Wednesday, December 14, 2011
Six Habits of Mind- Schuyler
Six Habits of mind
What is the topic (subject matter) point, thesis?
“Negro-Art Hokum” by George S. Schuyler was an article written in June 16, 1926. This article includes many topics, such as Negro-Art, education, music. In generally this article was about America.
Who say so? What is the author and how might that affect their views?
Schuyler said Negro-Art doesn't exist and Negro-Art was type of American art. This might affect whoever is reading his article because Schuyler was “deny” everyone’s culture by mounts the people’s culture base on where they born and raises up. This will also affect some reader who doesn't because Schuyler provided wrong evidence about history to audience.
What is the evidence that support the thesis?
Schuyler provided deans of African American painter, literati, and painter and said that artist made art work that is American style. Schuyler also mentioned African American and white people were lived in same country, they were neighborhood, they read same newspaper, they went to same school, and they had same jobs. Schuyler didn't give correct information about segregation, black and white didn't lived together, but Schuyler chose to lie about it.
What is it connected to? Where is the relevance?
I think the article is connected to actual American history during segregation period, since Schuyler didn't tell the true story. It also connection to African American because Schuyler use his opinion to say African American art is hokum. It also misled African American people to “deny” their own culture because they are born in America, and they rose up as an American.
Who cares? So what? (What is the significance?)
I think African American cares about it, because if they agree Negro Art is hokum, then it means they deny their culture and accept untruthful history told by Schuyler. Also once readers believed African American and white people were same, then reader would believe the Negro Art is hokum because it never exists. Afterward reader will think the only art form in America is American art.
How could this be different? What are the alternatives?
I think the article can be different if Schuyler provided true information about segregation. Also gave information about artist and explain why they didn't express the Negro soul. Most importantly is if Schuyler can use fact instead of opinion.
What is the topic (subject matter) point, thesis?
“Negro-Art Hokum” by George S. Schuyler was an article written in June 16, 1926. This article includes many topics, such as Negro-Art, education, music. In generally this article was about America.
Who say so? What is the author and how might that affect their views?
Schuyler said Negro-Art doesn't exist and Negro-Art was type of American art. This might affect whoever is reading his article because Schuyler was “deny” everyone’s culture by mounts the people’s culture base on where they born and raises up. This will also affect some reader who doesn't because Schuyler provided wrong evidence about history to audience.
What is the evidence that support the thesis?
Schuyler provided deans of African American painter, literati, and painter and said that artist made art work that is American style. Schuyler also mentioned African American and white people were lived in same country, they were neighborhood, they read same newspaper, they went to same school, and they had same jobs. Schuyler didn't give correct information about segregation, black and white didn't lived together, but Schuyler chose to lie about it.
What is it connected to? Where is the relevance?
I think the article is connected to actual American history during segregation period, since Schuyler didn't tell the true story. It also connection to African American because Schuyler use his opinion to say African American art is hokum. It also misled African American people to “deny” their own culture because they are born in America, and they rose up as an American.
Who cares? So what? (What is the significance?)
I think African American cares about it, because if they agree Negro Art is hokum, then it means they deny their culture and accept untruthful history told by Schuyler. Also once readers believed African American and white people were same, then reader would believe the Negro Art is hokum because it never exists. Afterward reader will think the only art form in America is American art.
How could this be different? What are the alternatives?
I think the article can be different if Schuyler provided true information about segregation. Also gave information about artist and explain why they didn't express the Negro soul. Most importantly is if Schuyler can use fact instead of opinion.
Six Habits of Mind- Hughes
Six Habits of mind
What is the topic (subject matter) point, thesis?
The main idea in Hughes’s “The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain” was expressed of his idea on racial. Hughes tried to say don't be ashamed of being a black, but be ashamed of pretend yourselves as other when you are black. Also how black family taught their kid was also one of the topic in this reading.
Who say so? What is the author and how might that affect their views?
Hughes said many black families from middle class or upper class believed they were white. Those families did same thing like white does, and influence their children to believed white were beauty. Hughes mentioned black from lower class just enjoyed who they were. Also Hughes mentioned artists who not willing to being who they are can't be a great artist. I think this idea affect people’s view because black from upper class kept looking forward to white and they never look at themselves. By pretended themselves as a white, they lost their identity.
