Critical Lens Essay—Harlem Renaissance
Your task: Write a critical essay in which you discuss one Harlem Renaissance
Reader Packet essay (not the same one the quote comes from) and another piece
of literature (two poems or one short story/personal essay) from the particular
perspective of the “critical lens” statement. In your essay, provide a valid
interpretation of the statement, agree or disagree with the statement as you have
interpreted it, and support your opinion using specific references to appropriate
literary elements from the one essay and literary works (see chart).
Critical Lens: Choose one of the following critical lenses to compose your
essay:
1. “The history of the American Negro is the history of this strife – this longing to attain
self-conscious manhood, to merge his double self into a better and truer self. In this
merging he wishes neither of the older selves to be lost.”
—W.E.B. Dubois - The Souls of Black Folks, 1909 (excepted in “Song of the
Seventh Son”)
2. “Thus all art is propaganda and ever must be despite the wailing of the purist…”
—W.E.B. Dubois – “Criteria of Negro Art”
3. ““We younger Negro artists who create now intend to express our individual darkskinned selves without fear or shame….We know we are beautiful. And ugly
too….We build our temples for tomorrow, strong as we know how, and we stand on
top of the mountain, free within ourselves.” – Langston Hughes – “The Negro Artist
and the Racial Mountain”
Guidelines:
• Provide a valid interpretation of the critical lens that clearly establishes the
criteria for analysis.
• Indicate whether you agree or disagree with the statement as you have
interpreted it.
• Use the criteria suggested by the critical lens to analyze the works you
have read.
• Do not summarize the plot but use specific references to appropriate
literary elements (for example, theme, characterization, structure, language
point of view) to develop your analysis.
You are encouraged to pull in other material related to your argument, such as the
stereotypes we studied, music (jazz, blues, rock n roll, rap), art, film, TV, or the
essays of David Banner and Juan Williams
• Organize your ideas in a logical and coherent manner.
• Specify the titles and authors for the works you chose.
Discuss the impact or legacy the Harlem Renaissance had on American culture or
literature.
• Follow the conventions of standard written English.
Essays
“Songs of the Seventh Son”
“New Negro Identity”
“Criteria of Negro Art”
“The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain”
“When the Negro was in Vogue”
Literature
Section 1 Poetry
“Drenched in Light”
Section 2 Poetry
“How it Feels to be Colored Me”
“The Typewriter”