I was really surprised that Janie finally came to such stark conclusions about how she felt about her grandmother. It became very clear in this reading that she has a deep resentment for the woman that raised her. I feel like this resentment is there because Janie feels as though her grandmother somehow cut her short from living the life she truely wanted. Janie blaims her grandmothers actions and pressures for all of the bad things that happened to her.

In A Cautionary Tale and a Partisan View I thought the initial discussion about folklore was interesting. I was surpised as to how difficult it was to find an acurate depiction of the south and the stories from the people who lived there. I guess it makes sense that there would be the stereotypical white racist stories that depicted blacks negatively but it was surprising how plentiful and overwhelming they were. I found it interesting that the person interested in researching these stories had to really struggle to find individuals that could acurately pass on folklore from the south. I feel like there hsould have been more people that wanted to keep the traditions alive.

I was kind of confused about "The Nergo Artist and the Racial Moutain". I thought it was hard to figure out what kind of messege Hughes was trying to send us. The Harlem Rennisance was about racial uplift but in this short piece I do not feel like he speaks of his race in a very positive or uplifting manner.

I can understand his point of view when he is talking about upper class blacks trying to assimilate to the white population. In his opinion they do not take enough pride in black culture and he thinks it is problematic that they tell their children to not "act like little niggers". It makes sense that this bothers him because they are prolonging the use of a derogatory term or concept. I do think he is extremely critical I think he may overexaggerate the ills of the upper classes.

What I found so problematic was his description of the "more desirable" in his opinion black people. I thought that he himself was exaggerating stereotypes that the Rennisance was working to get rid of. I do not think it's a good thing to believe that the more desirable black people were those that were "lazy" or "not important to community". It negates what others in his time were working for.

I perticularly liked the story about Dolly in the Brownies Book. I feel like it was light hearted enough but also would send African American children a positive messege about their heritage. I feel like the story of Dolly is a common one for most children whether or not they are African American. At some point all children feel unhappy with an aspect of themself. These feelings of unhappieness definatly stem from societys pressure on people to conform to the norm or status quo. It is not easy for children to feel different becasue one of the most important things as a child is to be accepted. I liked how the author in Dolly explained that if you change yourself you no longer have connections to the things that are most important to you like family and community.

In the film the common sterotypes of African American's were discussed and it was explained why they are extremely problematic to not only individuals but society. The idea was that characters not actual people molded the American perception for more than 100 years. These images included exaggerated mouths, the "simple, docile, laughing black man" that was only interested in food and song not work, along with the image of the female mammy. These images all played a role in constructing how white Americans views African Americans and how African Americans viewed themselves.

What was dangerous about these charactures is that white Americans that had no contact with black people really bought into the stereotypes portrayed. This included the image that there were "happy content" slaves. The Sambo was the happy male slave who sang and danced while the mammy loyaly served her master nad his family and put their needs above her own. She was not portrayed as a sexual being when in reality she often ended up as a mistress in the masters home. These images also led the public to believe that black men were powerless within their society. Men were supposed to be the dominate force in the home and workplace but the portrayl of African Americans left this role to women.

During the time of racial integration images of the angery or aggressive black man were portrayed. These images were used in order to enforce public fear of agressive behavior by black men towards white women. Because women in society were supposed to be everything pure violence was a justified tactic to use in their defense.

The poem that stuck out most to me was "Oriflamme". I really liked how in the begining Fauset included a passage from Sojourner Truth because it helped to understand what she was trying to portray in her poem. I feel like in the poem Fauset is describing a sistuation that in in the present but looking towards the past. She mentions slaverys mortal scars which makes me think slavery is over but the person is remembering what occured.

I assumed that the person Fauset is describing looking at the stars was thinking of lost children like Sojourner Truth describes doing because it was the only way that one could feel connected with their family because they look at the same stars. This poem is extremely heartfelt and draws on the readers emotions because it's almost impossible to imagine being torn from your parents and then having no way of communicating with them. It really illustrates another evil of slavery.

I found the Mckay poems from this week interesting because I feel like in his work he talks about both the past and looks towards the future. He repeatedly talks about Jamaca and it's beauty but also expresses his respect for the US. He is very skilled at unobtrusively pointing out flaws in the US.

I liked how in poems like Exhortation: Summer of 1919 he calls for action from the African American community but is not attacked the majority of the population. I think that he realizes that change has to begin within the attitude of the black community itself and then spread.

What interested me most in the second half of the book was how the narrator ended his journey emotionally. I felt as though he did not accomplish all in life that he had hoped and was left without a real feeling of purpose. I think that it was a shame because we always hear about wasted potential.

It was very obvious in the end that he felt as though he did not have a real sense of belonging or acceptance. I think that most people in life look for a place where they can belong and if you do not find that place it is very emotionally draining. The narrator is left with this feeling of loneliness and lack of purpose. The only part of his life that he finds any sort of comfort is from his children.