What is the evidence that support the thesis?
Some evidences that support Hughes’s idea were mostly his personal story, and his own options. The story of young poet’s family background and the story of black lady would pay 11 dollars per hours to hear performance from a white singer, but not from black singer. They just pretended themselves as white, and lived in white society. Hughes also stated black could make great artwork without out pretended themselves as white.
What is it connected to? Where is the relevance?
This was connected to idea of black family’s culture. For example background of young poet, his parents taught him white is symbol of all virtue and obviously young poet believed it, and he will teach his own children white is symbol of all virtue. This would also connect to black artist, because it encouraged black artists to create more artwork about their own culture.
Who cares? So what? (What is the significance?)
I think all colored people should care about it, since they have their own culture. Like Hughes said in his writing, you can still make art without going outside of your race. Significance of this writing was it encouraged black people to be who they are and don't be ashamed of who they are.
How could this be different? What are the alternatives?
I think the writing could be different if Hughes included more facts, not his opinion. Also if he could provide real history information instead of his personal story, no one knows if the stories were true or not. Another change could be done was to strongly mention about issue of black family from middle class, since they were the largest population thought white is symbol of all virtue.
What is the topic (subject matter) point, thesis?
The main idea in Hughes’s “The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain” was expressed of his idea on racial. Hughes tried to say don't be ashamed of being a black, but be ashamed of pretend yourselves as other when you are black. Also how black family taught their kid was also one of the topic in this reading.
Who say so? What is the author and how might that affect their views?
Hughes said many black families from middle class or upper class believed they were white. Those families did same thing like white does, and influence their children to believed white were beauty. Hughes mentioned black from lower class just enjoyed who they were. Also Hughes mentioned artists who not willing to being who they are can't be a great artist. I think this idea affect people’s view because black from upper class kept looking forward to white and they never look at themselves. By pretended themselves as a white, they lost their identity.
What is the evidence that support the thesis?
Some evidences that support Hughes’s idea were mostly his personal story, and his own options. The story of young poet’s family background and the story of black lady would pay 11 dollars per hours to hear performance from a white singer, but not from black singer. They just pretended themselves as white, and lived in white society. Hughes also stated black could make great artwork without out pretended themselves as white.
What is it connected to? Where is the relevance?
This was connected to idea of black family’s culture. For example background of young poet, his parents taught him white is symbol of all virtue and obviously young poet believed it, and he will teach his own children white is symbol of all virtue. This would also connect to black artist, because it encouraged black artists to create more artwork about their own culture.
Who cares? So what? (What is the significance?)
I think all colored people should care about it, since they have their own culture. Like Hughes said in his writing, you can still make art without going outside of your race. Significance of this writing was it encouraged black people to be who they are and don't be ashamed of who they are.
How could this be different? What are the alternatives?
I think the writing could be different if Hughes included more facts, not his opinion. Also if he could provide real history information instead of his personal story, no one knows if the stories were true or not. Another change could be done was to strongly mention about issue of black family from middle class, since they were the largest population thought white is symbol of all virtue.
Compare and Contrast Essay- Schuyler Vs. Hughes
Deng Lin
Professor Cambridge
FIQWS Blues Aesthetic
10/3/2011
Schuyler Vs. Hughes
Does Negro art really mean hokum? In June 16, 1926 the Nation published “The Negro-Art Hokum” by George S. Schuyler, and next week the Nation published Hughes’s “The Negro artist and the Racial Mountain” response to Schuyler’s article. Within a week, Hughes raised up a verbal “attack” against Schuyler’s article. Although both articles were written by black artists and both were about black people in America society, their ideas about the situation were totally different.
Schuyler’s article “The Negro-Art Hokum” kept mentioning Negro Art never existed, since the artworks were produced in land of America, the artwork is considered to be American Artwork. Some evidence he provided was “Negroes and whites from the same localities in this country talk, think, and act about the same.”(Schuyler 1) and:
When the jangling of his Connecticut alarm clock gets him out of his Grand Rapids bed to a breakfast similar to that eaten by his white brother across the stress …when he gets the same or similar schooling, lives in the same kind of houses, owns the same makes of cars (or rides in them), … in short, when he responds to the same political, social, moral, and economic stimuli in precisely the same manner as his white neighbor, his is sheer nonsense to talk about “ racial differences” as between the American black man and the American white man. (Schuyler 2)
Yes that type of situation might happen somewhere in the North, but does it mean it happens everywhere in America? Would this really be true when lynching happened in the South, and no law punished those white people? Were all people in the United States really treated equally, and did they all go to the same school? The answer is obviously no. Maybe Schuyler was raised in a white neighborhood, but he shouldn't have thought everyone in the United States raised under equal rights.
