The Importance of Speech and Humor in Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God

Nonfiction, Entertainment, Drama, Anthologies
Cover of the book The Importance of Speech and Humor in Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes Were Watching God by Natalie Lewis, GRIN Publishing
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Natalie Lewis ISBN: 9783638268974
Publisher: GRIN Publishing Publication: April 17, 2004
Imprint: GRIN Publishing Language: English
Author: Natalie Lewis
ISBN: 9783638268974
Publisher: GRIN Publishing
Publication: April 17, 2004
Imprint: GRIN Publishing
Language: English

Seminar paper from the year 2003 in the subject American Studies - Literature, grade: 1,0 (A), Free University of Berlin (JFK-Institute), course: Hauptseminar: Humor in Women's Literature, language: English, abstract: The Harlem Renaissance, an African American cultural movement of the 1920s and early 1930s, also refered to as New Negro Renaissance, marked the first time that black literature and arts were seriously recognized by American publishers, critics and intellectuals. Participants in the movement attempted to refute the negative racist stereotypes of black life deeply imbedded in white popular as well as high culture. In a time when many black middle class intellectuals shamefully distanced themselves from their cultural heritage, artists of the Harlem Renaissance showed a strong sense of racial pride in exploring the African and Southern roots of black experience and experimenting with elements of traditional African American folk culture in different genres. One of the most significant figures emerging from this literary period was the anthropologist and fiction writer Zora Neale Hurston. After her college education, she engaged in extensive anthropological field research on rural black tradition in her all-black hometown Eatonville in Florida as well as the Carribean region and published the collected tales, sermons, songs and jokes in f olklore collections, e.g. Mules and Men. As a novelist, she made use of her extensive knowledge of African American Southern rural dialect and oral culture by texualizing it in the dialogues of her fictional characters. Zora Neale Hurston was one of the first black writers to give an acurate depiction of African American humor. She demonstrated that humor is a crucial element of speech within the black community not only for establishing communal bonds through laughter but also because it plays an important role in the assertion of one's voice. Hurston's second and best-known novel Their Eyes Were Watching God focuses on the black woman's place in society. The protagonist and story-teller Janie presents her quest for self-fulfillment and struggle against ve rbal oppression, over two decades and three marital relationships; as she gains experience by experimenting with different roles, she learns how to assert her voice within the community and to humor life.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

Seminar paper from the year 2003 in the subject American Studies - Literature, grade: 1,0 (A), Free University of Berlin (JFK-Institute), course: Hauptseminar: Humor in Women's Literature, language: English, abstract: The Harlem Renaissance, an African American cultural movement of the 1920s and early 1930s, also refered to as New Negro Renaissance, marked the first time that black literature and arts were seriously recognized by American publishers, critics and intellectuals. Participants in the movement attempted to refute the negative racist stereotypes of black life deeply imbedded in white popular as well as high culture. In a time when many black middle class intellectuals shamefully distanced themselves from their cultural heritage, artists of the Harlem Renaissance showed a strong sense of racial pride in exploring the African and Southern roots of black experience and experimenting with elements of traditional African American folk culture in different genres. One of the most significant figures emerging from this literary period was the anthropologist and fiction writer Zora Neale Hurston. After her college education, she engaged in extensive anthropological field research on rural black tradition in her all-black hometown Eatonville in Florida as well as the Carribean region and published the collected tales, sermons, songs and jokes in f olklore collections, e.g. Mules and Men. As a novelist, she made use of her extensive knowledge of African American Southern rural dialect and oral culture by texualizing it in the dialogues of her fictional characters. Zora Neale Hurston was one of the first black writers to give an acurate depiction of African American humor. She demonstrated that humor is a crucial element of speech within the black community not only for establishing communal bonds through laughter but also because it plays an important role in the assertion of one's voice. Hurston's second and best-known novel Their Eyes Were Watching God focuses on the black woman's place in society. The protagonist and story-teller Janie presents her quest for self-fulfillment and struggle against ve rbal oppression, over two decades and three marital relationships; as she gains experience by experimenting with different roles, she learns how to assert her voice within the community and to humor life.

More books from GRIN Publishing

Cover of the book Modernism in 'The Day of the Locust' (1939) by Nathanael West by Natalie Lewis
Cover of the book Roma Holocaust by Natalie Lewis
Cover of the book A critical investigation of the merits and drawbacks of in-depth interviews by Natalie Lewis
Cover of the book Corporate culture and group values at Dicom Group plc by Natalie Lewis
Cover of the book Between reality and myth by Natalie Lewis
Cover of the book Middle English love poetry - Dialects and origin by Natalie Lewis
Cover of the book Analisis de la Carta sobre el Humanismo de Heidegger by Natalie Lewis
Cover of the book New Views on Cameroon English by Natalie Lewis
Cover of the book The Integrity of the Game and Shareholdings in European Football Clubs by Natalie Lewis
Cover of the book Why Europe does not need a constitution by Natalie Lewis
Cover of the book What makes a collection of people a 'class'? Does grouping people into classes help to explain anything? by Natalie Lewis
Cover of the book Workers' rights and the competitiveness of European business by Natalie Lewis
Cover of the book Question Types and Functions by Natalie Lewis
Cover of the book Liability Law - Economic analysis of defective products by Natalie Lewis
Cover of the book Democratization of Iraq by Natalie Lewis
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy