African American poets

An African American girl. A feminist poet. A racist world. Audre lorde challenged stereotypes of all kind. Audre lorde explored poetry in a new kind of way. Her poetry focused on relationships between friends, family, lovers and many more. More importantly she also incorporated racial and sexuality into these poems. Her poems were widely influenced by her surroundings. For example, things such as; the racist world she lived in, her emotional state of being, and all the violence, neglect, and…

The Power of Words African American writers such as Langston Hughes bring a voice to the segregation and racial issues African Americans and other minority groups endured. Hughes works provide a clear, visual picture of the racism, and discrimination towards African Americans. Hughes does not “sugar coat” the effects that racism and segregation had towards African American and their cultures and traditions. In Langston Hughes’ poem, “I, Too” the speaker speaks about eating and singing but…

Houston Museum of African American Culture was a place that collects, conserves, interprets and exhibit the material and intellectual culture of African Americans and Africans in Houston. The current exhibit named Bad Ass Art Man presents by artist Danny Simmons alongside art by some of the most prominent African American contemporary and traditional African art. Danny Simon is not only a painter but also a collector as well. With his prized collection of African art, he started to pursue his…

surrounded by culture and art that brought out the greatness in the black community such as artists, scholars, musicians, writers, photographers, and poets. (African American Art) It first branched off the Negro Movement. Overall, this period had many contributors, one being the very famous poet/writer Langston Hughes. Langston Hughes was not only an American poet but he was also a novelist. Many know him as the leader of the Harlem Renaissance. He helped many people in the black community stand…

Gwendolyn Brooks was one of the few poets able to move between the academic poets of the 1940’s and militant writers in the 1960’s, creating a fresh style of poetry that reflected the philosophic struggle each African American woman dealt with during this time. Her words spoke of the pain which comes with trying to better one’s life, especially in the face of extreme poverty and racial inequality. Upon initial reading one may see a theme of the stereotypical African American female, often…

impression not only on African-American culture, but on all American cultures. “…criticized as misogynist, homophobic, anti-Semitic, and racially exclusive, the Black Arts movement is also credited with inciting a new generation of poets, writers, and artists” (A Brief Guide to the Black Arts Movement). The Black Arts movement is dated from approximately 1960 to 1970, coinciding with the Civil Rights Movement, Malcolm X and the Nation of Islam, and the Black Power Movement. African American…

Harlem Renaissance was the culture period for African Americans, most of them were writers, poets, artist, musicians, photographers and scholars. Many of African American came from the south to Harlem where they can freely express their talents. Many African Americans recognized during the Harlem Renaissance were Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen, Zora Neale Hurston, as well as Arna Bontemps and etc. Arna Bontemps work had a big impact on the African American community, expressing their emotions…

time. He was the voice of many African American people at this time. Their voices were not being heard, so he spoke out for them; through songs, novels, poems, and other forms of literature. Hughes went through many tough things during his childhood, which made him a stronger person, strong enough to change the world with something as simple as writing. Langston endured many challenges in his early childhood…

when he was just a teen. In addition to that, Hughes had much success in his career as a poet. Hughes was born on February 1, 1902 in Joplin, Missouri. Hughes had a rough life growing up with his parents separating after his birth. Since his mom was constantly on the move, Hughes went to with live his grandmother. He didn’t let a little negatively in his life stop him from being one of the most famous poets of all time. He was really interested in poetry when he was a teen and with Hughes life…

The Melting Pot was written by Adrienne Rich in 1968. She was an American poet. Taken from poets.org, she wrote poetry collection like The Diamond Cutters (Harper & Brothers, 1955), Snapshots of a Daughter-in-Law (Harper & Row, 1963), Leaflets (W. W. Norton, 1969), and the others more. In that 1960s poetry, the content of her poem explores about women’s role in society, racism, and the Vietnam War. One of that is The Melting Pot (1968), its content is about racism. On each stanza, this poem…