Harlem Renaissance Annotated Bibliography

The Harlem Renaissance
An Annotated Bibliography
“The Harlem Renaissance.” PBS, Public Broadcasting Service, 2002, http://www.pbs.org/wnet/jimcrow/stories_events_harlem.html. Accessed 10 March 2017.
Lasting from 1917 through 1935, the Harlem Renaissance was a period of artistic, cultural and social prosperity for the Black community during the post-World War I Era. The neighborhood of Harlem in New York City was considered the Artistic and Cultural Mecca during the period, and is where thousands of talented Black artists, musicians, poets and scholars fled to in search of home where they could properly express themselves. Many influential Black artists and figures got their start or were in their prime during this era. Notable examples include
This boom was most prominently seen in literature. Most novels published by Black authors in the 1910’s all began drawing on common literary genres and tropes, highlighting British Romanticism, American experimentalism, and Black Folk culture. The literature of this time period also poses great questions on personal identity and the pressures that are brought about through societal issues such as social class, race, and gender. Short stories were also very popular within this time period. Great examples include Fry Street & Environs and The Living Is Easy by Georgia Douglas Johnson and Dorothy West, respectively, provide an insider’s view of color consciousness and diversity and the general experiences of life as an African-American in the Northern United States. Perhaps the most famous art forms of the Harlem Renaissance besides literature is music. Famous musicians like Duke Ellington, Ella Fitzgerald and Louis Armstrong brought about the nationwide popularity of African-American Jazz music, which is widely regarded as the first genre of music that was uniquely American. Jazz music not only made a great impact in the United States, but through World War I, it spread to other countries, such as France, where it became and remains extremely popular today. With this source, I can show and explain the literary and musical feats
Although the Harlem Renaissance fizzled out by the mid 1930’s, the works of this era made a change that lasts to this day. Writers such as W.E.B DuBois were highly regarded for how vocal he was in the community and his lack of complacency for the roles that society placed on him because of his color. His attitudes would kindle a sense of Black Pride, which would become an integral part of the Civil Rights Movement, which was on the horizon. Themes of racial identity, freedom and perseverance found in the literature, artwork, and drama of the era motivated and inspired African-Americans to demand more respect from their fellow men. Although the Harlem Renaissance didn’t reach quite reach the social and political change that many people living in the era had hoped for, it set the stage for future change. Perhaps the greatest achievement of the Harlem Renaissance was the heavily influence it had on the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960’s. I plan on using this source to describe the impact that the Harlem Renaissance had on the Civil Rights Movement, which in turn, can also point back to present day America. By describing the effects it has had on our present day society, this source will allow me to drive home how important this movement truly was for this group of people, and how their movement brought about a change for all