ENGL 2326 American Literature

Modernism and the Harlem Renaissance both emerged in the early 20th century. These movements fundamentally changed American literature, but they were very different in their goals, methods, styles, and the communities they served. In some cases, they were influenced by the same social trends; in other cases, they were responding to very different trends and experiences.

Q: You will write a paper as if you are creating a 14- to 16-slide presentation that examines these complex movements, and be sure to do the following in your presentation (Do not create actual PowerPoint slides. Write a 14 to 16 slides worth of paper using bullet points and each component 2-3 slides worth each.):

1. Identify the major authors and works of modernism.

2.Identify the major authors and works of the Harlem Renaissance.

3.Describe how modernism affected American literature and culture.

4.Describe how the Harlem Renaissance affected American literature and culture.

5.Discuss which political, economic, technological, and ideological factors shaped these movements.

6.Discuss how these two movements related to one another. As you address this final point, you might consider the following questions:
• Were these movements distinct and independent of each other? Or did they both respond to similar social forces?
• Is the Harlem Renaissance just a subset of modernism?
• Is modernism a rejection of the social focus of the Harlem Renaissance?