As Schuyler said, there is no racial difference between black art and white art, but “How, then, can the black American be expected to produce art and literature dissimilar to that of the white American?” in “The Negro- Art Hokum” changed my thought. What Schuyler actually meant was Negro art never existed and in fact the only art form that existed in America is white art because there is no distinction between the two races (Schuyler 2). So does it meant your own art style were based on where you were born and raised? Or let’s ask the other way, if black people lived with white people then their artwork is American Art work, but white also lived with black people, so why is their work not Negro art? Maybe because white people lived here before blacks, it can only be white artwork. Put another way, the first people who lived in this land were Native American, and our white ancestors once lived with them, so why is the definition for American Art not Native American Art style? “As for the literature, painting, and sculpture of Aframericans—such as there is—it is identical in kind with the literature, painting, and sculpture of white Americans: that is, it shows more or less evidence of European influence.” As this implies Aframerican art might be influenced by European art, so why it is not considered as European art (Schuyler 1)? So, why Schuyler did not interpreted his “American Art” to be European Art work?
Langston Hughes’s Article “The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain” was an article that responded to Schuyler. Unlike Schuyler, Hughes thinks every art style has its own beauty: “And they accept what beauty is their own without question.” As Hughes mentioned in the article, artwork in this country was like a racial mountain (Hughes 2). For example young black poet Hughes met told him “I would like to be a white poet.” (Hughes 1). In Hughes interpretation, the young poet means, “I would like to be white.” (Hughes 1). But if we noticed the background of the young poet, we will not felt his idea strange. The young poet’s family was from the middle class:
In home they read white papers and magazines. And the mother often says “Don’t be like niggers” when children are bad. A frequent phrase from the father is, “Look how well a white man does things.” And so the word white comes to be unconsciously a symbol of all virtue. It holds for the children beauty, morality, and money.
Once the young poet believed white meant virtue, then he would teach his children, and so on. So how could they deny their own culture without ever really touching their culture? The idea started during the slavery period. Since black people were slaves of white people, some of them will think white people were higher rank and powerful, so they could control black people. And slowly, they would pretend to be a white, or to admire white people. Thus they influenced their children to do the same things as they did. “These common people are not afraid of spirituals, as for a long time their more intellectual brethren were, and jazz is their child, they furnish a wealth of colorful, distinctive material for any artist because they still hold their own individuality in the face of American standardizations.” referring to blacks people were also one branch of America (Hughes 2). Hughes’s idea about “An artist must be free to choose what he does, certainly, but he must also never be afraid to do what he must choose.” was a thought responded to Schuyler (Hughes 2). Hughes believed everyone has his or her own culture, but Schuyler believed there is no distinction between cultures in America. Once an artist is afraid of what he must choose, then the artist him selves would be restricted by something, and couldn’t produced best art quality. Like those black artists from middle or higher class mentioned in Hughes’s article, they are limit by race, they strongly believed white is best, they never thought about mix black and white culture to produce a better art style.
Hughes and Schuyler both believed black people were American, and Negro art works were American art. But Schuyler believed Negro artwork is American artwork, thus Negro artwork never exists and Negro artwork is hokum, since there is no distinction between black and white artwork. In the other hand Hughes believed Negro art is a branch of American art work, so Negro artwork is not hokum, and could create a new art style that mix black and white culture. The word “Hokum” in Schuyler’s interpretation was never exists, so he believed only art form existed in America was white form, since everyone was equal. “Hokum” in Hughes interpretation was although everyone was American, they have different cultural and as long as you believed yourself, you will create great artwork. By fact Negro art did exist in the America, Blues, Jazz, Hip Hop, and a lot great art work were developed by Negro artist, because they were the people Hughes mention in his article “An artist must be free to choose what he does, certainly, but he must also never be afraid to do what he must choose.” and because they are part the American society (Hughes 4).
