in his essay% IThe Negro Artist and the Racial 'o!ntain.7 >or H!ghes and other Harlem Renaissance writers% the e0pectation was to write !nfettered a o!t lac$ life. Certainly for his time% this s!ggestion was inno)ati)e. Howe)er% Wright sees another p!rpose for the writer9 to wor$ to change !n<!st social% political and economic areas in American society. He says% 6This raises the C!estion of the personality of the writer. &t means that in the li)es of Negro writers m!st e fo!nd those materials and e0periences which will create a meaningf!l pict!re of the world today. V And% in t!rn% this changed world will dialectically change the writer.7 >or Richard Wright in this essay% 'ar0ism is the 6starting point7 for the African-American artist. He elie)es that this 6ism7 will gi)e clarity to the writerMs )ision of 6the str!ggles% hopes% and s!fferings of his people.7

T%e t%eories #ro#osed in t%is essay in&l"enced ot%er .riters o& %is time and even t%erea&ter Mean.%ile/ %e #"blis%ed %is/ no. classic best*sellin! novel/ Native $on% in +,E+. 2)ent!ally% Wright himself ecame disill!sioned with the Comm!nist Party and ro$e with it in +,EE. Jo!ng oys% ha)ing a good time% they ha)e to li)e on the day asis% they can*t stop that in<!stice. 'o ility- a ilty to mo)e from one place to another. 'ethapor- spirit!als% religio!s songs% life is etter in the North% religio!s glory. ?ife etter in the North. /o o said 9 no% & don*t wanna get lynched. Writer a nat!ralist. A sort of force% inescapa le. =esperate in the so!th% race a sort of force. That is going to happen to them% WeWll hang e)er nigger t a so!r apple tree7. ?JNCH&NA9 e)eryone is there% comm!nity e)ent% threat for white women. Religo!s imagery no coincidence. >orced to watch to see /o o !rnt to death. Title od the story- a spirit!al. =ied% str!ggle of life is o)er% that happens to men. Aet shot. His ody $ic$ed into the water. &ronic !se of the song. Jo! ha)e crossed o)er the ri)er. 'ann protagonist. Race- sort of force. He can*t scape. 2)en if he is trying to do the right thing. White oat. Hartfield*s oat- foreshadow that something is going to happen. &mplaca ility of those forces. ?!l! is dead when they arri)ed to the hospital. He is not desh!mani(ed% he does the right thing. He is the only man. /eging for his life. >ire and clo!d- message% change message and the collection. Racism% a sort of force% down y the ri)erside. 'en can*t scape. Racism more powerf!l than nat!ral forces. White racism. Racism is a grain% racist aspect colori(es% This is the way things are. 2)en the lac$ comm!nity accept it. 1ilas the one who inciates the )iolence. He $nows that something had happened. How co!ld yo! do this to me? 1ilas had had eno!gh. He shoots the salesman. We start with the lac$ woman. 1arah% at home% alone with her child. 1arah is singing a l!lla y to the a y. Central character here. 1he feels at fa!lt. Rape% eca!se she says no. Pd readers- rape% in the late 5D or EDs not seen as rape. A white man and a lac$ women. &n the middle% there is a shift% it is not clear if she is raped or she is into it. 1arah after feels peacef!l. Childness a o!t 1arah% f!ndamental mis!nderstanding. Confrontation. 2nco!nter of the pre-modern agric!lt!ral world and the ind!strial world. 1he is a creat!re of emotion% feeling. 1he doesn*t $now clearly what is ad a o!t World war &% she is a creat!re of emotion and sensation. Animal tits- li$e an animal. 1he always feels% a creat!re of feeling. That sensation li$e Tom. The lang!age is the same. ?i$e her time with Tom. /y herself- she is mostly thin$ing a o!t Tom. 1ilas comes home and finds a lot of e)idence that she has een sleeping with a white man. 1he has a the thorn of Tom% !t she had o)erloo$ed that. That iss!e is raised in the confrontation. 1!ggestion% & ha)e to e li$e the white fol$s% Heroism and antiheroism in 1ilas. Wifepiece of property. 1he is li$e his ho!se% the fact that she doesn*t ha)e to go to the fields. 1arah is a sign of that% a white man ha)ing se0 with his wife ta$es this o!t. >oolishness of this. 1arah is feeling% !t there is a condemnation of )iolence. 1ilas escalated the sit!ation. He smashed the gramophone. He feels he has the right. 2ach person palys his part. We $now what is going to happen. 'ost of these stories end adly. 1ilas standing o!t for his manhood. &gnorance and shame. 'isoginy. =epiction of 1arah. =epiction of women pro lematic. /oo$er is white% her sons% a new way of thin$ing. 1ame economic position. Religion is a pro lem. Not thin$ing conscio!sly a o!t it. Ri)a lo)es her son. Racial thin$ing. =on*t ignore race. &t co!ld e a lac$ person informing. That attit!de% The traitor a white man. &nformer% write man. Racially way of thin$ing% right. Right% with the e0ception of >iring Clo!d% )iolence% lac$ and white people in the so!th. /lac$ women. 1arah% the re)erend*s wife. Hysteria. Another pro lem that he has to manage. 1arah the ca!se of the )iolence. 3AME$ 'AL+1IN

'ald.in* criticizin!/ C8 D second #arar!ra#% 'ald.in/ .riter $ocial commentary/ sociolo!ical/ com#lainin!/ not bein! critical eno"!% Monstr"o"s le!ened* blac( %"manity* ar!"e &or blac( ri!%ts/ Native $on/ Uncle Tom's Cabin* #olit%ical im#act* not very .ell .ritten novel/ in&lamed #assions and tension in bot% sides/ sociolo!ical/ #olitical im#act/ b"t in 1ri!%t's vie. not a !ood literary #iece Native $on* a #artic"lar and most #o.er&"l e)am#le o& .%at means bein! blac( in America 'ald.in* -arlem 567E $tatement* bald.in %e meets Ric%ard 1ri!%t -e s%o.s Ric%ard 1ri!%t a dra&t o&& a novel First T%en/ .%en 'ald.in's and Ri!%t's &riensd%i# &ract"res P%rases* #artic"lar #roblem .it% violence in Ri!%t's .or( Protest novel Protest literat"re In same .ay/ t%is story is anomal"s -arlemli&e *%is live t%ere %ard* %omose)"al/ #oor/ blac( Uncle Tom's C%ildren/ Native $on* #ro#a!anda Uncle Tom's C%ildren/ ban( director's da"!%ters can cry abo"t it and t%en &or!et abo"t it 2#enin! scene* %e <"st can't !et "# 1%y is it a lync%in!4 Ima!e o& t%e !irl* e)citement and #ain -e #ic(s "# blac( !irl Grace* sanct"ary* blac( !irls not sanct"aries 'lac( !irls not sanct"aries* bodies* not di&&erence bet.een #ic(in! t%em "# and arrestin! t%em 'lac( #eo#le* t%ey may (ill me/ "nclean/ dirty/ se)"al I!n o& t%e rebellion* sto# sin!in! $in!in!/ son!/ im#ortance &or t%e blac( resistence Not sad son!/ de&iance 3ames bald.in* Goin! to meet t%e man 1%ite man* s"#eriority* t%ey can do .%atever t%ey .ant Control is #art o& t%e iss"e 3esse* re!ain %is man%ood -is descri#tion o& blac(* e)cess 3"n!le -e %as a .ido.'s #ea( Li(e i do/ li(e my &at%er also E)cess/ e#idemy o& masc"linity/ bi!!er t%an %is &at%er +es%"mazin! %im Man%ood In t%e castration/ %e identi&ies $e)"ality/ blac( bodies and doin! violence to blac( bodies +ess%"manization o& 3eese E)cess/ e)cess as se)"ality 3eese ta(es %is .i&e/ %e %as to ima!inin! %imsel& as blac(/ .%ite sanct"ary o& ni!er%ood/ or %is blac( as a ni!!er Point o& t%e story &or 'ald.in/ at &irst 3esse loo(s li(e a monster/ b"t t%en it is e)#lained %o. %e is li(e t%is Pesimistic -e &elt %e %ad to came at t%e $tate/ assesinations/ %e %ad to came &rom France -e .as a victim/ %e .as s%oc(ed Literal B"ality &or &iction Rall#% Ellison Most o& %is .or(* not &iction* mediocre m"sician -e moved to Ne. 0or( and met Ric%ard 1ri!%t Almost com#letely symbolic 1%ite c%ild -o. does t%e #ers#ective o& a .%ite man a&&ect t%e #dv o& t%e story4 $"mmary The short story 6A Party =own at the 1C!are7 is the story of a oy who witnesses a lynching. The yo!ng oy is at his !ncleMs ho!se somewhere in the =eep 1o!th when a !nch of men come in a h!rry saying there will e a party down at the sC!are. The reader then reali(es that the 6party7 consists of a lynching of a yo!ng lac$ man. The whole town is attending% e0cept for the town*s lac$ pop!lation% and e)eryone is screaming and yelling in e0citement for the lynching of this yo!ng man. With a storm ca!sing conf!sion% an airplane crashes thro!gh electric power lines !t lands s!ccessf!lly near the town sC!are. A yo!ng woman gets electroc!ted and dies instantly% the plane is on fire% and electrical wires are spar$ing. =espite the mayhem of the storm and plane landing% the mo t!rns its foc!s ac$ on the yo!ng lac$ man who is getting !rned to death. When the lac$ man politely as$s for a C!ic$ death% 3ed Wilson% a leader of the lynch mo % ref!ses% saying% I...ain*t no Christians aro!nd tonight.I The lac$ man !rns to death% his corpse t!rning to ashes. After the emotional e0perience of the night% the narrator falls ill% ca!sing him to e moc$ed y his 1o!thern relati)es. ?ater at a general store% a poor white sharecropper spea$s o!t against the

