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Open Access Thesis

Keywords

African American women writers--New York (State)--New York; Harlem Renaissance; New York (State)--New York;

Abstract

This study examines the relation between the quest for identity-formation that characterized the Harlem Renaissance and the treatment of Voice by the women writers of the period to define their feminine identity. The concept of voice as used in this study refers to the method of self-expression and self-articulation to define the feminine subject by the women writers of the period. The importance of the Harlem Renaissance as a period of black self-determination is the main principle that is used here to particularize the feminine quest. The study looks at the Harlem Renaissance mainly from the perspective of the women writers. The voice that emerges in their works is one that presents a counterbalance of gender, class, and race as they define the cultural and psychological boundaries of the Black Woman. Aspects of the historicity of the period as it relates to the literary and cultural definition of the subject, in this case, the speaking voice of the black woman, are used to characterize the voice. The creation of voice is revealed mostly through the thematic analyses of some of the works of the following writers; Charlotte Forten Grimke: The Journals of Charlotte Forten Grimke and some of her poems; Angelina W. Grimke and her play Rachel: A Play in Three Acts and some of her poems; Nella Larsen's novel Quicksand, and Zora Neale Hurston's Their Eyes were Watching God. The work looks at the treatment of voice both in fiction and non- fiction. The work is divided into five chapters. Chapter One, the Introduction, sets the Harlem Renaissance in perspective and the theoretical, cultural, and literary significance of black identity and the woman's position in this framework. Chapter Two focuses on the Journals of Charlotte Forten Grimke and the significance of non-fiction in the articulation of the voice. Chapter Three looks at the play of Angelina W. Grimke and some of her poems and assesses how she dramatizes the voice. Chapter Four discusses two novels, one by Zora Neale Hurston and the other by Nella Larsen, and assesses the reality of the voice. Chapter Five, the Conclusion, looks at the implication of the autobiographical form and the articulation of voice. This chapter highlights the voice as a tradition in the writings of Black Women in America and relates its significance to contemporary writers. It is important to state that this work is not a definite statement on the writings of the women writers of the period, but it is intended to show in these representative writers the need for engaging critical inquiries into the works of the writers of the Harlem Renaissance in general and those of the women writers of the period in particular.

Year of Submission

1995

Degree Name

Master of Arts

Department

Department of English Language and Literature

First Advisor

Maurice Lee

Second Advisor

Alice Swensen

Third Advisor

Jerry Domatob

Comments

If you are the rightful copyright holder of this thesis and wish to have it removed from the Open Access Collection, please submit a request to scholarworks@uni.edu and include clear identification of the work, preferably with URL.

Date Original

1995

Object Description

1 PDF file (93 leaves)

Language

en

File Format

application/pdf

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