A Poet Whose Works Inspired Other Harlem Renaissance Poets Was

During the Not bad Migration of the early 20th century, many blackness people settled in the Harlem neighborhood of New York City. The thousands that flocked there found opportunities to express themselves in literature, music, dance and art. This artistic menstruum in which black-American literature emerged became known as the Harlem Renaissance.

The renaissance began around 1919 and lasted until approximately 1940. Paul Dunbar, who died in 1904, was a black poet who most Harlem Renaissance poets claim equally their inspiration. There are many outstanding poets from that era, including Langston Hughes, Claude McKay, James Weldon Johnson and Countee Cullen.

Langston Hughes

Possibly the nearly well-known poet in the history of black-American literature, Hughes, built-in in 1902 in Missouri, must be first on the listing in whatsoever discussion nigh Harlem Renaissance poets.

Hughes wrote novels, plays and brusque stories, simply information technology is his emotional, heartfelt poems that expressed the common experiences of the culture of black people for which he is almost remembered. His poems captured their suffering besides equally their laughter. He died in 1967 and left a big body of work.

Hughes’ well-nigh famous poem that is constitute in many textbooks is titled “Dreams.” Information technology is a poignant expression of the hopes and dreams of the black American.
Read the poem.

Claude McKay

McKay, born in Jamaica in 1889, was tutored in the classics past his older blood brother. Eventually, McKay found his manner to Harlem. His poems reflect his concern with the plight of black people and the politics that he believed kept them oppressed. He was the editor of a magazine, The Liberator,
which published many of his works. During a time of racial unrest in the 1919s and the 1920s, he wrote his most famous poem, “If We Must Die.”
Read the poem.

In 1924, McKay was the first black writer to accept a volume of verse published by a mainstream publisher. He besides wrote novels and curt stories. He died in 1948.

James Weldon Johnson

Johnson was built-in in 1871 and graduated from college in 1894. He subsequently studied law and was the showtime black person to exist admitted to the Florida Bar Clan.

He ultimately found his fashion to New York and, in the 1920s, several of his poetry anthologies were published. As many Harlem Renaissance poets did, he claimed Paul Dunbar equally his inspiration. In 1893, while Johnson was however in college, he met Dunbar in person and they became friends.

Johnson was a prolific writer and his about famous poem, “Elevator Ev’ry Voice and Sing” has been called the Black national anthem. He died in 1938 when his car was hitting by a railroad train. More than 2,000 people in Harlem attended his funeral.
Read the poem.

Countee Cullen

Non much is known most Cullen’s early on years. Erstwhile effectually the age of 15, he was informally adopted by the Cullen family and rarely spoke about his life before that fourth dimension. He received notoriety while still in high school when his poem “I Take a Rendezvous With Life” won a New York City poesy contest.
Read the poem.

Cullen connected writing poems and winning contests while he attended New York University. Afterward graduating, he went to graduate schoolhouse at Harvard. He married the daughter of ceremonious rights activist Westward.E.B. Du Bois.

Although Cullen did comprise the black feel in his poems, he preferred writing traditional English verse. He died in 1946.

Tips when reading verse

The style of the Harlem Renaissance poets captures the art of storytelling. The way a poem is read makes a difference in whether or non the story evokes the intended emotion. Former poet laureate Billy Collins offers tips for reading poesy out loud: He suggests information technology be read slowly in a normal, relaxed voice. The reader should not pause at the end of each line, just follow the punctuation in the poem. Unfamiliar words should be looked up in a dictionary in order for a person to fully understand the meaning of the poem.

For more data on the Harlem Renaissance and for suggestions for lesson plans, click the Learn More link.

Tags: History and Social Studies, Language Arts