Discrimination In Wallace Thurman's The Blacker The Berry

The Blacker the Berry is a remarkable, well-known novel by Wallace Thurman that explores and investigates prejudice and all types of pressures that are placed upon women but more importantly, the black community. The famous saying “The Blacker the Berry, the sweeter the juice” means the more unique qualities one may have- the better, but in this novel it takes another turn. During this time period, African Americans and whites were heavily segregated and they endured a lot of discrimination so when the novel told the reader that there was discrimination within the black community, it was completely unheard of. Wallace Thurman received a lot of criticism since he published The Blacker the Berry during a time period where most literature was

Social norms are rules and regulations that society is supposed to live by and if one goes against them, they are sanctioned. For instance, going against these norms and expectations one might not be able to handle the sanction that follows and give them anxiety which would lead to them feeling like an outcast and not enough. These types of problems are showcased throughout the book whenever there is a confrontation with Emma Lou’s family and other members of the community; however they are put in a situation where they can either defend Emma Lou or discriminate against her too and accept all the criticism and that is what they choose to do because they too, don't want to be outcasted. During Thurman’s life, he never fit in properly in his community, he was treated as a wallflower, never interacting with anyone because of his fear of rejection. One cannot blame him for not ever desiring to have friends because nobody in his community had anything judicious to say, Thurman thought it was because he wasn’t “black enough” (Ganter). He knew he had to leave and make something of himself, he depicts this behavior in the novel when Emma Lou decides what she’s going to do after summer. “People in large cities,’ he had said, ‘are broad. They do not have the time to think of petty things. The people in Boise are fifty years behind the time but you will find that Los Angeles is one of the

The world is constantly evolving and so are the people, and not everyone can accustom themselves to it. Harlem, the most influential setting in the novel, is home to one of the major literary movements known as the Harlem Renaissance. Harlem was “a site of considerable- even revolutionary-social and personal possibilities, a stage for upheavals and transformations of identity that could reorganize and complicate the self is perceived and presented. Harlem must be felt, not heard or seen.” (Scott III). It was not only an era of change and equality for all races, but a time for new opportunities. It also had diverse literature by various authors such as Langston Hughes and Zora Neale Hurston Both authors wrote about being free and how the black culture should be celebrated because it is as valuable as any other culture (africanamericanhistoryplace.com). Similarly, both authors have experienced the feeling of being an “outcast” and feeling pressured to try and be somebody they are not just like how Emma felt during the novel. “In the future she would be eminently selfish. If people came into her life- well and good. If they didn’t- she would continue to live anyway, seeking to find herself and achieving meanwhile economic and mental