The Mules of the World: Zora Neale Hurston’s Underlying Metaphor
Subject Area
Gender Studies
Abstract
The Harlem Renaissance became a phenomenon marking more than just an African American writing poetry and stories. It symbolized black liberation and sophistication. Consequently, the black writers of the Harlem Renaissance were faced with a difficult position, deciding which audience to address – white America or the black brothers. One such writer was Zora Neale Hurston. Hurston emerged as a black woman writer during this time, trying to escape the constraints of both a white audience and a conservative black one. She focused on the folk culture of the black community and the richness of her people’s figurative language. Throughout her works, Mules and Men and Their Eyes Were Watching God, Hurston shows not only the motivations of the time period but also the racial and sexual oppression of black people, identifying the black woman as the mule of the black man.
Brief Bio Note
Amelia Simmons has been employed at East Georgia State College since 2011. She has been an educator for sixteen years, instructing students on the secondary and post-secondary level. She also teaches eCore English courses for University of West Georgia. When not devoting her time to teaching, she is busy raising her six-year-old son, Bryce, and being active in her community with Statesboro Southern Cruisers Car Club where she shows her car for local charity benefits to assist young children in need.
Keywords
Black English Dialect; Harlem Renaissance; mule; metaphor; oppression; folk culture; Mules and Men; Their Eyes Were Watching God
Location
Room 210
Presentation Year
2017
Start Date
3-24-2017 9:15 AM
Embargo
11-4-2016
Recommended Citation
Simmons, Amelia, "The Mules of the World: Zora Neale Hurston’s Underlying Metaphor" (2017). South East Coastal Conference on Languages & Literatures (SECCLL). 44.
https://digitalcommons.georgiasouthern.edu/seccll/2017/2017/44
The Mules of the World: Zora Neale Hurston’s Underlying Metaphor
Room 210
The Harlem Renaissance became a phenomenon marking more than just an African American writing poetry and stories. It symbolized black liberation and sophistication. Consequently, the black writers of the Harlem Renaissance were faced with a difficult position, deciding which audience to address – white America or the black brothers. One such writer was Zora Neale Hurston. Hurston emerged as a black woman writer during this time, trying to escape the constraints of both a white audience and a conservative black one. She focused on the folk culture of the black community and the richness of her people’s figurative language. Throughout her works, Mules and Men and Their Eyes Were Watching God, Hurston shows not only the motivations of the time period but also the racial and sexual oppression of black people, identifying the black woman as the mule of the black man.
