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= ~The literature from the Harlem Renaissance displayed a wide variety of themes and topics; in fact, some have blamed this lack of cohesion for its supposed failure to maintain its momentum much past the early 1930s. However, there were a handful of themes and issues that commonly appeared in many of the writers’ works. =

= ~The literature of the Harlem Renaissance underscores the complexity of cultural issues faced by African Americans in the first part of the 20th century. Harlem had absorbed a surge of black population migrating from the rural South in the antebellum period of the Civil War. Black soldiers returning from World War I and upscale, well-educated urban blacks added diverse threads in the Harlem population. A search for identity and acceptance within the post-war white establishment became a central mission of many in this eclectic African-American community. How best to achieve this produced tensions within the literati of Harlem. The attempt to broker these tensions is dramatically mirrored in the literature of the Harlem Renaissance. =

= = =  ﻿ Langston Huges  = == In his explorations of race, social justice, and African-American culture and art, Hughes' writing vividly captures the political, social, and artistic climates of Harlem in the 1920s and 1930s. After a transitory adolescence, Hughes moved to Harlem in 1926, where he worked with and befriended such artists, writers, and scholars as Aaron Douglas, Countee Cullen, and Alain Locke. Infused and inspired by the jazz and blues that surrounded him at hot spots such as the Savoy Ballroom, Hughes weaved the rhythms of contemporary music into his poems. Often his writing riffed on the energy of life in Harlem itself. ==

=Countee Cullen= =  ﻿ ﻿ ﻿ Cullen's literary style rivaled his personal flair. While his poems explored modern racial injustices within classical forms such as the 14-line sonnet, his courtly manners and impeccable dress distinguished him as a true gentleman. =