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The Harlem Renaissance

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Extended Essay: The Harlem Renaissance Question: What contribution did the Harlem Renaissance have in shaping the voice of African-Americans in New York City during the 1920’s? Introduction: For many, the 1920’s evokes images of flappies and speak-easies. But for one group of Americans, the decade was also the start of rebirth. The Harlem Renaissance was the first time African writers, musicians and artists won recognition for their achievements in vast amounts of areas. Their goal was to create an outlet for group cohesion and self determination, as a means for achieving equality and civil rights. The Harlem Renaissance was a period of time that was responsible for creating a new cultural and social landscape and its significance is something that played a major role in how African-Americans live today. Harlem, New York, can be seen as the …show more content…

During World War I, Black Americans living in the South flocked to northern cities such as New York in the 1920s, in pursuit of a new life consisting of fairer treatment and better pay. This migration posed a new opportunity for African-Americans; a platform for self expression. As a result of this migration, it was not long until the borough of Harlem, New York became a hub of cultural explosion. Historians such as Howard Zinn argue that the economic situation at the time was responsible for sparking such a movement. This is view is agreeable because Harlem truly changed during events such as the American Civil War and World War I when it was subjected to much reconstruction. The neighborhood was a strong and significant location of economic boom after the American Civil War because of the labor force that was present during the time. Italians, Jews and most notably, African Americans, came to Harlem in order to take advantage of this economic boom by working in

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Even though the Great Depression affected Harlem vigorously in 1929, the accomplishments, creativity, and glamour of the 20's did not expire immediately. The Harlem Renaissance was best understood as the new social and cultural landscape of the 1920s, because the Harlem renaissance kept breathing on even with the thought to end when the stock market crashed. The Harlem Renaissance was a ground breaking revolution that occurred during the 1920’s to the 1940’s. The name was given to the artistic, social, and cultural explosion that took place in Harlem, New York. Its high point included many talented and impressive African Americans who were doing memorable and exciting things in lively places.

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This paper is all about how the Renaissance shaped African American culture. In this paper you will read about famous black people of that time, special events that occurred and more. The 1920’s period was known as the Harlem Renaissance. This was a time where black people and white people discovered the uniqueness of art, culture, society. From 1918 to the mid 1930s talent began to expand with the new culture of the blacks in the Harlem community.

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The Harlem Renaissance is a term that encompasses an intellectual and literary movement of the 1920s and 1930s. A renowned scholar, Alain Locke, argued that “Negro life is seizing its first chances for group expression and self determination” (1926). Moreover, The Harlem Renaissance refers to the re-birth of African Americans who needed “an affirmation of their dignity and humanity in the face of poverty and racism” (Gates, 1997: 929). In their research, Shukla and Banerji state the the Harlem Renaissance “can be considered as the spring of Afro-American voice” that previously remained unheard and unnoticed (2012). For the first time black musicians and artists came to the fore of attention and started to be praised for their work.

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It has a large black population and in the 1920’s and 1930’s was noted for its nightclubs and jazz bands. Blacks continued to pour into Harlem from points in lower Manhattan

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802 Words | 4 Pages

The Harlem Renaissance was a period in American history, which occurred in the 1920s in Harlem, New York. The cultural movement was an opportunity for African Americans to celebrate their heritage through intellectual and artistic works. Langston Hughes, a famous poet, was a product of the Harlem Renaissance. One notable piece of literature by Hughes is “Dream Deferred”. However, the discussion of African American culture isn’t limited to the 1920s.

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During the 1920’s while segregation existed between blacks and whites, The Harlem Renaissance also known as the New Negro Movement developed in Harlem New York City. The Harlem Renaissance allowed was very benficial to African Americans because it allowed them to express themeselves. ‘Harlem gave African American people a new sense of their own beauty and power” (Haskins,2). During the harlem Renassance African AMericans expressed themselves through different types of art such as music, poetry, dance,and paintings.