lynching% arg!ing that it does not ser)e a p!rpose. The other people in the town <!st tell him to Ish!t his damn mo!th.I The )isceral e0perience of the night% in partic!lar the to!ghness of the yo!ng lac$ man% lingers on for the narrator. XeditY Analysis of narrator The story is written from the perspecti)e of the narrator% a oy from Cincinnati% who tells his story a o!t an e0perience he has d!ring a trip to the =eep 1o!th "we do not $now the e0act location# with his father. The narrator is ignorant to the process of a lynching% and maintains a nai)e )iew thro!gho!t the story. Altho!gh at n!mero!s times he descri es himself as physically ill at witnessing the e)ents of the story% he nonetheless $eeps his eye on the e)ents% possi ly showing the ystander effect. XeditY Characters L nchin# .ictim The yo!ng lac$ man is the )ictim the lynch mo ties !p with a rope and p!ts gasoline on his feet. 4nder e0treme s!ffering% he as$s the crowd to Iplease c!t XhisY throatI -- a reC!est c!rtly re !ffed y 3ed Wilson% leader of the mo . /ed 0il-on &n the story% 3ed Wilson seems to lead the mo . Pop!lar in the town% he is e0pected to e )oted sheriff. When the lynching )ictim as$s for mercy% 3ed ref!ses% saying I...ain*t no Christians aro!nd tonight....We*re <!st one h!ndred percent Americans%I drawing la!ghs from the crowd. 0oman 12rned 1 electric "ire After the plane $noc$s down electric power lines% the large crowd gathers and accidentally $noc$s a white woman toward the li)e wires% !rning and $illing her. When the crowd t!rns their attention from her to ret!rn to the !rning of the lac$ man% the mo *s near-total desensiti(ation to )iolence is shown. XeditY Themes 3 -tander effect Thro!gho!t the story% the narrator mentions how he is disg!sted physically y the e)ents he witnesses% !t he contin!es to )iew them. The /ystander 2ffect is the idea that the larger the crowd% the less li$ely one indi)id!al coming to the aid of someone ecomes. De-en-iti4ation to .iolence The narrator witnesses the physical !rning of a lac$ man as well as the electroc!tion and death of a white woman. Altho!gh the narrator does get physically ill at the e)ents% his !ncle later tells him of the lynching% IJo! get !sed to it in time.I Innocence 3ecomin# a Man XeditY 1ym ols General5- -tat2e A stat!e of a Confederate general stands a o)e the town sC!are where the lynching occ!rs% as if appro)ing of the proceedings. ?ater% the narrator says he Iwas fi0ing to r!n o)er and clim etween his legs and sit there and watch....I Altho!gh the narrator is a Northerner from Cincinnati% the stat!e seems to sym oli(e the comfort some ta$e in the pre-Ci)il War order. 6lane While the e)ents of the lynching har$en ac$ to the days when the O! Ol!0 Olan was widely pop!lar% the plane introd!ces an aspect of modernity to the story. When the narrator writes that Ithe

airplane line is in)estigating to find who set the fire that almost wrec$ed their plane%I it*s odd that no one is concerned with in)estigating the e0tra<!dicial $illing of a lac$ man. 4se of the N-word &n IA Party =own at the 1C!are%I the N-word appears o)er ED times in the story. The word adds realism to the story% as it was a common word in the setting of the story. Racism was ali)e and $ic$ing and this story s!re lets the reader $now that. 2llison !ses the N-word to get the reader to grasp a deeper !nderstanding of the racist mindset% eca!se the N-word has helped deeply ingrain racism into the tho!ght processes of the narrator. 1ome people may e shoc$ed y the o)er!se of the N-word in the story% !t to !nderstand the history we ha)e to read a o!t how the character got lynched% eat% degraded% $ic$ed% sho)ed% p!shed% and e)erything else. The N-word deh!mani(es the lynch mo )ictim% which ma$es IA Party =own at the 1C!areI a powerf!l indictment of the history of 1o!thern racism. &gnorance- children% they repeat what they heard to !sed. Niggers- !se of the word se)eral times. Comm!nity practice% it*s a sort of a party. His first lynching. His not a so!thener. His !ncle told him to go. A sort of a party- comm!nity )iolence% accost!med to thin$ing as white eca!se he says Niggers and Niggers% less than h!man for him. @ery disspassion% No fright% terror or e0citement. Rainstorm. &dentification and dish!mani(ation- referring to the man o)er and o)er again as nigger. He is eing !rnt to death !t he is a nigger% the distance. He desh!mani(e the 6nigger7. The way he descri es her is desh!mani(ing% a white woman the first )ictim% he is not )ery affected y the disgrace% he is sort of !sed to )iolence. 1e0!al treat. 1e0!al assa!lt. @iolence and collateral damage. He is tired% he wants to go home. This sym oli(es% he i not so!thern. That was my last party. He )omited% it co!ld e read as )omiting white manhood. 'antaining control. 'oment of hope. Admiration for his tho!ghness eca!se he doesn*t scream e)en if he is eing !rnt to death. White s!premacy. 2llison% still attracted to comm!nism. ?ynching- distract people from the real pro lems% and for the croppers to lame lac$ people% when the rich% land owners are the ones to lame. Race% a way of controlling lac$ and white poors y the white rich. Possi ility of hope of the cropper reali(e that is the land owner the one who ca!ses his pro lems. A certain ad)antage- eing in)isi le% he is escaping from some people. ?o!is Amstrong. &n)isi ility. White insid% self-sacrificing christianity. Parody. Angry lac$ men. 1ort of a )ictim of the lac$ art mo)ement. 2llison% a political stance. P!tting politics a o)e - sorts of manifestos- each mo)ement from one period to the ne0t. =!/ois and ?anghston H!ghes and Richard Wright.What are their asic arg!ments? What is this mo)ement a o!t? /eing lac$ in America- a note of anger is noticea le in the writing. Jo! sho!ld try to e a lac$ writer% not an American. Co!ntee C!llen and the others didn*t want to e $nown as Negro writers. /lac$ness% white critics loo$ at that first. Political component to it. Notion of separation% the American society against lac$ people. /asically on the other team. Re)olt. At the ottom of -5. 2ach one idea of lac$ aesthetics. /lac$ and american- they don*t want to choose. The New Negro. Time period. /rea$ing away of the tradition of writing for a white a!dience. Neal mades a similar statement. The /lac$ Arts 'o)ement. Appeal to white morality. A!dience. /elie)e. 1!pplication to the Aod. Protest literat!re. Worthiness% art% lac$ art. American c!lt!re is lac$ c!lt!re% lac$ c!lt!re is American c!lt!re% we can p!t them apart% do! le concio!sness%

A'&R& /ARAOA- &n the late LDs to the early .Ds. =!tchman and the reader- associated with the eat poets- Ains erg. A change in this period of his career- +,.+. The =!tchman% it was presented at the Cherry ?ane Theatre% New Jor$ City on 'arch -E% +,.E. 'arried to a white woman% the he lea)es e)erything ehind and goes to Harlem% to reco)er his lac$ness. Clay-am itio!s lac$ man. 1he pers!ades him into the fall. =ialog!e etween her and Clay. 'ore sym ollic representation- what will ?!la represent? ?!la- represents America% the American =ream% american dream- ?!la represents the american dream. Charlie Par$er- from the ig and to a C!artet% he was an heroine addicted. We are serio!s artists. This ecame a way of lac$ artists% Charlie Par$er% heroine addicted. /ara$a- that addiction is a reaction to white society- constantly p!tting a pri(e and then% yo! can*t ha)e it. His death attri !ta le to white racism. 1elf-defence )iolence. 'ay e% a commentary a o!t his life with his wife. Clay )ery yo!ng- -D years old. What society wants him to ecame. 2ach gro!p that he presents- lac$ opression. O)erall critiC!e% of ci)il rights mo)ement% targeting the li eral spo$esmen. 3ewish acti)ists. Cops% m!lato itches% negro leader%in response to the antisemitism. 3ewish people- the ones e0ploding !s. Homopho ia. 2ternal faggot. Negro leader. A'&R& /ARAOA A poem for /lac$ Hearts /lac$ dominant- lac$ o negro% is not the same as a Negro. Negro- a sort of pe<orati)e. /lac$ leaders. Written for 'alcom B who was assessinated in +,.L. A lot of writers of that period wrote poems a o!t 'alcom B. Poem for /lac$ Hearts. >or saying% and feeling and eing. Reflecting his ea!ty. His direct adress. What is on his mind. A lo)e poem. /ara$a and other intelect!als-not coincidental. /lac$ nationalist. /lac$ men need to change% a call o manhood% as in &f we m!st =ieis the same $ind of call? &t is not necceserily deffensi)e% &t*s not a call to sel-defense. 1top the c!lt!re. =ignity. A change of conio!sness from Negro. Poetry for /lac$ people. To change their concio!sness. >aggots- homose0!ality- faggots- afeminate. Negati)e connotations that come along with that. A call to what? >or what?&mplied !t NOT e0plicit. /lac$ rethoric. What are we calling together for?/lac$ art mo)ement. As$ing- who does incl!de? Who does e0cl!de? >aggot- if yo! are lac$ and a faggot are yo! part of it? 1O1 &f we fail-gendered. This happens to a lot of /lac$ Poetry- for /lac$ li eration% lac$ manhood. 'an- center of disco!rse. Or they dissapear entirely. 2)ery ody is called into it. The &dea of Ancestry- 2theridge Onights- he recite from memory- he was one of se)en children- he hanged o!t with the wrong people. =ownfall- dr!gs- that*s why he went to prison. He met Awendolyn /roo$s. His poetry- the poem% the poet and the people together. He is the first poet who mentions a woman in a good way. &nterconectons with his family- a ig part of what ma$es him who he is. He started to fig!re who he was. N!m er- in prison. &t p!t !s ac$ to the place he isprison. Negati)e place. &mmigration to the north- no so good. /iological !rge. Want to go ac$ to his granmothers and granparents- sla)e- he can*t identify them. They are aware of these relationships% !t sla)es are disconected. And he is not. Onight has an ancestry. He is not a geneological isolate- he is a sla)e of his dr!g pro lems. =issapearance of his !ncle. &mpliedprison- a form of sla)ery. =r!g- adiction. 1he is the only one who doesn*t <!dge him% they loo$ at him with o ligation. 1he is the ne0t generation% he has not sons of da!ghters% she can e the f!t!re% he has no children% so% the niece is the closest to eing his ne0t generation. 'oments of

