American Literature II: Week 4 - The Harlem Renaissance and The Great Migration

Week 4 Overview and Assignments

  • Readings for Week 4:
    • Follow the provided list closely, as not all works by an author may be assigned.
    • Read the entire "debating black art section," including all individual essays by the listed authors.
  • Assessments Due by End of Week:
    • Reading and Lecture Quiz.
    • Midterm Exam: This is not a regular essay exam focused only on the week's readings. Instead, it requires writing short essays about all works covered in the first part of the course, emphasizing connections between them.
    • Midterm Discussion Post:
      • Reflect and share reflections on the course progress with classmates.
      • The prompt is already available.
      • Initial post due Friday night.
      • Responses due Sunday night.

The Great Migration (Early 20th Century)

  • Context: Followed Reconstruction, characterized by even greater restrictions on black lives, mobility, and opportunity.
  • Causes and Triggers:
    • Racial Violence: A "mass increase" in lynchings in the South led black people to flee.
    • Economic Opportunity in the North: Simultaneously, there was a migration towards the North due to increased job prospects.
      • Burgeoning industrial sectors in the North needed new labor.
      • Examples: The automobile industry in Detroit and meatpacking around Chicago attracted many black Americans.
    • Agricultural Hardship in the South:
      • Several "terrible agricultural years" due to drought and flooding.
      • Boll Weevil Epidemic: A pest that attacked cotton crops, further destabilizing the Southern agricultural economy.
  • Waves and Scale:
    • Often considered in two waves:
      • First wave occurred after World War I.
      • Second wave occurred after World War II.
    • Over a 60-year period, approximately 6,000,000 black people relocated to the North and West.
    • Significance: This demographic shift represented about "half of the black population" at the time, signifying a massive demographic relocation within America.

The Rise of Harlem

  • Harlem's Transformation: A section of New York City that became "almost wholly black population." It grew to over 150,000 residents by the mid-1920s.
  • Emergence of Black Media: The increased black population and migration led to the creation of many newspapers, magazines, and journals specifically dedicated to black issues and black art.
    • The Crisis: Founded in 1910, became a major news outlet for black readers.
    • Opportunity Magazine: Launched in 1923 directly out of Harlem, serving as a literary magazine that published short stories and poetry by black authors for black readers.

The Harlem Renaissance: An Artistic and Intellectual Outpouring

  • Definition: An artistic outpouring encompassing literature, music, dance, and other artistic ventures.
  • Origin: Resulted from the concentrated influx of diverse black migrants from Southern locales into Harlem.
  • Purpose and Impact:
    • Described the unique opportunities and challenges faced in the North.
    • Provided a crucial "opportunity to cultivate communities, salons, venues for artists and thinkers to test and to debate and to disseminate art and ideas."
  • Core Debates and Diverse Perspectives (from the intro quote): The Harlem Renaissance was marked by significant arguments concerning the nature and direction of black art and culture.
    • Culture at Large vs. Separate Artistic Domain: Debate between those seeking membership and recognition within broader culture versus those advocating for a distinct black artistic space.
    • Rural Folkways vs. Urban Intellectuality: Contention between celebrating rural African American folkways and embracing urban intellectualism.
    • American Mainstream vs. Revolutionary Movements: Conflict between joining the American mainstream and aligning with worldwide revolutionary movements (driven by disgust with American racial prejudice).
    • Primitive African Heritage vs. Degrading Stereotype: Discussion about celebrating a "primitive African heritage" versus rejecting this idea as a "degrading stereotype."
  • Significance of Debate: These debates highlighted the diverse perspectives among black intellectuals, thinkers, and artists, allowing them to "hash out" fundamental questions:
    • What should art and culture look like?
    • What should racial progress entail?
    • What factors influence culture and art (e.g., freedom vs. obligation)?
  • Role of Conflict: This period represented a significant arena of conflict, particularly for women and artists.

Competing Ideologies: Uplift Tradition vs. Individual Freedom

  • Uplift Tradition:
    • Core Idea: The belief that the black population should be elevated to improve the race's reputation, thereby affecting social and class mobility.
    • Methods: Emphasized education, proper behavior, hygiene, and modeling cultural ideals.
    • Proponent Example: W.E.B. Du Bois represented this prevailing racial ideology up to around 1920.
  • Emerging Idea (Harlem Renaissance):
    • Core Idea: Valued individual freedom and exploration, distinct from any racial duty or obligation.
    • Significance: Considered valuable and integral to achieving change and freedom.

Timeframe and Extensions

  • Primary Period: The Harlem Renaissance is primarily associated with the 1920s.
  • Extensions: Many writers and themes stretched beyond this decade, connecting to later movements.
    • Chicago Black Renaissance: Flourished in the 1930s and early 1940s, extending the artistic and intellectual vibrancy.
    • Key Authors with Extended Careers: Writers like Richard Wright, Langston Hughes, and Zora Neale Hurston continued to produce significant work in the 1930s and 1940s.