“Sometimes, I feel discriminated against, but it does not make me angry. It merely astonishes me. How can any deny themselves the pleasure of my company? It’s beyond me,” ~ Hurston
Before I begin, I like to say this was an enjoyable read. The passage is brimming with personality that is filled with sarcastic undertones from Hurston. This feeds into the greater theme of the story of individuality that the author feels are crucial against being marginalized. Hurston is a beam of joy in a comparatively cruel time. This is not to say that she is blind to the obstacles in her path but rather enduring against them instead in a positive way. One excerpt from the passage, “Got just as much pleasure out of the tourists as the tourists got out of the village. The front porch might seem a daring place for the rest of the town, but it was a gallery seat for me” (Hurston). This is where Hurston showcases her fierce personality against the general fear that the community holds. Instead of being timid, she would rather go out and interact with strangers. Even though the strangers implored a grotesque caricature of a black child for their own humor. Hurston however does not seem to mind the strangers as they gave her money for her dances. Her own personality out shown those of her community and the strangers in an admirable way.
As Hurston grows up, she becomes more aware of the issues that clouds over her community. Yet, she is never pulled into this dark cloud of depression as she points out. As Hurston says it best, “quite exciting to hold the center of the national stage, with the spectators not knowing whether to laugh or to weep” (Hurston). Hurston is optimistic about her future and sees her own potential in the country. That will not be overshadowed by her ancestor’s past. While others may feel depressed being ancestors of a slave, Hurston sees this as a way to prove herself and her worth.
Yet, there are moments when Hurston feels alienated because of her color. Especially when there is a sharp contrast between her and the people around her. One scene that describes this the best is when Hurston goes to a jazz orchestra with her white friend. She wrote, “The great blobs of purple and red emotion have not touched him. He has only heard what I felt. He is far away, and I see him but dimly across the ocean and the continent that have fallen between us. He is so pale with his whiteness then and I am so colored” (Hurston). While this is the deepest contrast in her story between her and white people. It seems to be one overshadowed by her next paragraph. She describes a moment of no race and just a pure being. One that relates to everyone and part of only one race, the human race. She is still optimistic about the future. She sees life in a cheerful manner and at the end of the day, that’s what life should be about.
for peace. He risked his life by speaking out openly about the problems of the country for this. Du Bois wrote himself that, “The Nation has not yet found peace from its sins; the freedman has not yet found in freedom his promised land” ( Du Bois). Which he further explains the trial and error process in which black folk had to endure just to vote. Yet, it was not enough to be truly free in this country.
