Harlem Renaissance: Literature, Art, and the New Negro
Harlem Renaissance
Literature and Art Movement of African Americans in the 20th Century
The Harlem Renaissance was a significant literary and artistic movement among African Americans in the 20th century. Langston Hughes’s most famous book, *Simple Speaks His Mind*, exemplifies the spirit of the movement. The movement expressed a fascination with energy and machines. Artistic movements were centered in New York or England. Demonstrations and riots were quite frequent. Popular music included jazz. For W.E.B. Du Bois, Black people had a double consciousness. African American people participated in the principles of both Black and White people, creating a third self, based on intuition and religious spirits. This third self combined intuition and rationalism. The movement attacked any racist vision. A problem was the rule of patronage. To understand who the patrons were in this system, it’s important to note that everything was patronized by White people, who attended to the demands of Whites instead of Black people. “Negrotarians” were Black people exploited by White patrons, in which literature and art were determined by these patrons. The relationship between White and Black artists was tense due to economic differences. Du Bois formulated a second aspect: education oriented to the service of the race, an elite to act as leaders. Those who went to university should be leaders. Three points clarify this identity:
- African American intellectuals should not choose religion, as it was a link to the past and supported slavery.
- Intellectuals should not participate in politics, as it was a symbol of Negroes’ rejection.
- They should accept participation in culture.
The Old Negro represented slavery, while the New Negro represented intellectuals. They attended European universities and defended Pan-Africanism. They were a new attitude, educated people.
Alain Locke and “The New Negro” (1925)
Alain Locke’s “The New Negro” (1925) was a foundational work for the movement, connected with Du Bois’s idea of lifting the race. A new issue emerged: morality and politics. Regarding the concept of truth, they wanted Negro writers to produce beautiful things.
- Negro artists should create to express their dark skin without fear or shame.
- They were just interested in themselves. If White people were happy with their artistic products, they were glad; if not, it didn’t matter.
- Everything they did was beautiful, but there were also some ugly things.
White and Black people tried to differentiate themselves. Hughes proclaimed that African American people should abandon American features, with an emphasis on simple people.
Langston Hughes: A Representative of the New Negro
The man who best represents this term is Langston Hughes, who considered himself a New Negro. His books are characterized by humor, but with a concept of self-pity related to discrimination. Hughes wrote plays, essays, books, and poetry—a true Renaissance man. He was also a satire writer and a translator. Born in Missouri but raised in Kansas, he studied at Columbia University in New York and worked in Chicago. He founded theaters. His intention was to explain and illuminate the Negro condition in the USA. His books often dealt with painful experiences in New York. Three aspects of his life and work stand out:
- When at school, he was raised by his grandmother. He read everything and was fascinated by linguistic forms.
- He defined art as simple, yet hard to achieve. He desired the advancement of the Black race.
“Ways and Means”
This appears as a comic character, interested in social issues. He is an intelligent man, observant, and hates hypocrisy. He has a compromise against racial injustice. He is an uneducated man but hardworking and honest. Two aspects define him:
- A man who defends Negro liberation.
- He turns into a spokesman for workers and common laborers.
He uses simple language with a double technique, fascinating for Negro readers. He appears to offend White people but defends his community. Humor represents the enjoyment of life, along with self-pity. He represents the Black ghetto. “Simple” is not interested in complicated people. Satire and humor are present, along with physical and mental segregation. He advocates for freedom of speech, worship, the right of any man to have economic equality, and freedom from fear.