Transcript The Harlem Renaissance

The Harlem Renaissance
Primitivism
 DEF:
going back Primitivistic
influences evident in art and music
(simple, crude, back-to-basics).
 High interest in African art & music
 New attn to jazz, gospel, blues
 Attn to folk culture of Native
Americans as well
Think about Faulkner
 Saw
violence as primitive
 Not ALWAYS dark & depressing –
also provides the charm of folk arts,
ballads, etc.
 Heading into the 20’s some serious
writers were disillusioned by society
(corruption, irresponsibility)
However…
 1919-1929
produced some of the
best American Lit.
 New authors responded to social &
moral confusion.
 Many expatriates used European
influence in their writing.
Dream a little dream…
 Many
characters/authors spend
their lives trying to realize their
dreams.
 At times it’s just the dream that
gives meaning to their lives, whether
or not the dream is fulfilled.
StoryTech

It’s 10 years from now. You have come to your old
favorite pizza place in your home town for a reunion
with a few friends from high school. 10 yrs ago, you &
these close friends were having a serious discussion
about your individual dreams for the future. This
discussion was so good you agreed to meet at this
location in 10 yrs to check with each other on your
progress toward realizing you dream. You are early
and have time to reflect and write some notes to share
with you friends who will arrive soon. Write down your
progress in your journey toward realizing your dream
and the steps you have taken toward your goal.
(NEXT)
Directions…
First, describe what you look like, what
you are wearing, where you are and how
you feel about seeing your friends.
 Next, write about your progress toward
realizing your dream. What have you
accomplished?
 How about some nice music while you
work….

To do list…
 What
do you need to do to realize
this dream?
 How do you set goals for yourself
and keep them?
What not to do… (self-defeating
behaviors)
 What
might work against you
in achieving your dreams?
 What would ruin your dream?
 What barriers might you have
to overcome to achieve this
dream?
Influence of Music
Weary Blues – reads like a jazz song
 Performance (start at 2:00)
 Babysitting Blues

Harlem Renaissance –
Langston Hughes another “Harlem” poem
What happened to a
dream deferred?
Does it dry up
like a raisin in the sun?
Or fester like a sore –
And then run?
Does it stink like rotten
meat?
Or crust and sugar
over – Like a syrupy
sweet?
Maybe it just sags
Live a heavy load.
Or does it explode?
Similes, similes everywhere!
1. What does the speaker mean by “a
dream deferred”?
 2. What social or political consequences
are hinted at in the poem’s last line?
 3. List the similes used to describe the
effect of the deferred dream. What do
these comparisons reveal about the
speaker’s attitude (tone)?

Questions
Picture a raisin and a grape. Which has
more life? Which one can change? If
each is symbolic of a dream, describe
what dream the grape could represent.
 What are the consequences of a dream
deferred?
 Think about your biggest dream. How
would you change if it went unrealized?

“Dream Boogie” – Langston Hughes
Good morning, daddy!
Ain’t you heard
The boogie-woogie rumble
Of a dream deferred?
Listen closely: Ain’t you heard
Something underneath
Like a –
You think
It’s a happy beat?
Listen to it closely:
Ain’t you heard
Something underneath
Like a What did I say?
Sure,
I’m happy!
Take it away!
Hey, pop!
Re-bop!
Mop!
Y-e-a-h!
Gwendolyn Brooks “We Real Cool”
We real cool. We
Left school. We
Lurk late. We
Strike straight. We
Sing sin. We
Thin gin. We
Jazz June. We
Die soon.
Raphael Casal “Barbie And Ken
101”
Okay, I have to bleep at 1:17, 1:44-48,
2:08-09, bad bad words.
 Guys mad about triflin’ girls, bleep 1:31,
2:05, deflect pain with humor = genius.

POLL TIME! 2nd Block
POLL – 3rd Block
HW: Write your own
Write your own poem.
 No set length
 Comment on something YOU want to
see changed in society.

Lasting Effect of Harlem
Renaissance – Ralph Ellison
Published in 1947
 Ellison died in 1994
 New type of black protagonist. Educated,
articulate.
 Complex culture w/its own identity
 Black & white connected
 Views not widely accepted until 1980s
 Black Nationalism – Video, Disc. Ed

Before We Read…1-2-3-4
When in your life have you felt “invisible”?
 What strategies did you use to deal with
this situation?
 Did you feel you had no power or did you
somehow express your power to be more
visible?
 Who else might feel “invisible” that you
know?

Focus for Reading
Put yourself in the narrator’s shoes
 How does Ellison draw you into the
story?
 What literary elements are present in
short stories?
 What is the THEME or message of this
story? (Remember, theme is NOT one
word!)

After Reading
1.
2.
3.
4.
Why is the narrator at the club?
Before he can do that, what does he
have to do?
What is ironic about the people in the
audience?
What’s the symbolism of the blonde
woman?
After reading…
1.
2.
3.
Our narrator endured many humiliations
besides the fight. What were they?
What word did the narrator say that
halted all the laughter?
What was the significance of giving him
a briefcase? What was inside?