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When a person attends events throughout their lives, they are more likely to create and learn new experiences, especially if you are traveling alone trying to sort out their life like Helga Crane was. Quicksand, written by Nella Larsen, is a novel documenting life in Harlem in the 1920s. Helga Crane is a mixed race female who was looking for a place to feel at home. As a young lady she has had many experiences in the church she attends and in the night scene. These two settings are obviously very different, but being around the two settings helped Helga find her way through life and determine what she liked. A church is where people go to worship a higher power, while a nightclub is where a person goes to enjoy him or herself, dance and to meet new people. However, these two places can share similarities, even though they both give different experiences.

Helga’s attitude was very harsh from the beginning of the novel. She was a young mixed race female who was looking for her place in the world. “She began to lose confidence in the fullness of her life, the glow began to fade from her conception of it.” (Larsen 47) This quote tells the reader that Helga was not very confident from the beginning. She lost the feeling of hope to fulfill the emptiness in her life. By Helga attending church and going out to the clubs, she definitely benefited from it. She learned many things while going to both of these environments because the two have a lot to offer.

Religion can either mean a lot to someone, or can mean very little. Back in the 1920s many people took religion seriously and attended church every Sunday morning. Helga Crane had other ideas in mind while attending church. “Helga Crane was not religious. She took nothing on trust. Ne...

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...rch. Helga has had a very rough time trying to find where she belongs and where she feels comfortable. The reader learns that Helga was previous engaged to someone else but then she broke it off. All these experiences from going to church, being alone and going to the club have given Helga many life experiences.

As talked about, these different experiences had their similarities, which made Helga who she is now. Throughout the story Helga has felt has if no one enjoyed her company, the churchgoers at her church did not give her to the time or day and that made her upset. She felts has if no one wanted to talk time to get to know her. The club allowed Helga to be her self, and not worry about what people thought about her. The setting, expectations and music were all very different from each other, but they both brought situations and experiences to Helga’s life.