One of my favorite books of all time is, Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston. Zora's novel follows the quest of her heroine, Janie Crawford, and is considered a classic of the Harlem Renaissance. Today, we celebrate Martin Luther King, Junior who was clearly a strong and heroic leader. But I also want to celebrate authors and artists such as a Zora Neale Hurston who also contributed to a better understanding of what being African-American is like. What being human and struggling is like.
More can be found here:
https://www.biography.com/writer/zora-neale-hurston
Photograph: Courtesy of Photographer Van Vechten, Carl (1880-1964)
You are so right Dina. Zora Neale Hurston was such a gifted novelist--and anthropologist too! She reflected so brilliantly on the struggles of all humans across cultures, and I have assigned her "Tell My Horse: Voodoo and Life in Haiti and Jamaica" to my classes. Thanks so much for helping us to remember her.
ReplyDeleteThank you, Dr. Alves! I know you have included her in your syllabus at Ball State University.
ReplyDeleteYes, although I would always have to disagree with her opposition to the New Deal and the Brown vs. Board of Education decision, her atheism, individualism and perceptive analysis of the cultural power of voodoo will pass the test of time. She was a unique person and writer. Again, thank you for making me reflect on her again.
ReplyDeleteAbel Alves