The Harlem Renaissance

During the 1920s and early 1930s the New York City district of Harlem became the centre of a cultural movement that was unique in African American history, the Harlem Renaissance. Encouraged by a new confidence, Black artists produced a great body of literary work, paintings and sculptures and moreover found expression in music and performing arts.

Firstly, Harlem became the centre of a cultural movement that was unique in African American history due to the fact that African Americans produced great literary work. Specifically, in the short poem A dream Deferred, Langston Hughes (1951) states “What happens to a dream deferred? Does it dry up like a raisin in the sun? Or fester like a sore-- And then run? Does it stink like rotten meat? Or crust and sugar over-- like a syrupy sweet? Maybe it just sags Like a heavy load..” Hughes was a prolific writer whose poems, articles and books had a tremendous impact on the movement. This literary device, as some say, foreshadows the Civil Rights Movement of the 1950s and 1960’s.

Additionally, Harlem became the centre of a cultural movement that was unique in African American history due to the fact that African American’s art and paintings represented themselves. Specifically, in Aspects of Negro Life: From Slavery Through Reconstruction by Aaron Douglas (1934.) the painting depicts joyful and festive people painted in dark tones of color dancing, celebrating, overall, enjoying life in a beautiful landscape with a castle in the background. A person is pointing at the castle, some people have candles and seem to be exciting