Works Cited
George S. Schuyler. "The Negro-Art Hokum." The Nation (16 June 1926). Print.
Langston Hughes. "The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain." The Nation (1926). Print.
Professor Cambridge
FIQWS Blues Aesthetic
10/3/2011
Schuyler Vs. Hughes
Does Negro art really mean hokum? In June 16, 1926 the Nation published “The Negro-Art Hokum” by George S. Schuyler, and next week the Nation published Hughes’s “The Negro artist and the Racial Mountain” response to Schuyler’s article. Within a week, Hughes raised up a verbal “attack” against Schuyler’s article. Although both articles were written by black artists and both were about black people in America society, their ideas about the situation were totally different.
Schuyler’s article “The Negro-Art Hokum” kept mentioning Negro Art never existed, since the artworks were produced in land of America, the artwork is considered to be American Artwork. Some evidence he provided was “Negroes and whites from the same localities in this country talk, think, and act about the same.”(Schuyler 1) and:
When the jangling of his Connecticut alarm clock gets him out of his Grand Rapids bed to a breakfast similar to that eaten by his white brother across the stress …when he gets the same or similar schooling, lives in the same kind of houses, owns the same makes of cars (or rides in them), … in short, when he responds to the same political, social, moral, and economic stimuli in precisely the same manner as his white neighbor, his is sheer nonsense to talk about “ racial differences” as between the American black man and the American white man. (Schuyler 2)
Yes that type of situation might happen somewhere in the North, but does it mean it happens everywhere in America? Would this really be true when lynching happened in the South, and no law punished those white people? Were all people in the United States really treated equally, and did they all go to the same school? The answer is obviously no. Maybe Schuyler was raised in a white neighborhood, but he shouldn't have thought everyone in the United States raised under equal rights.
As Schuyler said, there is no racial difference between black art and white art, but “How, then, can the black American be expected to produce art and literature dissimilar to that of the white American?” in “The Negro- Art Hokum” changed my thought. What Schuyler actually meant was Negro art never existed and in fact the only art form that existed in America is white art because there is no distinction between the two races (Schuyler 2). So does it meant your own art style were based on where you were born and raised? Or let’s ask the other way, if black people lived with white people then their artwork is American Art work, but white also lived with black people, so why is their work not Negro art? Maybe because white people lived here before blacks, it can only be white artwork. Put another way, the first people who lived in this land were Native American, and our white ancestors once lived with them, so why is the definition for American Art not Native American Art style? “As for the literature, painting, and sculpture of Aframericans—such as there is—it is identical in kind with the literature, painting, and sculpture of white Americans: that is, it shows more or less evidence of European influence.” As this implies Aframerican art might be influenced by European art, so why it is not considered as European art (Schuyler 1)? So, why Schuyler did not interpreted his “American Art” to be European Art work?
Langston Hughes’s Article “The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain” was an article that responded to Schuyler. Unlike Schuyler, Hughes thinks every art style has its own beauty: “And they accept what beauty is their own without question.” As Hughes mentioned in the article, artwork in this country was like a racial mountain (Hughes 2). For example young black poet Hughes met told him “I would like to be a white poet.” (Hughes 1). In Hughes interpretation, the young poet means, “I would like to be white.” (Hughes 1). But if we noticed the background of the young poet, we will not felt his idea strange. The young poet’s family was from the middle class:
In home they read white papers and magazines. And the mother often says “Don’t be like niggers” when children are bad. A frequent phrase from the father is, “Look how well a white man does things.” And so the word white comes to be unconsciously a symbol of all virtue. It holds for the children beauty, morality, and money.
