Harlem Renaissance

Catalog description

This course will explore the fiction, music, art, and the political and philosophical writing that emerged during the period known as The Harlem Renaissance. We will begin by tracing the historical developments that made possible the formation of Harlem as both a place and an idea. Beginning with the writing of Frederick Douglass and Sojourner Truth, we will listen to nineteenth centruy Black voices as they set the stage for even more complex expressions of Black identity, citizenship, and culture. We will debate W.E.B. Dubois' claim that race is a product of "blood and culture" and we will explore the ways in which various Black artists interpret that complicated idea. We will also trace the ways in which Black culture- both the high art of salons and galleries and the popular culture of speakeasys and clubs-participated in trying to solve the 'problem' of being-as Louis Armstrong sang it- both "Black and Blue." Finally, we will listen carefully to the powerful voices of artists such as Zora Neale Hurston who celebrate their racial identity and who invite us- Black, White, Brown, and Yellow- to join in that celebration.