Double Consciousness in Hughes and Hurston: Harlem Renaissance
This essay examines W.E.B. Du Bois's concept of double consciousness—the sense of "two-ness" experienced by African Americans—as it manifests in two key works of the Harlem Renaissance. Drawing on Zora Neale Hurston's "The Eatonville Anthology" and Langston Hughes's "Refugee in America," the paper explores how each author portrays the tension between Black cultural identity and American national identity. Hurston's affectionate depictions of small-town Florida life celebrate Black culture from the outside looking in, while Hughes's eight spare lines articulate the pain of seeking liberty from the inside looking out. Together, the two works illuminate the full range of the double consciousness experience.
- Introduction: Du Bois and Double Consciousness: Du Bois's double consciousness as analytical framework
- Hurston's Eatonville and the Two-Ness of Community: Hurston's portrayal of Black community life in Florida
- Language, Dialect, and Cultural Identity in Hurston: How Hurston uses dialect to show two-ness
- Hughes's 'Refugee in America' and the Struggle for Liberty: Hughes's poetic plea for freedom and equality
- Comparing Two Visions of Black American Experience: Contrasting Hurston's celebration with Hughes's urgency
- Conclusion: Enduring Relevance of Double Consciousness: Ongoing racial inequality and the persistence of two-ness
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What makes this paper effective
- It anchors the entire analysis in a single, well-chosen theoretical lens — Du Bois's double consciousness — and applies it consistently to both primary texts, giving the essay clear conceptual unity.
- It pairs two contrasting authorial perspectives (Hurston's celebratory, outward-looking portraiture versus Hughes's inward, elegiac plea) to show the breadth of the double consciousness experience rather than a single dimension of it.
- Direct textual quotations from both works are embedded naturally and used as evidence rather than decoration, demonstrating close-reading skills appropriate to literary analysis.
Key academic technique demonstrated
The paper models comparative literary analysis: rather than treating each text in isolation, it frames both works within the same theoretical construct and then contrasts their methods and tones. The shift from "outside looking in" (Hurston) to "inside looking out" (Hughes) is an effective organizing metaphor that gives the comparison structural clarity and helps the reader track the argument as it moves between texts.
Structure breakdown
The essay opens by introducing Du Bois's concept of double consciousness as the interpretive frame. It then devotes extended attention to Hurston, examining her narrative technique, use of dialect, and character portrayals before pivoting to Hughes and his more urgent, political register. A comparative synthesis follows, weighing the merit of each author's approach, and the essay closes with a brief reflection on the ongoing relevance of racial double consciousness in American life. References follow MLA formatting conventions.
Introduction: Du Bois and Double Consciousness
The Harlem Renaissance produced some of the most enduring works in American literary history. This essay examines two of those works — Langston Hughes's "Refugee in America" and Zora Neale Hurston's "The Eatonville Anthology" — and relates the perspectives of these two writers to the celebrated statement by W.E.B. Du Bois in The Souls of Black Folk: "It is a peculiar sensation, this double consciousness, this sense of always looking at oneself through the eyes of others…One ever feels his two-ness…An American, a Negro."
Hurston's Eatonville and the Two-Ness of Community
Zora Neale Hurston's "The Eatonville Anthology" is a delightful account of the small Florida town of Eatonville and its colorful residents. Each short vignette discusses a different resident of the town, seen through the eyes of the narrator. Hurston is literally showing the reader the entire town as if the reader were a voyeur — standing back and watching, never seen. This is exactly what Du Bois speaks about in his formulation of double consciousness, and Hurston vividly illustrates it here. In a small town, people are always being viewed through the eyes of the other residents, and Eatonville is no exception. These people are all-American and all-Negro, and they show their two-ness throughout the story.
For example, in a short sentence, Hurston depicts how World War I affected the town: "But the boys and girls got scattered about during the war, and now they dance the fox-trot by a brand new piano" (Hurston 66). This could be any town in America, Black or white — it does not matter. The war affected everyone, and life changed for the people back home when the children returned. What makes it uniquely "two" is how the people react to modern dancing. The older residents would rather not change with the times and consequently do not respect the young ones. This shows the two-ness of the people by depicting them holding on to their culture — the thing that differentiates them from white Americans — while also making them uniquely American and Negro at the same time.
Language, Dialect, and Cultural Identity in Hurston
Hurston wrote her story for a white audience, but it would appeal to Black readers as well, because it depicts the townspeople with such accuracy. The townspeople represent people in a small town anywhere, with their particular idiosyncrasies and beliefs. Her style mirrors the way the people of the town speak and helps convey who they are and how they talk. She uses dialect when the characters speak, such as: "fresements was served! Every gent'man would please take his lady by the arm and scorch her right up to de table fur a treat!" (Hurston 66). Again, this is a depiction of their two-ness. They speak the language of America, but in their own unique way, adding their own flavor and inflection — making it distinctively American and Negro at the same time.
Hurston can perceive the two-ness of the people in her town, which is why she can depict it so accurately. Each character is unique and compelling, from Mrs. Tony Roberts, who begs for food even though she can afford it, to the meek Mrs. Crooms, who finally fights for her man. These are real people with real concerns and real responses. Each one is an individual, and there are millions just like them all over America, living in small towns and big cities. They are African Americans, celebrating their own style and culture every day — in the way they speak, the way they live, and the way they interact with one another in their community.
Hughes's 'Refugee in America' and the Struggle for Liberty
Langston Hughes's poem "Refugee in America" is a much shorter work than Hurston's, but it still contains many references to the two-ness of African Americans, expressed in a very different format. Hurston looks at the Black people in her story with amusement and clear affection, portraying them as simple people living in simpler times. Hughes, by contrast, in eight short lines, portrays the difficulties facing Black Americans because of their two-ness. He speaks of freedom and liberty — something that Black Americans did not fully experience even after emancipation following the Civil War. They had to keep fighting for equality straight through the 1960s, and that struggle continues today. Hughes says he carries freedom in his heart every day, but does not necessarily experience it every day: "On my heart-strings freedom sings / All day every day" (Hughes).
While Hurston's story is a celebration of Blackness in America, with all its quirks, Hughes's work is not a celebration — it is a moving and eloquent plea for freedom and equality for everyone, regardless of color. The lines "There are words like Liberty / That almost make me cry. / If you had known what I knew / You would know why" (Hughes) are the most poignant of the poem, and stand in exact contrast to Hurston's technique of standing outside and looking in at the people of Eatonville. Here, Hughes is on the inside looking out, trying to share with his readers what it feels like to be Black and to suffer from oppression. That is the other side of the two-ness experience — the perpetual oppression Black Americans have continually faced.
Conclusion: Enduring Relevance of Double Consciousness
It is no wonder these people are torn between their culture and their country — they always have been, and today is no different. While there is supposed to be equality in America, Black Americans are still looked down on and face more challenges than white people, even the white poor. It is more difficult for them to obtain a quality education, to advance into the upper echelons of big business, and even to enter politics. There are far fewer Black Americans in high-ranking public and private positions, and they still face persecution and oppression. They have made great strides from the 1960s onward, but they still have a long way to go to achieve true equality. As long as they face the two-ness of culture and country, they will always be regarded as separate. They should simply be Americans, and their color and culture should not set them apart.
Works Cited
Hughes, Langston. "Refugee in America." 2002.
Hurston, Zora Neale. "The Eatonville Anthology." The Complete Stories. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1995, pp. 59–72.
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