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The Harlem Renaissance Was One Of The Most Rememberable Topics We’ve Went Over . It Consisted Of Some Of The Best Painters , Music Composers , Poets/Singers , And Actors Of The 1920s And 1930s . This Time Had Its Hardships But Not All Was Bad In Harlem ; They Had Blacks Coming For All Over Wanting To Pursue Their Career In WhatEver Involved Expressing ThemSelves But Still Looked Or Sounded Good To The Eyes And Ears Of Other People , Far And Near .

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Among them musicians, writers, critics, etc. Harlem became the source of intellectuals and one of the greatest literary centers of all talents. Focused on the Harlem locale of New York City, the Harlem Renaissance was a piece of an across the country urban insurgency started by World War I (1914-18). The social upheaval, which took after the emotional flood of Southern blacks into Northern urban communities amid and after the war (the supposed Great Migration), brought the open deliberation over racial personality

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The 1920s paved the way for many developments in African American culture and resolutions to their challenges. Consequently, out of the 1920s, the Harlem Renaissance was born. The Harlem Renaissance was a reawakening of African American culture throughout the decade. During this period, an explosion of art and music, particularly jazz, advanced the perception of African American culture and people (Document H). Additionally, the Great Migration made a better life possible for African Americans.

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The Harlem Renaissance was a black literary and art movement that began in Harlem, New York. Migrants from the South came to Harlem with new ideas and a new type of music called Jazz. Harlem welcomed many African Americans who were talented. Writers in the Harlem Renaissance had separated themselves from the isolated white writers which made up the “lost generation” The formation of a new African American cultural identity is what made the Harlem Renaissance and the Lost Generation unique in American culture because it influenced white literacy and it was a sense of freedom for African Americans.

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In conclusion what had made The Harlem Renaissance a renaissance was from the continuous hard work that many black artist have put in during this time. It had caused a culture bloom for blacks and whites alike. The Harlem Renaissance pushed for equality amongst the black community and have even come to influence modern day song and style. The people writing in this essay are only a very small handful from the people who had helped push for such a cultural

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The Harlem Renaissance was a period of great cultural growth in the black community. It is accepted that it started in 1918 and lasted throughout the 1930s. Though named the ‘Harlem’ Renaissance, it was a country-wide phenomenon of pride and development among black Americans, the likes of which had never existed in such grand scale. Among the varying political actions and movements for equality, a surge of new art appeared: musical, visual, and even theatre. With said surge, many of the most well-known black authors, poets, musicians and actors rose to prevalence including Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen, Louis Armstrong, and Eulalie Spence.

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The Harlem Renaissance was the cultural explosion that took place in Manhattan during the 1920’s and 30’s after World War I, peaking at 1928. It was here where African-American culture bursted into a flurry of nightclubs, speakeasies, community centers, cafes, publishing houses, and galleries. 1920-1930 was a party that lasted a decade, and Manhattan was the center of it. The Harlem Renaissance resulted in what came to be the Jazz Age and the blues, introducing musicians such as Bessie Smith, Billie Holiday, Duke Ellington, and Louis Armstrong; all at the Cotton

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The Harlem Renaissance was a movement that reflected the culture of African Americans in an artistic way during the 1920’s and the 30’s. Many African Americans who participated in this movement showed a different side of the “Negro Life,” and rejected the stereotypes that were forced on themselves. The Harlem Renaissance was full of artists, musicians, and writers who wrote about their thoughts, especially on discrimination towards blacks, such as Louis Armstrong, Ella Fitzgerald, and Langston Hughes. The Harlem Renaissance was an influential and exciting movement, and influenced others to fight for what they want and believed in. The Harlem Renaissance was the start of the Civil Rights Movement.

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There was a great migration of freed slaves that journeyed North of the United States searching for a greater life for their families. Some Black intellects settled in Harlem, NYC and shortly after a Black American revolution came to be realized as the Harlem Renaissance. W.E.B. Dubois was a major contributor towards this movement being an advocate of education. He wrote the “Souls of Black Folk” which allowed the white culture to see the inside Black American living. The Harlem Renaissance was an extraordinary moment for Black Americans because Blacks finally became relevant in America.

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