identification. /eing in lo)e with some relati)es. 'oments of identification% & am all of them they are all of me. & am me% they are dee. 1it!ation himself. Ancestry- separation from them. He repeats that line. & ha)e no children. People that are remo)ed from the family. Aranfather. 4ncle. He is an empty space. They say. ?ast line- a sence phisically% mentally. A sent- he lea)es the family. &t*s coming down on him. Reason he has to lea)e% his adiction. &dentity- the identity comes ac$. This and that. His grandmother. Responsa le to her. 1till part of the collecti)e !t not C!ite. Cro$e- die!ncle% disappeared. A sence. Why has he changed to son? Not only the lood !t also his name. Ancestry- e0actly as his name is a family name. Amiri /ara$a changes his name...Ancestry not the sort of remote african ancestry- graparents- he was named after his granfather. Not fig!red- not African ancestry. &t is a )ery direct present. Onight part of /lac$ Arts mo)ement. He is fig!ring ancestry. 4ncles% co!sins... Of the good poems in Poems &rom Prison / the one which has een most la!ded and most freC!ently anthologi(ed is IThe &dea of Ancestry%I sometimes called one of the est poems that has een written a o!t the Afro-American conception of family history and h!man interconnection. &n this poem% Onight !sed what came to e his trademar$ in p!nct!ation% the slash mar$% along with commas% colons% occasional !n!s!al spellings% and spacing of words to indicate how the )oice sho!ld so!nd saying the lines. He also fo!nd a partic!larly effecti)e com ination of the )oca !lary of the dr!g c!lt!re% of lac$ slang% and of concrete images to ma$e the idea of ancestry come ali)e. The reader can see the spea$er staring at the forty-se)en pict!res of his family mem ers pasted on his prison wall and trace the details of the spea$er*s remem ered connections with them. 2C!ally% the reader is% li$e the spea$er% ro!ght !p short d!ring the warm% flowing intermingling of li)es y the Igray stone wall%I one of those star$% concrete% and )igoro!s images which Onight creates% that% li$e the spea$er*s dr!g addiction% separates the spea$er from those he lo)es and to whom he is connected. A powerf!lly comple0 e0perience of the essential loneliness and relatedness of a man who is at once Iall of them%I !t different from them% and ha)ing Ino children to float in the space etweenI is created thro!gh the str!ct!re and lang!age of the poem. >rom +ictionary o& Literary 'io!ra#%y% @ol"me E5, A&ro*American Poets $ince 56FF. A /r!ccoli Clar$ ?ayman /oo$. 2dited y Tr!dier Harris and Thadio!s '. =a)is. Copyright Z +,:L y the Aale Aro!p. Patricia ?iggins Hill &n the poem IThe &dea of Ancestry%I which Pa!l 'ariah has hailed as Ithe est poem of /lac$ c!lt!ral history%I Onight himself ecomes Ithe )iolent space.I &n the first section of the poem% which flows in a WhitmanesC!e style% the poet is spatially defined in his prison cell9 Taped to the wall of my cell are E; pict!res9 E; lac$ faces9 my father% mother% grandmothers "+ dead#% grand fathers " oth dead#% rothers% sisters% !ncles% a!nts% co!sins "+st [ -nd#% nieces% and nephews. They stare across the space at me sprawling on my !n$. & $now their dar$ eyes% they $now mine. & $now their style% they $now mine. & am all of them% they are all of meH they are farmers% & am a thief% & am me% they are thee. & ha)e at one time or another een in lo)e with my mother% + grandmother% - sisters% - a!nts "+ went to the asyl!m#% and L co!sins. & am now in lo)e with a ; yr old niece"she sends me letters written in large loc$ print% and her pict!re is the only one that smiles at me#. & ha)e the same name as + grandfather% 5 co!sins% 5 nephews% and + !ncle. The !ncle disappeared when he was +L% <!st too$ off and ca!ght a freight "they say#. He*s disc!ssed each year when the family has a re!nion% he ca!ses !neasiness in the clan% he is an empty space. 'y father*s mother% who is ,5 and who $eeps the >amily /i le with e)ery ody*s irth dates "and death dates# in it%

always mentions him. There is no place in her /i le for Iwherea o!ts !n$nown.I The poet is conscio!s of the fact that all of his ancestors% e0cept for his smiling% se)en-year-old niece% stare at him across the space. He shares the same name as one grandfather% three co!sins% three nephews% and one !ncle. The !ncle is an empty space in the family% <!st as the poet is. And yet in spite of the poet*s eing an empty space% he ta$es a WhitmanesC!e stance in the poem9 He stands at the center of his !ni)erse% his ancestry% and sings% I& am all of them% they are all of me.I /!t he reali(es his separation from his ancestry as well9 Ithey are farmers% & am a thief% & am me% they are thee.I The prosaic C!ality of the first section of the poem is stri$ing. >or the most part% it ta$es on the narrati)e C!alities of an a!to iography and flows with long% rolling% sonoro!s lines controlled y the reath of the poetH declarati)e statementsH story-li$e detailsH and specific references to people% places% and actions. The soothing% sweet-flowing rhythms in Part & reflect the poet*s reminiscences a o!t his relationships with his relati)es--memories that are filled with warmth% gentleness% regret% and nostalgia. &n Part &&% the pace C!ic$ens. The tho!ghts recollected y e0amining the pict!res of his relati)es on his cell wall "in Part &# lead the poet grad!ally to a retelling of his personal rit!al of s!ffering9 . . . I2ach >all%I the poet enacts the rit!al of ret!rn to the home of his ancestry. >rom this mythic sense of time% the poet switches to direct references and specific definitions of time9 I?ast yr ... That night . . . . I The e0perience is reli)ed% !t with C!alification9 I. . . & had almost ca!ght !p with me.I The rhythms in Part && e0plode with )iolence. 1eparations are made9 IThat night & loo$ed at my grandmotherP and splitPmy g!ts were screaming for <!n$ . . . . I The slashes% which are a sent in Part & of the poem% crowd se)eral acti)ities into one sentence9 I& wal$ed arefooted in my grandmother*s ac$yardP & smelled the oldPland and woodsP& sipped cornwhis$ey from fr!it <ars with the menP& flirted with the womenP& had a all till the caps ran o!tPand my ha it came down.I Words collide at the slashes to !ild !p the tension e)ident in the co!nterc!rrents of the poet*s life9 I irthstreamP& hitchhi$ed%I I ac$yardP& smelled%I IwoodsP& sipped cornwhis$ey%I ImenP& flirted with the women%I I<!n$P !t & was almostPcontented.I The crac$ling so!nds e0plode with meaning9 The poet !ses s!ch terms as Icroa$erI "doctor# and Icri I "ho!se# for their harsh alliterati)e impact. &n the last fines of the final stan(a% the C!ic$ened pace e0ha!sted% the drama rests9 This yr there is a gra)e stone wall damming my stream% and whenthe falling lea)es stir my genes% & pace my cell or flop on my !n$and stare at E; lac$ faces across the space. & am all of them% they are all of me% & am me% they are thee% and & ha)e no sons to float in the space etween. ITimeI and IspaceI ha)e tra)eled f!ll circle in the poem-- ac$ to the present condition of the poet in his cell. /!t whereas the space etween the poet and the pict!res descri ed in the first stan(a is chiefly the distance etween his !n$ and the wall where the pict!res hang% the last notation of space in the poem in)ol)es the gal)ani(ation of the poet*s genes--his sense of ancestry. He has no sons to hold his rit!alistic space within the family. No sons of his are mar$ed in the family /i le. This is a C!iet time of despair for the poet9 Ithey are farmers% & am a thief.I Now% he is Ithe )iolent space%I an entity separate from his ancestry. He is different9 At this moment in the time and space of the poem% he has no physical lin$age to his history% his family. And% !nfort!nately% eca!se he is imprisoned% he can do nothing at present a o!t the sit!ation. The spatialPtemporal mo)ement of the poem is carried along y the tide of his m!sic9 from the )ery concrete reality of a prison cell% to a rit!al re)itali(ation of a sense of ancestry thro!gh a ret!rning home% to this year when there will e no re-enactment of the rit!al and no one to mo)e for him9 I& ha)e no sonsPto float in the space

