Langston Hughes, the most popular writer during the Harlem Renaissance, sought to voice the traditions of black culture in his work. He wrote about the struggles African Americans suffer and included snapshots of the culture through quotations, colloquial language, and jazz rhythms. The jazz rhythms, the musical tone, and the repetition of beat were Hughes’s signature way of “Making it New.” This was seen predominately through his work The Weary Blues (If you would like to hear the “The Weary Blues” read aloud to further grasp its musical feel, the link below will take you to a recording of Langston Hughes reading with music: http://www.voanews.com/specialenglish/archive/2005-04/2005-04-09-voa1.cfm)Hughes endured many difficulties as a black artist, but persevered with courage as he fought through opposition. The idea of speaking for a whole race troubled him, and he questioned whether his work should emphasize similarities or differences between blacks and whites. Hughes was freed from these concerns as he began to shift toward contemporary urban culture and embraced writing as both a realist and a modernist (Baum 1891-92).  

His major works include “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” “Mother to Son,” “The Weary Blues,” “I, Too,” “Mulatto,” “Song for a Dark Girl,”“Vagabonds,” “Genius Child,” “Refugee in America,” “Madam and Her Madam,” “Madam's Calling Cards,” “Silhouette,” “Visitors to the Black Belt,” “Note on Commerical Theater,” and “Democracy."

          Zora Neale Hurston utilized traditional African- American Folklore as a basis for her writing.  Two major themes of her writing are the "vitality of the black oral tradition in folk tales, songs, and sermons, and in folk remedies" and "the spiritual need of humans to be unfettered" (Randolph and Roses 182).  Zora filled her narratives with a "deep, warm, and honest affirmation of the worth of human life and love" (233). The characters in Zora's poetry do not "transcend" identity, but rather they "embrace" their black culture (233). Some critics would even argue that Zora's writing contains "racial health; a sense of black people as complete, complex, undiminished human beings,” which many of the other writers lack (233).

Some of her most influential works include “Their Eyes Were Watching God,” “Mules and Men,” “Dust Tracks on a Road,” “I Love Myself When I Am Laughing and Then Again When I Am Looking Mean and Impressive,” “The Eatonville Anthology,” “How It Feels to Be Colored Me,” and “The Gilded Six-Bits.”

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IV. Two Other Famous Individuals of the Harlem Renaissance

                 A. Jean Toomer

Some of his works include: "Cane," "Georgia Dusk," "Fern," "Portrait in Georgia," and "Seventh Street."

               B. Countee Cullen

Some of his works include: "Color," "Copper Sun" and "The Ballad of the Brown Girl: An Old Ballad Retold," "The Black Christ and Other Poems," "One Way to Heaven," and "St. Louis Woman." He edited the magazine Opportunity and an anthology of black poetry, Caroling Dusk"

(http://www.bedfordstmartins.com/introduction_literature/poetry/cullen.htm).

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 V. Conclusion

The Harlem Renaissance writers attempted to break free from the stereotypes that resulted from years of oppression and racism, but they did not forget their cultures and traditions. They utilized their history as a means of expression and identity. They wanted the Nation to recognize them not only as human beings, but as Americans who helped create this country and sustain it. The Harlem Renaissance gave these talented artists the means to express their feelings. It was an opportunity to "make new" reputations for the black community and declare themselves as part of the overall community of Americans while still separating themselves as a unique race.  

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 VI. Work Cited