Characteristics of African American Literature

Characteristics of African American Literature

  1. Concern with identity. Characters in African American literature often struggle with who they are and who they should be. Langston Hughes’s poem “Mulatto” and “I, Too,” especially deal with this issue, both in who they are personally and where they belong in society. Hughes seems to go from that question to a resounding declaration that “I BELONG HERE!”
  2. Concern with position in the dominant society. “Raisin in the Sun,” is a sterling example of a family who have made it economically, but struggle with the resistance of the neighborhood and their own family members who would prefer to be where they feel accepted.
  3. Use of the colorful, creative language of the African-American culture. The poets Hughes and the novelist Zora Neal Hurston bring the music of that language to life in their works.
  4. Use of religious imagery, songs, settings and the dominance of the black church in the Southern black community.
  5. Use of the theme of freedom and independence. Although slave narratives were rich with the details of the battles for freedom and the terrors of slavery, the idea of freedom and struggle to FEEL free continued well into the late 20th century.