etween.I With this line the poem reaches an a r!pt halt. The reader then ecomes aware of the )astness of space% Ithe )iolent space%I which follows the line. The form of the poem as well as the idea of ancestry in the poem also represents the pro lem of ancestral lineage for the /lac$ race as a whole. 'any /lac$s% s!ch as Onight himself% can only trace their ancestral lineage ac$ two or three generations eca!se of the conditions of /lac$ sla)ery which were imposed on them. &n this conte0t% Agnes 1tein% in T%e Uses o& Poetry% regards this poem as especially important for those s!ch as /lac$s Iwhose history as a gro!p has een denied within a larger c!lt!re.I >rom IMThe @iolent 1paceMI9 The >!nction of the New /lac$ Aesthetic in 2theridge OnightMs Prison Poetry.I 'lac( American Literat"re For"m. "+,:D#. The /lac$ Poets Who Thin$ of 1!icide. +st 1tan(a. /lac$ poets to white poets. ?i$e the white oys do. Western tradition- ea!ty for ea!ty*s sa$e. Poet- not <!st e pretty. Poets who died yo!ng. Tragic fig!res. He wants heroic fig!res. S!estion of Art- aesthetics- o session with ea!ty. Arts- term which is prefer eca!se it is more f!nctional. Role of art here% !nderstand Art- Art as a term- we need yo! to !se that art- that tr!mpets- s!icide- the a sol!te s!rrender. Jo! are too important to do that% their poetry an adorment- they ha)en*t really done anything- lac$ poetry has to do something. >!ctional. Not only e0pression for the sa$e of e0pression. ?i$e =!/ois* propaganda. ?ong tradition- /?ACO ART >4NCT&ONA?9 Calling on lac$ poets- all these changes had happened- !t yo! still ha)e this responsa ility. AW2N=O?JN /ROOO1 'alcom 1po$e- Who listened? " this poem is for my concio!sness too# 1tan(as witho!t any partic!lar r!le% <!0taposition of tho!ght and imagery. 2)erything% in o!r period)ery fast. Certain words% not f!lly spelled o!t% certain words p!t together. Cons!mer c!lt!rere)ol!tion. African heritage. Cool. /!t they didn*t really ha)e that concio!sness. Re)ol!tion- 'artin ?!ther Oing assesinated% 'alcom B assesinated...'iddle lines of the poem. Jo! can*t dismantel the master*s ho!se with the master*s tool. How can we mo)e if we are spea$ing the oppresor*s lang!age? A PO2' TO CO'P?2'2NT OTH2R PO2'1. P!tting on lac$ness a a commodity. 'ental change- a transformation mentally has to occ!r. There are significant changes- those changes aren*t going to mean )ery m!ch if a mental transformation doesn*t happen. &t is <!st a mental transformation? A emotional response to the idea of change. &t is needed a completely reconstr!ction. Change and thin$ing a primary idea. The world*s enemy % oneself? Jo! are not colored% yo! are not negro yo! are lac$. &f we don*t change we get left ehind. Change yo!r mind% !t not that only. Playing with the lang!age to gi)e !s m!ltiple meanings. Ni$$i Aio)anisi- Tenesse% Ohio% princess of lac$ poetry. Ci)il rights mo)ement. @irginialangsthon H!ghes award- p! lished a lot of oo$s% lots of poetry and non- fiction. The tr!e &mport of the present dialog!e% /lac$ )s. Negro Oilling a certain $ind of lac$ set 8 lac$ people $ill !t not for the right reasons. White and /lac$-

<ewish- part of the pro lem- oppresors. 3ewish also )ictims of oppresion. Peppe- a relati)e% inocent% eho doesn*t <!dge. Nigger $ill die strangle% lac$. A poem into himself. 'o)ement from a certain concio!sness. ?earn to $ill niggers% go and $ill lac$ men. Two C!estion mar$s- line : Can yo! $ill h!gh? Not a C!estion. This can e done. We $now we can $ill% !t we sho!ld $ill for the right reasons. /lac$ men who need to learn to $ill. What is the role of lac$ women? /lac$ masc!linity. Role of women% ta$ing )s. Action. Oind of rethoric that carachteri(es lac$ women- emasc!lating lac$ men. When are yo! going to step !p and e a real man? /lac$ Art 8 lac$ women p!shiness% the perception of them as mo!thy. The sense of !rgency% lac$ solidarity% !nity. CritiC!e9 o)ersimplify. A sol!tely changing the system. >oe 1a!ndra- S!estions the need of poetry? Poetry doesn*t ha)e a o!t happy images or nat!re. Angry% rethorically )iolent. Partic!lar idea of what it co!nts as poetry. N&OO& RO1A We don*t ha)e the misera le li)e they s!pposed !s to ha)e% lac$ lo)e% lac$ weath. &f yo! are an o!tsider% lac$ness li$e a c!rse% a deficit model% li$e somehow lac$ing. Po)erty a deficit. Her father drin$s. All- lac$ s! !r in Cincinatti. They didn*t still ha)e inside toilet% they didn*t ha)e teh middle class life% lac$ primarily finantial% family% lac$ wealth is lac$ lo)e. Tho!gh o!r family was poor doesn*t mean that there is lac$. Tr!e a o!t lac$ families. All these other $inds- lo)e e0ists. 'o)ement- )ery masc!line- reclaiming african-american manhood. What lac$ identity meant. Writers- destr!cti)e machismo. /lac$ manhood was li$e eC!ally lac$ li eration. 20panded- not only lac$ men- Amiri /ara$a- the $ing- and not the C!een- <!st a princess Ni$$i Aio)ani. /lac$ women who challenged that main foc!s in manhood. 3ayne Corte(- How long has trane een gone" +,.:#% she was raised in Ari(ona and mo)e with her family to ?os Angeles. 3a(( fanatic. Record shops. P!rs!ing the chance of going to concerts or e)en tal$ with them. Her poetry- m!sical- sense% sort of rhythim of <a((. >irst collection of <a((. Originally intended as a performance piece. How long has trane een gone? " +,.:# Written a year after 3ohn coltrane*s death. 'agnetism of his icon% of his rilliant concio!sness gone. Part of <a((% person who performed efore yo!. Proccess of re)ising. 1omehow he represents freedom. >orefront- car or engine that p!shed that mo)ement. Who is een adressed in this poem? &ntensely spirit!al fig!re. Concern- the ways of lac$ c!lt!re has ecome into a commodity. Only prod!cts to e !sed- enterteinment- pat yo!r foot% sip a drin$ and pretend with yo!r head o in !p and down. One of the things- the cl! s they needed to play in- ran y white owners. Repetition of words% words of comfort% - images of lac$ masc!linity. We don*t ha)e da!ghters. >ather is capitali(ed. Respect. Aod. The father is Aod. 'others-capitali(ed. 'other with sons who need 3ohn Coltrane. Trinity- mother- father- son. Preachers- Always 3ohn Coltrane- /lac$ m!sicians. 1pliting !p <a(( m!sic% 3ames /rown. Not <a((- anti <a((. A lo)e s!preme. 3a(( and l!es. A call for /lac$ nationalism. /lac$ nation. /lac$ people had let them go% and li$e that% they let themsel)es go. 1onia 1anche( /lac$ rethoric- lac$ is ea!tif!l- rethoric of lac$ nationalism- ma<or slogan- lac$ is ea!tif!l. Rethoric- empty words. No ody p!ts force ehind. =oes any ody really mean it?>or the lac$ people to !y things. An e0c!se to sell somethig to lac$ people. Toward the enemy- !t we $now who that is- 'alcom B- the fig!re for lac$ arts poets% she can*t ta$e islamism- eca!se she can*t ta$e the repression against women. 2nemy- capitalism. Cons!mption- all things are t!rned into prod!cts to cons!m.

