Folk Art Dbq

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Harlem Renaissance What does racial pride really represent, high art or folk art? Well, in the mid-1930s it was when the Harlem Renaissance took place and the question came into existence. High art is the art where high and strong vocabulary is used, but folk art is the art that celebrates black culture. There are many differences between high art and folk art, but there are some similarities too. So what really represents racial pride, high art or folk art? High art was an art that not many African Americans preferred. High art was not preferred by some, because it used high vocabulary that uneducated African Americans couldn’t understand. The vocabulary was way behind any uneducated African American person who couldn’t read or comprehend. For example, in document B, Sonnet to a Negro in Harlem, it states, “Why urge ahead your supercilious feet?” The word supercilious means to behave or look as though one thinks one is superior to others. This is an example of high art, because the word supercilious is a word that not many can understand. And this is why many did not prefer high art. …show more content…

Folk art was loved by so many, because it celebrated black culture, which shows “Racial Pride!” The art wasn’t perfect, but many African Americans could relate to the Folk Art. For instance, in document C, The Creation, it states “Then into it he blew the breath of life, and man became a living soul. Amen. Amen.” In this excerpt, this was a sermon based from a black preacher which used not one high vocabulary. The black culture could relate because it was a black preacher, and the Holy Bible. This is why many people celebrated racial pride as folk

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