Zora Neale Hurston

Not primarily, no. She is best known as a novelist, folklorist, and anthropologist. Her most celebrated work is the novel *Their Eyes Were Watching God* (1937). While she did write some poetry, her literary reputation mainly comes from her fiction, essays, and ethnographic writing.

*Their Eyes Were Watching God* is often the first book readers come across and has left a significant mark on literature. For those interested in her nonfiction, *Mules and Men* (1935) is a remarkable collection of Southern Black folklore that Hurston gathered during her fieldwork in Florida and Louisiana.

A few reasons. She wouldn’t write about Black life just through the lens of racial suffering or protest, which put her at odds with writers like Richard Wright, who believed that approach was politically irresponsible. She also had a sharp tongue, a big personality, and didn’t shy away from speaking her mind around men — which didn’t always sit well with them. Some critics thought her use of Black Southern vernacular romanticized poverty; others simply struggled to accept a woman who was that confident.

Enormously. Studying under Franz Boas at Barnard provided her with a framework to view Black folk culture as deserving of serious and respectful documentation, rather than something to be treated as a curiosity or a source of embarrassment. That same respect is evident in her fiction — her characters express themselves in the authentic rhythms of the communities she knew, and their inner lives are portrayed as fully human and intricately complex.

A combination of factors. Her political views changed in ways that distanced her from former allies — she opposed the 1954 *Brown v. Board of Education* decision, arguing that it suggested Black schools were inherently inferior, a stance that was largely misinterpreted and criticized. Her later books did not sell well. By the 1950s, she had faded from the literary scene and spent her final years doing manual work in Florida. It wasn't until Alice Walker's 1975 essay 'In Search of Zora Neale Hurston' that she regained significant attention.

*Mules and Men* features some of the first in-depth documentation of Hoodoo practices in the American South. *Tell My Horse* (1937) details her fieldwork in Jamaica and Haiti, offering rich accounts of Vodou ceremonies. Rather than dismiss these as mere superstition, she regarded them as vibrant religious and cultural systems, which was a truly progressive viewpoint for that era.

She's truly exceptional. Her writing is vibrant and relatable, unlike some of her peers, and *Their Eyes Were Watching God* immerses you in the rich tapestry of Black Southern life in the early twentieth century, no background knowledge needed. From there, you can explore works by Langston Hughes, Jean Toomer, or Nella Larsen.