The Harlem Renaissance

The Harlem Renaissance, a flowering of literature (and to a lesser extent other arts) in New York City during the 1920s and 1930s, has long been considered by many to be the high point in African American writing. It probably had its foundation in the works of W.E. B. Du Bois, influential editor of The Crisis from 1910 to 1934; DuBois believed that an educated Black elite should lead Blacks to liberation. He further believed that his people could not achieve social equality by emulating white ideals; that equality could be achieved only by teaching Black racial pride with an emphasis on an African cultural heritage.

Although the Renaissance was not a school, nor did the writers associated with it share a common purpose, nevertheless they had a common bond: they dealt with Black life from a Black perspective.

Among the major writers who are usually viewed as part of the Harlem Renaissance are Claude McKay, Countee Cullen, Langston Hughes, Zora Neale Hurston, Rudolph Fisher, James Weldon Johnson, and Jean Toomer.

While the Renaissance is often thought of as solely a literary movement, some historians of the period also include artists and musicians.

Major Book Sources

Because of its importance in the historical development of African American literature, the Harlem Renaissance has been the subject of a number of excellent books.

Bontemps, Arna. The Harlem Renaissance Remembered. New York: Dodd, Mead, 1972.
Special Collections PS153.N5B63

Huggins, Nathan I. Harlem Renaissance. New York: Oxford, 1971.
Doheny Stacks; Leavey; Special Collections NX512.3.N5H8

---. Voices From the Harlem Renaissance. New York: Oxford, 1976.
Doheny Stacks PS509.N4V6

Kellner, Bruce. Harlem Renaissance: A Historical Dictionary for the Era. New York: Methuen, 1987.
Doheny Stacks NX511.N4H37

Porter, James A. Modern Negro Art. New York: Arno Press, 1969.
Architecture 706.9 P846m

Other books can be located by using Homer on USCInfo; use Harlem Renaissance as the subject. There are other subject headings, both broader and narrower in scope, that can be used to retrieve related materials. Use the Library of Congress Subject Headings, found in every library on campus, to determine appropriate subjects to enter.

The Renaissance has been well-covered in doctoral dissertations done at American universities. Use Dissertations Abstracts Ondisc (on CD-ROM) in the Doheny Reference Center to identify titles you may be interested in. These will, in most cases, have to be either purchased from University Microfilms or borrowed through Global Express.

Locating Journal & Newspaper Articles

A great many periodical or journal articles have been published on the subject, ranging from very popular to very scholarly. Use USCInfo for the more popular articles(choosing the Magazine Index and the Expanded Academic Index). Use America; History and Life on CD-ROM in the Reference Center for more scholarly, research articles. Use Global Express to obtain any items not found in the University Libraries at USC.

If you are interested in literary criticism of African American authors there are many sources available. Indexes and bibliographies, including those which focus almost completely on African Americans are available in the Reference Center.

Other Resources