Harlem Renaissance Research Paper

The Harlem Renaissance started as the New Negro Movement. African-Americans were limited in their economic opportunities and overt racism continued to infect the minds of people, and impact societal dynamics. Creative expression was utilized as one of the few outlets for African-Americans . The Renaissance was all about creating a new identity for black culture; one that was able to develop a relationship between black people and their heritage. In many ways, the Harlem Renaissance acted as a cultural revival. Literature of the time was used to capture black identity, not the misconstrued idea that was fed to African-Americans by their once oppressors, but rather, a new outlook on whom they were. This revitalized self-identity transformed

Though there were not many black writers to get their work published by major publishers before the Renaissance, that did not reflect the abilities and talent of black writers. Most commercial publishers were reluctant in publishing the works of African-American writers. “None of them had the resources to adequately promote or distribute the books...distribution was limited to advertisements which the publisher or the author placed in black black newspapers or periodicals” (Wintz 62). The success of these authors who chose to have their work published by African-American publishers were often irrelevant in comparison to those who went through white publishers. Although black magazines and newspapers published the works of many up and coming artists, ‘true literary success [was] measured by the production of a book, [which] required working with white publishers” (Wintz, 155). Other than the few black-owned newspapers, “in the early twentieth century blacks were almost totally dependent on white-owned publishing houses for the publication and distribution of their literature” (Wintz, 155). Although their works may have been published in many black newspapers and magazines it was not the same as being published by a major publishing company. “While black poets could see their work in black newspapers and magazines and while black short story writers could occasionally place a piece with Opportunity or Crisis,” without white publishers it was impossible to become a ‘true literary success’ (Wintz 155). Consequently, these black newspapers made it possible for African-Americans to be published, having their work seen by the masses. Like Johnson, through his newspaper Du bois was able to help advance the other arts such as theater and began to challenge them, forcing them to create their own versions of the “black experience” (Hill 9). When pairing the talent