Once the young poet believed white meant virtue, then he would teach his children, and so on. So how could they deny their own culture without ever really touching their culture? The idea started during the slavery period. Since black people were slaves of white people, some of them will think white people were higher rank and powerful, so they could control black people. And slowly, they would pretend to be a white, or to admire white people. Thus they influenced their children to do the same things as they did. “These common people are not afraid of spirituals, as for a long time their more intellectual brethren were, and jazz is their child, they furnish a wealth of colorful, distinctive material for any artist because they still hold their own individuality in the face of American standardizations.” referring to blacks people were also one branch of America (Hughes 2). Hughes’s idea about “An artist must be free to choose what he does, certainly, but he must also never be afraid to do what he must choose.” was a thought responded to Schuyler (Hughes 2). Hughes believed everyone has his or her own culture, but Schuyler believed there is no distinction between cultures in America. Once an artist is afraid of what he must choose, then the artist him selves would be restricted by something, and couldn’t produced best art quality. Like those black artists from middle or higher class mentioned in Hughes’s article, they are limit by race, they strongly believed white is best, they never thought about mix black and white culture to produce a better art style.
Hughes and Schuyler both believed black people were American, and Negro art works were American art. But Schuyler believed Negro artwork is American artwork, thus Negro artwork never exists and Negro artwork is hokum, since there is no distinction between black and white artwork. In the other hand Hughes believed Negro art is a branch of American art work, so Negro artwork is not hokum, and could create a new art style that mix black and white culture. The word “Hokum” in Schuyler’s interpretation was never exists, so he believed only art form existed in America was white form, since everyone was equal. “Hokum” in Hughes interpretation was although everyone was American, they have different cultural and as long as you believed yourself, you will create great artwork. By fact Negro art did exist in the America, Blues, Jazz, Hip Hop, and a lot great art work were developed by Negro artist, because they were the people Hughes mention in his article “An artist must be free to choose what he does, certainly, but he must also never be afraid to do what he must choose.” and because they are part the American society (Hughes 4).
Works Cited
George S. Schuyler. "The Negro-Art Hokum." The Nation (16 June 1926). Print.
Langston Hughes. "The Negro Artist and the Racial Mountain." The Nation (1926). Print.
Ethos of Blues
Deng Lin
Profess Cambridge
FIQWS 10027
21,November 2011
Ethos of the blues
Ethos is the character, basic values that describes people, belief, or movement. Blues is a type of music developed by African American, and blues is about help people transform and move on to a better mental status in life. Ethos of blues is the value or character of blues to people in society. Larry Neal’s interpretation of ethos of blues in “The Ethos of the Blues” show people who refuse blues are those who never understand the meaning of blues. The blues reveal good and bad of one’s life, and use it as example to help others overcome the same situation and continuously live through their life.
Ex-slavery people between year 1860 and 1900 developed blues, and slavery end around this period. But W.C. Handy popularized blues in year 1912 because people thought blues as sinful music. Blues is a type of art with sad emotion and sad story, like my woman left me, I have no job, I am in the jail for rest of my life and I lost all my money. Blues is the music that couldn’t accept by religious people, include religious black people because it is way realistic and it is totally opposite style of hymn. Blues focus on current life, but hymn focus on after death. Yeah, after death life will be great like it sing in the hymn, but for current life, you have to try like blues say.
After slavery, African American need to survive by their own hand; they don’t have to be anyone’s slavery anymore. Blues represent ex-slave’s view to the world through their own perspective, and how they against the world. Blues express the way in which African American treats their life, and their way to survive. Lyrics in blues often conceal meaningful idea, or wisdom to people, but still it was too realistic for those religious people because blues sing out the pain and the joy.
“There is no need to hitch your wagon to a star because there wasn’t any stars. You got only what you fought for.” By Clarence Williams talking to E. Simms Campbell in Jazzmen shows the idea of blues. Life is cruel and hopeless if you don’t fight for it, but there is an opportunity you can acquire your hope when you try. Like blues lyrics, it often express an emotion with a personal experience and encourage other people try to overcome the same situation.
As “The “devil songs,” as religious black people called the blues, had come an integral part of the American music scene. If the early scholars of Afro-American music had been black men, and had not perhaps been so puritanical, our knowledge of the folk origins of the blues would not be so theoretical.”(Neal 45) mentioned, people oppose blues due to the fact of their religious point of view. So, if people are not so puritanical, maybe blues won’t call blues, or maybe it wouldn’t exist at all. But no one can deny blues encourage people to try, to face their life and to overcome their problem.
