Hurston's Reviews

           The novel Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston did not always get positive reviews. Although Hurston was a great African American writer during the Harlem Renaissance, other famous writers gave her negative feedback. Their Eyes Were Watching God was admired by white authors, but some African American writers did not approve of Hurston’s portrayal of African American men and women, the stereotypes reinforced, and the idyllic life in the book.

One of the people that reviewed Zora Neale Hurston’s novel Their Eyes Were Watching God was Richard Wright, an African American writer. Wright stated, “Miss Hurston voluntarily continues in her novel the tradition which was forced upon the Negro in the theatre, that is, the minstrel technique that makes the "white folks" laugh. Her characters eat and laugh and cry and work and kill; they swing like a pendulum eternally in that safe and narrow orbit in which America likes to see the Negro live: between laughter and tears.” Wright also said that the book carried no theme or message. He wanted all black writers to praise his race and portray the black characters as middle class who supported their nationality, and Hurston wrote her stories like she was rejoicing the black community and individualism. She was criticized for not addressing racial issues, and she criticized Jim Crow laws.

I think that her harsh reviewers were very judgmental. She just wrote what happened to be on her mind. I disagree with her critics. I do not think that Hurston deserved these reviews. She did not divide her characters by race, but she wrote as if each character is an individual, which they are. Hurston did not seem to be offending specific people, but the critics said that she was “making their race look bad.” Some people might say that I say that I disagree just because I am white, but I am pretty sure there are African Americans that do enjoy reading this book. Although it is referred to as fiction, the reader can still understand how life was like during the time of the Harlem Renaissance. I think that this book is very interesting so far, and Hurston is a great writer. Her imagery helps define the meaning of her story. She makes the reader feel like they are at the scene in the book.

Richard Wright
http://www.math.buffalo.edu/~sww/wright/wright0.html

Sources:

http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig/epstein2.html

http://people.virginia.edu/~sfr/enam854/summer/hurston.html