>OR O4R ?A=J /illie Holliday. ?eadership- almost a missed opport!nity% if her life wo!ld ha)e een less ro!gh% may e she will ha)e gi)en the world a stronger message. 1he was a heroine addict- she lost her )oice eca!se of heroine- se was denied a ca aret license. Aeneral impression- tragedy- missed opport!nity- orn from a teenage mother- forced to wor$ as a prostit!te% a !sed y one of her family mem er. Tragic fig!re. 4nrelie)ed tragedies. 1trange >r!it- a lynching song. Originally a poem. And he ga)e it to /illie Holliday. /illie Holliday*s life a sort of tragedy- intense masc!line field- <a(( )ocalist- 2lla >it(gerald% /illie Holliday. /illie is that partic!lar sort of singers- she represents- concern with lac$ women*s li)e. Who didn*t ha)e any ody to pay attention to them/illie represents lac$ american women. /lac$ women eing a le to feel appreciated% sort of tragedy. This is the case for lac$ women. Why is the poem titled this way?'o)ement from Africa to America- pagan-christian. CARO?JN ROA2R1 &1 &T =22P 'y mother% slept on some lo)e- her a a y was star)ing% lac$ poems & ha)e written- com!nismshe will not een considered rele)ant or lac$. Aenerational split- how do we $now that there is a generational split. - generations. There is some $ind of de ate. 'other religio!s. They ha)e different idea of what lac$ is. Her mother is Negro she is lac$. Accomodationist- Negrore)ol!tionary% progressi)e- lac$ The idea of crossing o)er to a new way of life pro)ides the s! stance that Rodgers e0plicitly longed for in se)eral poems of self-do! t a o!t her writing. Her third oo$ ta$es its title from this concern9 -o. I Got 2va% "+,;L# collects new and selected poems in a )ol!me that mar$s a t!rning point in Rodgers*s career. ?i$e Aio)anni and 1anche(% Rodgers re<ects the official hatred of the li eration mo)ement and em races lo)e. I1ome of 'e /ea!tyI "L5# recalls and dismisses her re)ol!tionary persona9 the fact isthat i don*t hate any ody any more i went thro!gh my mean period Now% howe)er% she awa$es to find herself carolynnot imani man <!a or so!l sister poetess of the moment i saw more than a IsisterI. . . i saw a Woman. h!man. and lac$. i felt a spirit!al transformation a root re)i)al of lo)e. The correlation etween a spirit!al transformation and the re)i)al of lo)e is critical. Two of the new poems% Ihow i got o)ahI "L# and Ihow i got o)ah &&P &t &s =eep &&I ";;-;:#% record the poet*s con)ersion to her mother*s Christianity. As the titles s!ggest "in their all!sions to the titles and last line of the poems a o!t her mother*s lo)e and faith in 'lac( 'ird: Rodgers Igot o)erI hatred and self-do! t y getting o)er the militant mo)ement and the /lac$ Aesthetic--and y getting o)er to Christianity and a new style. 2thelridge Onight- Africa- ancestry.Here a closer ancestry% her mother. 7ir-t 621li-hed8 +,., T 9e of 6oem8 ?yric Genre-8 Poetry% ?yric poetry S21:ect-8 African Americans% >amily or family life% 'others% Parents and children% Racism% /lac$s The 6oem 6&t &s =eep7 is a short dramatic monolog!e of free )erse di)ided into fi)e stan(as of irreg!lar length. The title% eginning with the indefinite prono!n 6it%7 s!ggests the slang meaning of 6deep79

a highly a stract% intellect!ally profo!nd idea lying eneath layers of s!perficial meanings. &n Carolyn '. RodgersMs poem% the s!perficial layers stem from the conflicting realities that typically e0ist etween a mother and her ad!lt da!ghter as the da!ghter asserts her independence and indi)id!ality. 6&t &s =eep7 is a short dramatic monolog!e of free )erse di)ided into fi)e stan(as of irreg!lar length. The title% eginning with the indefinite prono!n 6it%7 s!ggests the slang meaning of 6deep79 a highly a stract% intellect!ally profo!nd idea lying eneath layers of s!perficial meanings. &n Carolyn '. RodgersMs poem% the s!perficial layers stem from the conflicting realities that typically e0ist etween a mother and her ad!lt da!ghter as the da!ghter asserts her independence and indi)id!ality. &t &s =eep "don*t ne)er forget the ridge that yo! crossed o)er on#Ha)ing tried to !se thewitch cord that erases the stretch ofthirty-three loc$sand t!ning in the )oice whichwoodenly stated that thetal$ o0 was IdisconnectedI'y mother% religio!sly girdled inher god% slipped on some lo)e% andlaid on my ell li$e a tr!c$% lew thro!gh my door warm wind from the so!thconcern ma$ing her gr!ff and tight-lippedand scaredthat her I a yI was star)ing.she% ha)ing learned% that disconnection res!lts fromnon-payment of ill "s#.1he did notrecogni(e the poster of thegrand le-roi "al# cat on the wall had ne)er e)en seen the oo$s of/lac$ poems that & ha)e writtenthin$s that & am !nder the infl!ence of\\comm!nists\\when & tal$ a o!t /lac$ as anythingother than something !gly to $ill it efo it growsin any impression she wo!ld not econsidered Irele)antI or I/lac$I !tthere she was% standing in my roomnot lo!dly condemning that day andnot remem ering that & grew hearing her c!rse the factory where she Ic!t !h sla)eIand the cheap <- oss wo!ldn*t allow a !nion%not remem ering that & heard the tears when they told her a high school diploma was not eno!gh%and here now% not a le to !nderstand% what she had een forced to deny% still--she p!shed into my $itchen soshe co!ld open my refrigerator to seewhat & had to eat% and pressed fifty ills in my hand saying Ipay the tal$ ill and !ysome foodH yo! got fol$s who care a o!t yo! . . .I'y mother% religio!s-negro% pro!d ofha)ing waded thro!gh a storm% is )ery o )io!sly%a st!rdy /lac$ ridge that &crossed o)er% on. The s$y is gray 2rnest 3. Aaines was thirty in +,.5% the year in which ]]The 1$y is ArayMM was first p! lished% !t it was not !ntil fi)e years later% in +,.:% that the story was p! lished as the second story in 'loodline% the thematically interwo)en collection with which readers associate it today. Written d!ring the most t!r !lent years of the Ci)il Rights mo)ement% the stories in 'loodline descri e a less t!r !lent !t perhaps e)en more racially raw period9 ?o!isiana in the late +,5Ds and early +,EDs. ]]The 1$y is ArayMM contains many of the themes and images Aaines ret!rns to again and again in his wor$9 themes of personal responsi ility% grace !nder press!re% and moral eha)iorH images of strong mothers% mysterio!sly a sent fathers% and families in which lo)e is e0pressed more often in harsh words or silence than in o)ert praise or affection. 1!pporting these ideas is AainesMs $een awareness of the all-per)asi)e and profo!ndly formati)e infl!ence of race on )irt!ally e)ery aspect of life in the r!ral 1o!th of this era. Tho!gh he wo!ld no do! t ta$e iss!e with the 1o!th eing descri ed as a sing!lar place and wo!ld certainly arg!e that it is many places% each different% each ha)ing !niC!e gifts of nat!re and people% each facing !niC!e challenges% he wo!ld <!st as s!rely agree with W. 2. /. =! /oisMs famo!s o ser)ation% in the ]]>oretho!ghtMM of T%e $o"ls o& 'lac( Fol(% that ]]the pro lem of the Twentieth Cent!ry is the pro lem of the color line%MM for it is this ]]color lineMM in all of its manifestations that his wor$ so caref!lly doc!ments Caine- ?o!isiana% same plantation from sla)ery. An oral tradition type of his writingTH2 1OJ &1 ARAJ

