Date of Award

1-1-2009

Document Type

Masters Thesis

Degree Name

M.A.

Organizational Unit

College of Arts Humanities and Social Sciences

First Advisor

Christopher Teuton, Ph.D.

Second Advisor

Kate Willink

Third Advisor

Brian Kiteley

Keywords

Essentialism, Exploitation, Identity, Toomer, Van Vechten

Abstract

Jean Toomer's Cane is considered one of the literary achievements of the Harlem Renaissance, though the many of his philosophical ideas which inspired it are dismissed. Inversely, Carl Van Vechten's influence as an advocate and patron of African American art is foundational though his Nigger Heaven is dismissed. However, there are commonalities in each authors identity positioning and subsequent exploitation of the black Harlem Renaissance ethos. Further, their utilization of Gurdjieffian principles of objectivity and primitivist images of blacks links and explains, in part, how their identities contributed to the ideas expressed in the novels.

Publication Statement

Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.

Rights Holder

Phil Shaw

Provenance

Received from ProQuest

File Format

application/pdf

Language

en

File Size

79 p.

Discipline

American literature

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