IThe 1$y is Aray.I This simplistic sentence and the title of 2rnest 3. Aaines* short story )oices the com ination of physical setting and social setting which esta lish the world of yo!ng 3ames and his mother. The plot of the story follows the <o!rney of 3ames and his mother from a )ery r!ral ?o!isiana town to a less r!ral% !t still )ery small% town to see the dentist% from 3ames* point of )iew.At two points d!ring the story% 3ames notices the color of the s$y. >irst% it*s a flat o ser)ation thro!gh a !s window. The second time% while still primarily literal o ser)ation% 3ames* remar$ also reflects the $nowledge he has gained a o!t the real IcolorI of things from a yo!ng man in the dentist*s office who insists that his Iwind is pin$I and his Igrass is lac$.IIThe 1$y is ArayI is a o!t racism in the pre-Ci)il Rights 1o!th as well as the relationship etween 3ames and his mother. A powerf!l force within the story as seen thro!gh the eyes of se)enyear-old 3ames% 3ames* mother is self-sacrificing and hardwor$ing. 1he and her children wor$ in the fields to maintain their e0istence% the h!s and and father drafted and at war. ?i)ing in po)erty% )eryindi)id!al in the family $nows the precario!sness of their s!r)i)al% how e)ery penny is spent to pro)ide the essentials of food% shelter% clothing% and health care. Onowing the cost of ha)ing a tooth e0tracted% 3ames e0ercises stoicism% ne)er complaining a o!t and e)en lying a o!t the e0istence of the pain. His mother% tho!gh% ta$es the money for !s fare and the dentist from their meager sa)ings to alle)iate 3ames* pain. Once in town% the two wait for ho!rs in an o)ercrowded dentist office% only to e shooed o!t of the office and into the itter cold while the dentist l!nches. Not only are 3ames and his mother forced to ra)e the cold in too-thin coats and shoes% 3ames* mother also has to worry a o!t missing field wor$ that afternoon and% h!ngry% she m!st spend part of their meager grocery money on something for 3ames to eat. While 3ames* mother clearly has to negotiate the most !nfa)ora le of circ!mstances% she is pro!d% ref!sing to e patroni(ed and choosing silent stoicism as a means of resistance and also as parenting strategy. 1he $nows she m!st teach 3ames and his rother to s!r)i)e% to e strong and pro!d themsel)es. 1he teaches them that they m!st ta$e care of themsel)es% e)en when it means $illing the irds that he and his rother catch in traps. 1he teaches them to confront in<!stice with action% confronting the n!rse in the dentist*s office when she tells them the dentist will not see any other patients !ntil afternoon. &n p!lling a $nife on a threatening male in the diner where she and 3ames eat% she teaches 3ames that% at times% e)en )iolent self-defense may e necessary when one is threatened y )iolence. 1he teaches 3ames how to accept generosity gracef!lly and witho!t wea$ness% accepting the dinner offered to her y two white indi)id!als in the town% !t only in e0change for wor$ performed% and ref!sing a ch!n$ of salt meat igger than the C!arter she has to gi)e for it. The racism 3ames* mother confronts is compo!nded y se0ism. 1he gets catcalled as she wal$s down the street% harassed in the diner% and faces her larger comm!nity as a single mother. 1he has few opport!nities for employment aside from the hard la or that cons!mes her life. 3ames )iews his mother*s e0ha!stion and depression% remem ering when his father was with them. The C!estion of his father*s ret!rn is an !nderlying presence in the story as 3ames remem ers times he*s spent with his father and the a!nt who li)es with them )oices her awareness of the in<!stice that has sent him to fight for a co!ntry that does not allow him and his family asic ci)il rights. The person for whom his a sence has most impact% tho!gh% is the mother. A confrontation a o!t the appropriate response to social in<!stice and ineC!ity occ!rs etween a yo!ng intellect!al and a preacher while 3ames and his mother wait in the dentistMs office and is at the)ery heart of AainesM story. 2)idence of segregation and racism is a clear presence thro!gho!t the story9 3ames and his mother ha)e to sit at the ac$ of the !sH 3ames notices a flag with an arrangement of stars different than the one he $nows from his classroomH 3ames watches white children play on a well-manic!red playgro!nd o!tside a well-manic!red school. The tension em edded in the presence of this ineC!ity and the passi)e tolerance of most comes to a head when the intellect!al and preacher assert their perspecti)es on the appropriate response. Responding to an offhanded and clich d e0planation for s!ffering from the preacher IMNot !s to C!estionM%I the yo!ng st!dent ta$es a cynical and intellect!al approach to resistance% asserting that more lac$ indi)id!als

need to IC!estionI stat!s C!o and then acti)ely see$ to change it9 IMWe donMt C!estion is e0actly o!r pro lem . . . we sho!ld C!estion and C!estion and C!estion C!estion e)erythingM.I When the st!dent asserts that e)en Aod sho!ld e C!estioned and that the head sho!ld r!le the heart% the preacher reacts)iolently% slapping the oy efore apologi(ing to the others waiting in the office and ta$ing his lea)e. The preacher is e)idence of the clear presence of tradition that !ndergirds the story% the male friend of 3amesM a!nt treating 3ames with fol$ medicine and prayer standing as a second e0ample. He is also representati)e of the passi)e% peacef!l approach that yields slow res!lts and ecomes fr!strating%sometimes to the point of )iolence. A short time later% a woman who witnessed the confrontation approaches the st!dent a o!t his dis elief. He confirms that he has constr!cted his own metaphorical description of realityUthe Iwind is pin$I and the Igrass is lac$IUo!tside of the reality o!tside perspecti)es force him to accept. The metaphor ill!strates his elie)e that acti)e resistance is the only answer and moti)ation for positi)e change for the lac$ pop!lation9 *Things change thro!gh action. /y no other way.I As their preacher% the !tter a sence of heart in the oy*s )ision. 3ames witness the distance and clash etweengenerations and perspecti)es and learns. 3ames is the median% the f!t!re of the lac$ pop!lation. 3ames wants the fire he witnesses in the yo!ng st!dent. As he watches him read his oo$ and state his )iews artic!lately% 3ames imagines that he himself wo!ld li$e to e li$e this intellect!al. /!t he $nows what it is to lo)e and lo)e p!rely. He lo)es his mother% a sentiment he repeats% almost as mantra% thro!gho!t the story. His lo)e for his mother% the respect he has for her% and the sense of responsi ility he feels toward her propel 3ames* !nderstanding of his own heart. Aaines also incl!des a )ision of the f!t!re of this lo)e as 3ames asserts that he lo)es a yo!ng girl he tries to ignore on the !s. /!t% 3ames has to negotiate desperationthat t!rns )iolent in coming to an !nderstanding of lo)e. >or e0ample% he cas!ally imagines hitting thegirl on the !s eca!se he feels em arrassed y the attention other passengers are gi)ing them. And%his mother eats him and his rother when they do not !nderstand that she needs them to $ill the irds they*)e trapped so that the family can eat. 1till% 3ames* dreams are simple and selflessUhe wants the sta ility of a sec!re family lo)e and he wants more than anything to !y his mother a new red winter coat. The promise of 2rnest Aaines* IThe 1$y is ArayI is 3ames* capacity to em ody and propel a alance etween acceptance of realityUa s$y that*s realistically grayUand a resistance that is ased in oth head and heart. S421T&ON&NA 2@2RJTH&NA- ha)ing faith in god will not change anything. 1egregated comm!nity. Really cold and h!ngry. We are not going to accept charity- that*s why the woman in)ents a imaginary tas$ for 3ames. 3ames- : years old narrator. =ismissi)e a o!t religion and Aod. Things are changing- they don*t elie)e that Aod will change the white people*s mind% his mother 8 let*s hope e)ery ody doesn*t thin$li$e yo! do. S!estion e)erything- dismissi)e of christianity and lac$ people as a whole. The preacher lea)es% the st!dent remains. O!t the door. 1$ay is gray. Not that there is no a choice- critical thin$ing. As a child- not ta$e what is eing fade to yo!. Not necessarily ha)ing an answer. Thin$ for yo!rself. Preacher and the st!dent. /oy seems to represents $nowledge- i want to e <!st li$e him- gray- am ig!ity- not lac$ or white- 1tatement- the s$y is gray. 3ames is re<ecting in a way 8 the sweater is green- there is some $ind of o <ecti)e reality. He contin!es ha)ing a $ind of faith- Aod% please don*t e too cold. He retains those eliefs. What a man is% the fact that 3ames repeats o)er and o)er 6 & lo)e my mamma7 & had a hard time for that. 3ames re<ects the manhood- there is a $ind of o <ecti)e reality- he lo)es- a $ind of responsa ility for his family. He says 6 &*m going to ma$e this for my mother...7 re<ection of this model of manhood- of the st!dent and of the preacher.

3ames is nine or so- part of what is eing trace here- what means to e a man. 'atriarchal lac$ women- emasc!late their men. &s 3ames mother a matriarch? 1he has to e responsi le% her h!s and% he had to go to the army. /lac$ men a andoning- Not the case. 'atriarchal str!ct!re of lac$ family. A thing that has carried o)er from +:.L- 1$y is Areay- he is ta$en away. 3ames mother- this responsa ility. 1he complains a o!t this- do we act!ally see her doing this on her own? 4r an- lac$ families- relocation from r!ral to !r an comm!nities-idea- !r an sit!ation a lac$ woman on her own raising children. Octa)ia- 'onsie!r /ayonne Jo! are not a !m% yo!*re a man% he is the man of the family% 'anhood- responsa ility of lac$ families- $illing this little irds. & lo)e my mamma- e)en if she is harah in her treatment of him% masc!linity- lac$ manhood- macho- 3ames is not li$e that- !t he has to e to!gh. 1he has to ta$e care of them. Notion- lac$ family- patriarchal. No)el- short story- poetry didn*t reC!ire- things that we co!ld perform- raise the concscio!sness of the poem- /lac$ Arts mo)ements- theatre- CritiCie% foc!s in masc!linity. &nsistence- story- what it means to e a lac$ man. How is different from critiC!ing? =oe shis definition of manhood may seem different? A?&C2 WA?O2R- >eminist- 1he identifies herself with the lac$ arts mo)ements- Aeorgia- li)es of lac$ women. &n the 'iss 'aga(ine. =ifferent $ind of concern- manifesto- lac$ creator prod!ction. Primary concern- lac$ women*s creati)ity- not a manifesto. What may Wal$er e calling for here? We ha)e to roader the definition of art- @irgina Woolf- not a Room of One*s Own% !t not e)en their own ody. '!sic- /essie 1mith% /illie Holliday% Nina 1imone% Ro erta >lac$ and Areta >ran$ilin. 3ean Toomer- A)ey- The women are silent- what is going on in their heads?2normo!s creati)ity of lac$ women. &s she !ltimately critiC!ing Toomer?$nowledge the great n!m er of restrictions- po)erty% the saint in cane- art in partic!lar $inds of ways- he fails to recogni(e the meals they coo$% the gardens as art. Nella ?arsen. 1he was a sla)e% she hasn*t e)en herself as a Room of her Own. Alice Wal$er- teenager- she didn*t ha)e $ids% forced to s!pport herself% married a man and had 5 children. When she dies% she was p!tting together some poems. Her children died C!ic$ly eca!se they were poor- what we get is death- part of Wal$er*s arg!ment is how different the condition was etween the different women. /lac$ women- those $inds of attac$s- !nfair. Opening of this )ol!me- womanism-/lac$ h!man e0perience in the 4nited 1tates has een different to the white women. Alice Wal$er- /lac$ feminist- a feminist of colo!r- womanism% more intense. To e a woman- to e ad!lt% not to e fri)olo!s. Class% race- iss!es here. Primarily- the h!man rights- women- access to the power of white men. >eminism is not C!ite fitting identity% she comes !p with the idea of womanism. Wal$er- not only sort of masc!linist- lac$ women ha)e to lo)e themsel)es. 1e0!ally or non- se0!ally? &dentity of les ian is here. 1he ta$es ac$ some of the power% it is not a poss ility- as we seen in Amiri /ara$a- faggot- not lac$ and less a man% not mention les ians- a lac$ man may e homose0!al- less lac$. A andoning his responsa ility !t also a mar$ against his lac$ness. Homose0!ality is a white thing.Why is the title 6 2)eryday !se for yo! grandmama??Her life- she can wor$ a lot% C!ilts- passion p!t into that-things that ha)e e)eryday !se- went of to college- reclaim- her desire- display- real f!nction- is ne)er really engaged- emplacing some )al!e on it. Adifference in !nderstanding. 'ade y dressesmis!nderstanding of one*s heritage. S!ilt- display it. di)orced from it conte0t. The C!ote- a waste of this talent- $ind of correlation- yo! can <!st- certainly- Wal$er wants !s to thin$ a o!t this as art. Part of thi idea- dishono!r that. Tero- =ee- lac$ nationalist. What is the point or nat!re of her critiC!e? 2thlridge Onight- Aware- conditions of oppresion. 1ort of leniage- important to $eep ali)e. =ismissing the people who came efore- opression- eing critiC!e. CritiC!e of lac$ nationalismwith some of those concerns-mean something- sort of cost!me- Wal$er- modification of lac$ c!lt!re. We ha)e seen in earlier lac$ c!lt!re. Who is going to ma$e it something- 'alcom 1po$eWho listen.

Recall- 1onia 1anchN(- /lac$ capitalism- lac$ power- lac$ nationalist- mar0ist. /lac$ americannot <!st in the 4nited 1tates. Not an answer. &dea- real pro lem- capitalist co!ntry. Primary splitc!lt!ral nationalism. 20tending its analysis. Re)ol!tionary third- world- many of the artists tra)elled to Africa. 20pend long period of time. =esire to reclaim- more glo al )iew. People of color in the glo e. Africa and Asia- mar0ist analysis% capitalism itself was a pro lem. 'ar0ist approach analysis. &nternal conflicts. As yo! can imagine- we agree or disagree. Wider pro lemsnegro C!estion- ci)il right- to sol)e this pro lem- time to lac$ people- american dream- let me wash my hands- sense of an e0ha!stion- mo)ement had ecome too radical and dangero!s. Neccessary- too radical- ac$lash- for 1andro. Richard Ni0on- +,.: and +,;-. Ni0on elected on a platform of law and order. =isr!ption of p! lic$ life. /lac$ li eration. =emocrat- we ha)e to pass his programme. 3ohnson aware- he wo!ld alienate a lot of so!thern )oters. Original short of feminists. ?i$e this other mo)ements- One aspect- what we ha)e disc!ssed- Alice Wal$er- getting their piece of the pie. Womanism- womanist- a )ery different approach and idea. Wal$er- +,;Efo!nding- e)en efore them- femism a mo)ement that lossom and gained power. Tho!gh +,;E lays o!t the idea of womanism- early :Ds lac$ women writers were $nown. Often identifies as the year- Alice Wal$er and Toni 'orrison. 3im 3ordan- also p! lishes her fiest no)el. P! lisher- lac$ woman writers- she does not s!scri e as patriarchy. 1tatement- scepticism of lac$ women towards feminism. Weariness towards what was called woman feminism. 1he herself does not !se that term to identify her political stands. Womanist te0t. @oices and relationships etween women. The l!est eye- lifelong friendship of two women. Relationships etween women. A women who lo)es other women. Cla!dia 'acTeer. Any other way- a feminist or womanist te0t. 'en in teh no)el- ad and oppresi)e. 'orrison falls in line with lac$ feminist writing. 1he wrote this no)el in partic!lar. Prespecti)e not indicati)e of their li)e. Not specifically raced- !t race is the norm. =ic$ and 3ane readers- introd!ce children to writing- Children- introd!ced to- raced and classed )ision of what constit!tes normality. N!clear family. Witho!t any rea$s in etween. Opening the no)el- interested in- c!lt!re plays a role adapting people with the circ!mstances. 'ay represent. We get Cla!dia*s narration. Peccola- her father*s a y. The only ones that did not spro!t. Told the rest of the history% Pecola her father*s a y. Nat!ral r!ral comm!nity- other ind!strial time% Ohio% nat!ral world in)o$e% transition of time% seasons e)o$es- nat!ral time- life and death. Cla!dia- how she and her sister enco!nter Pecola. Page 5D. Chapter- =ic$ and 3ane- narrated y an omniscient narratorCla!dia narrator in certain points- the omniscient narrator. Ad!lt perspecti)e- - and 5 families depicted here- 'cTeers"in etween# - /reedlo)es- Aeraldines- 'a!reen family. 2conomic- efore 'a!reen Peel. /reedlo)e- different le)el of poors- o!tdoors- the go elow po)erty- lower- 'a!reen Peel- 'iddle Class. /reedlo)es- the most disf!ctional family- not reed or lo)e - the 'acTeersdisf!nctional- not m!ch- contempt- o ligations- s!r)i)al- family prod!cti)ity and reso!rces. 1imilar to 2rnest Aaines story- poor family don*t ha)e time for affection- s!r)i)al and anything that interr!pt the economy of the family is seen with contempt. Harshness and ro!ghness. 1ic$nessinterr!pt the lady of the family to s!r)i)e- he wo!ld not her lips- )ery clear- lo)ing family. 'otherde)oted to them- po)erty- ha)ing to fight against. =isplays of affections. 'orrison- importance of class stat!s- what is considered familiar eha)io!r- not li$e =ic$ and 3ane- eca!se of po)erty/reedlo)e- dif!nctional- not only po)erty !t also% in s!ch close C!arters% se0- dist!r ing. Her parents se0!al relationship. =isf!nctional- in all of the manners that it can e disf!ctional- selfhate- their circ!mstances are what they deser)e. Relationship etween Pa!line and Cholly% self hate and they lo)e-hate each other. Not e)en the ro!gh lo)e of Cla!dia*s mother. Pecola calls her 'rs. /reedlo)e- Cholly is a dr!n$. He was yo!ng- page 5;- >lashlight- s!rprise- narrator- why Cholly hates himself. ?oc$ed in that relationship- we are not happy- this is what we deser)e. Alances of other $ind of families9 prostit!tes% Aeraldine and 'a!reen Peel. Prostit!tes- a $ind of family% they ta$e care of each other. They hatred for men !nite them. These women ha)e ne)er een innocent. Ro!gh stories. Women- come together- lo)e each other in certain $inds of way- not regret% no sorrow% they are damaged women% they hate lac$ men and most lac$ women. 'ost women- legal prostit!tes. Women !se men li$e they !se% !t <!st legally% & e0change change se0 for s! ordination.

There is no a great difference etween them. Aood christian colored women- rep!tation spotlessaffection for these $inds of women !t this wo!ld not stop them from sleeping with their h!s ands. As well disf!nctional% affection for Pecola- dangero!s for her. ?o)e can e dangero!s as well if it is not directed in the right $inds of ways. Women are respecta le- f!n$y-their freedom- a res!lt of age- their age ga)e them a certain respecta ility. Rec$lesness of the comm!nity. Where is he came from- tal$ing a o!t what he comes from. &dnetity of their race. Not aristocratic !t class-conscio!s. Rec$lessness for freedom. 1mell of the fr!it- rec$lesness was freedom. Perf)erted freedom. /lac$ freedom*s% women li eration. =escri es Cholly as free- Pa!line and cholly- their story somehow e0c!ses their eha)io!r. All of the circ!mstances for Pa!line*s life. There is nothing for Pa!line to hold on to% she is teh one that is doing that. Page ,;% after she had ecome pregnant% physical ea!ty. 2n)y% insec!rity% disol!tion. 1he regarded lo)e- it will e for her- romatic lo)e and physical ea!ty are the most dangero!s things. ?ittle white girls% londe her and l!e eyes. Cla!dia mades the statement Cholly and the imaginary friend. The lo)e of a free man is dangero!s. The comm!nity has done to Pecola- Chollythe comm!nity does no effort to help her. 1logan- lac$ menhood% lac$ women. Romantic lo)e. 3es!s or Aod or of act!al h!man eing- romantic lo)e. That part of the pro lem- Pa!line lo)es arranging things. Any o!tlet to get this feelings and longings down. Not aristocratic !t class conscio!s. =id yo! forget a o!t the children? Jo! forgot how and when to e Aod. He lames god. =amaged character- sign of this damage. Why do we ha)e this letter that he writes?Pa!line- in the 1o!th- she don*t get that here. Pecola-at the end of her chapter- 1oapheard ch!rch% Cholly*s ac$gro!nd% old woman% Cholly doesn*t $now- sort of sense. Her $owledge of the world- hatred% pitif!l lect!re. Pa!line% in Oent!c$y. Pecola lost her alance. His mo!th trem le. 'orrison- editor3ones. Toni Cade /am ara- Nati)e New Jor$er- foc!s on% writing foc!sed on the li)e of lac$ New Jor$er- lac$ girls and women. RAJ'ON=*s R4N Toni 'orrison- re<ects feminism- !t Toni /am ara doesn*t do that. /eing a person more imporatant than to e ladyli$e. Ha(el- mat!re girl e)en at the eginning% epifanies tied together. Aretchen and & can e friends. Not competing for attention. A smile- that is not real- ri)alry. 6&n first placeU'iss Ha(el 2li(a eth =e orah Par$er.7 "=ig that.# 6&n second placeU'iss Aretchen P. ?ewis.7 And & loo$ o)er at Aretchen wondering what the 6P7 stands for. And & smile. Ca!se sheMs good% no do! t a o!t it. 'orrison% Wal$er% Wal$er- so!thern r!ral life% 'orrison- small towns. Here we get the !r an depiction of lac$ life- /lac$ Arts 'o)ement- !r an forms of lac$ness. 1he has grown !p in NJC. Toni Cade /am ara has long een admired for her short stories. ]]Temperamentally% & mo)e toward the short story%MM /am ara has said% defining herself% li$e her protagonist Ha(el Par$er% as ]]a sprinter rather than a long distance r!nner.MM &n ]]RaymondMs R!n%MM the yo!ng Ha(el Par$er relates the e)ents of two days in her life in which she prepares for and r!ns a race. The story first appeared in +,;+ in an anthology edited y /am ara% Tales and $%ort $tories &or 'lac( Fol(s A year later it appeared in her first collection of short stories% Gorilla/ My Love /am araMs story of Ha(elMs race against the newcomer Aretchen% d!ring which Ha(el comes to a t!rning point in her relationship with her mentally challenged rother% Raymond% has een seen as a

gro!nd- rea$ing initiation story. Along with others in the collection Gorilla/ My Love/ it has een classed as among the first to place a yo!ng lac$ female as a central character in the bild"n!sroman "a no)el a o!t the moral and psychological growth of the main character# tradition. Critics ha)e also praised /am araMs compassionate portrayal of the African-American comm!nity% a comm!nity in which Ha(el Par$er ta$es center stage and spea$s with her own )oice. The )i rant idiomatic lang!age and !p eat tempo% which are compelling feat!res of the story% are characteristic of /am araMs style. Her a ility to capt!re% translate and play in and o!t of the )oices and idioms of lac$ comm!nities has een widely admired. Thro!gh the !se of )oice as well as theme% ]]RaymondMs R!nMM emphasi(es the importance of achie)ing selfhood for yo!ng lac$ women within the conte0t of comm!nity. 1C!ea$y is the main character in Toni Cade /am araMs story% 6RaymondMs R!n.7 1he is the character & will e analy(ing. 1he changes from eing an insec!re% arrogant fighter to a respectf!l% confident girl. The reason she changes is eca!se she watches her rother r!n his first race and she reali(es that heMs a good r!nner. At the eginning of the story% 1C!ea$y is to!gh and arrogant. 1he says to her enemy% Aretchen% 6& win ca!se &Mm the est7 "-5#. This shows that she is arrogant and r!de to others. 1he also challenges Aretchen and her side$ic$s y saying% 6ThatMs right% >atso. And the ne0t word o!t of any ody and &Mll e their mother too7 "-D#. Here she shows that she tr!ly is to!gh and she is not <!st tal$. The girls ac$ away in fear% too intimidated to respond to her challenge. The reader C!ic$ly disco)ers% howe)er% that 1C!ea$y acts this way only eca!se sheMs hiding her tr!e insec!rities. 1heMs em arrassed that she has no friends and sheMs <ealo!s of Aretchen eca!se she has friends and is a good r!nner. After lea)ing the confrontation% 1C!ea$y says that she contin!es down /roadway% 6with not a care in the world eca!se & am 'iss S!ic$sil)er herself.7 Here% it is o )io!s that she really does care% and that she canMt e)en admit it to herself. All she has is her rother Raymond% and altho!gh she cares a o!t him% she doesnMt respect him eno!gh to e a friend. /y the end of the story% 1C!ea$y is a completely different person. 1he respects Aretch and Raymond and she has ecome confident in herself. 6Ca!se sheMs good% no do! t a o!t it.7 &nstead of r! ing it in that she won% she can compliment Aretchen and gi)e her a tr!e smile. 1he also learns to respect Raymond. As she watches him clim the fence after the race% she reali(es% 6Raymond wo!ld ma$e a )ery fine r!nner7 "-;#. 1heMs ready to gi)e !p r!nning to coach Raymond eca!se she has many other things she can e good at. 1he is no longer so insec!re a o!t herself that she has to e the est r!nner. 1C!ea$y changes so drastically eca!se she finally reali(es that her rother is a tr!e r!nner. As she watches him r!n% she reali(es that he has his own style and that he is really good at something. This ma$es her reali(e that her rother has pro lems a lot worse than she does. 1he can now help her rother and not worry so m!ch a o!t herself. 1he can also ma$e some friends. &n the end% 1C!ea$y reali(es that girls can e real and that can ma$e friends. 1he learns some important lessons and sheMs a etter person y the end. This room- e0am T!esday :95D est of race. Pre)io!s 3ames Weldon 3ohnson% 3ean Toomer% Cla!de 'cOay ?owdon fol$s or whate)er- langhston h!ghes% (ora neale richard wright- relatonships lac$ masses- not distinction !pper or low. Alice Wal$er sees feminism as inadeC!ate The a!to iography of the 20 Colored 'an- 3amesWeldon 3ohnson. 6 White scholars raise7 we don*t $now what is going on. =ramatic form% >lash ac$. +st person. He ecomes part of the others. Psychological impact that was e)ident. The st!por ca!sed y the disco)ery of his new racial identity. He doesn*t wa$e !p with lac$ people% foreshadow of the end of the no)el when he chooses

witheness. 3ames /aldwin- 2)ery ody*s protest no)el 8 CritiC!es the protests no)els% it is not the act!al aim% it*s the people. 2)ery ody*s protest no)el. He is not alo!d e)en to critici(e these no)els. Propaganda )s. Craft. Concerned with the de ate of propaganda and art.-Richard Wright% Nati)e 1on. 1!ccess of Nati)e 1on. Word choices. Not really their aim. Niceties- art is not propaganda. The protest no)el- propaganda or sociological )iew of e0istence. Whate)er e0pressing demands- fail in that intention. They do )iolence to the lang!age. >ails li$e art. Oppresi)e- )iolence of the lan!age. >ails as art. What the good of society means anyway? The /l!es &*m playing- ?anghston H!ghes. Patron of the arts% a critiC!e% critiC!es the patronage of the harlem Reinassance. /l!es- he doesn*t li$e it% too ethnic. Oceola% =ora 2llsworth% art and ea!ty. Narrator here% what 'iss 2lsworth. Physical appearence of her protegees. ?arger C!estion- Harlem Reinassance artist- what patronage does to the a!dience and arts. 'iss. 2lsworth- e)erything of Oceola- 1he and Tora Herston- were !nder the patronage- personally- what was her o ligation in that patronage. Narrator*s tone towards 'rs 2lsworth. 1he is eing critical- she in<ects herself into the process. Conf!sed% dead h!s and- critical tone and a s!ggestion of pity% condescending. 1he is not herself a creator% she li)es thro!gh the artists she patronages. Wealthy h!s and. Her h!s and was dead% the death has left her so wealthy% their marriage wasn*t that great anyway. Criteria for what she is doing here. &s she really patronising people more than art?White lady- $ind lady. 'rs 2lsworth- oceola- lac$est of her protegees. H!ghes concerned with white patronage. Octa)ia- a!ntie said Thes$y is gray- 2rnest AainesAet him o!t of here-she said. 6& can*t% 'ama7 1he started hitting me cross the ac$. & went on the gro!nd.% crying 6 Aet him7 she say% Octa)ia? A!ntie said. Conte0t of manhood% he wants to help his mother. The oy% 3ames% o!r narrator% recalling a time when his mother tells him he has to $ill the song irds to eat them% e)en if he doesn*t want to. Octa)ia% his mother lo)es him. What means to e a man. What it means for 3ames to e a man. His father ta$en into the Army. 'other- forcing 3ames to $ill the song irds. When he ref!ses% she starts hitting him. To!gh lo)e- eca!se there is not a dad for 3ames% his mother ta$es this role% she shows him that he has to e to!gh. Pro)iding for them is how Octa)ia shows she lo)es her family. 1ometimes they ha)e to e things they don*t li$e to pro)ide their family. Po)erty. N!rt!rer. When he has to catch the ird. 3ames% only :. /!t he doesn*t $now his age with certainty- sla)e. Why this has to happen to him? 2)en to!gh his performance is masc!line. He thin$s himself as protecting her. The disciplinary.