In “The blues are not concerned with middle-class morality, black or white. That is because the audience that they address is forced to confront the world of the flesh; the body is real, the source of much joy and pain.”(Neal 47-48)” shows the blues were not design for only black people, it is for everyone. The purpose of the blues is to encourage people overcome the worse situation. Although blues tells natural fact, means directly facing the problem, but people still disagree with it because of the realistic and their acceptant of current life. But we can’t deny blues help us overcome problems without ever notice what is the meaning of blues. We can’t predict what will happen after death, so why don’t we just focus on what we can do and our “blues” right now?
Citation
NEAL, LARRY. "THE ETHOS OF THE BLUES." Black Scholar Summer, 1972: 42-48. Print.
Profess Cambridge
FIQWS 10027
21,November 2011
Ethos of the blues
Ethos is the character, basic values that describes people, belief, or movement. Blues is a type of music developed by African American, and blues is about help people transform and move on to a better mental status in life. Ethos of blues is the value or character of blues to people in society. Larry Neal’s interpretation of ethos of blues in “The Ethos of the Blues” show people who refuse blues are those who never understand the meaning of blues. The blues reveal good and bad of one’s life, and use it as example to help others overcome the same situation and continuously live through their life.
Ex-slavery people between year 1860 and 1900 developed blues, and slavery end around this period. But W.C. Handy popularized blues in year 1912 because people thought blues as sinful music. Blues is a type of art with sad emotion and sad story, like my woman left me, I have no job, I am in the jail for rest of my life and I lost all my money. Blues is the music that couldn’t accept by religious people, include religious black people because it is way realistic and it is totally opposite style of hymn. Blues focus on current life, but hymn focus on after death. Yeah, after death life will be great like it sing in the hymn, but for current life, you have to try like blues say.
After slavery, African American need to survive by their own hand; they don’t have to be anyone’s slavery anymore. Blues represent ex-slave’s view to the world through their own perspective, and how they against the world. Blues express the way in which African American treats their life, and their way to survive. Lyrics in blues often conceal meaningful idea, or wisdom to people, but still it was too realistic for those religious people because blues sing out the pain and the joy.
“There is no need to hitch your wagon to a star because there wasn’t any stars. You got only what you fought for.” By Clarence Williams talking to E. Simms Campbell in Jazzmen shows the idea of blues. Life is cruel and hopeless if you don’t fight for it, but there is an opportunity you can acquire your hope when you try. Like blues lyrics, it often express an emotion with a personal experience and encourage other people try to overcome the same situation.
As “The “devil songs,” as religious black people called the blues, had come an integral part of the American music scene. If the early scholars of Afro-American music had been black men, and had not perhaps been so puritanical, our knowledge of the folk origins of the blues would not be so theoretical.”(Neal 45) mentioned, people oppose blues due to the fact of their religious point of view. So, if people are not so puritanical, maybe blues won’t call blues, or maybe it wouldn’t exist at all. But no one can deny blues encourage people to try, to face their life and to overcome their problem.
In “The blues are not concerned with middle-class morality, black or white. That is because the audience that they address is forced to confront the world of the flesh; the body is real, the source of much joy and pain.”(Neal 47-48)” shows the blues were not design for only black people, it is for everyone. The purpose of the blues is to encourage people overcome the worse situation. Although blues tells natural fact, means directly facing the problem, but people still disagree with it because of the realistic and their acceptant of current life. But we can’t deny blues help us overcome problems without ever notice what is the meaning of blues. We can’t predict what will happen after death, so why don’t we just focus on what we can do and our “blues” right now?
Citation
NEAL, LARRY. "THE ETHOS OF THE BLUES." Black Scholar Summer, 1972: 42-48. Print.
Process of Duplicate Collage Essay
Deng Lin
Professor Cambridge
Blues Aesthetic
October 30, 2011
Process of duplicate collage
Duplicate an artwork is a way of respect artist and his artwork. Unlike plagiarist, duplicator expresses their admiration through art. Plagiarism is a way to take something and make it belongs to you without think it is someone’s work. But duplicate is a form make same thing similar to its original form. Despite the fact that both are making similar thing to its original form, duplicate is more likely for academic purpose, and plagiarism is more likely for economic purpose.
The topic is to duplicate Aaron Douglas’ artwork with collage form. So I gather myself enough scissors, glue or glue stick, and construction papers. Then I search on of Aaron Douglas’ art work online, and I find “The Creation” is the one I want to duplicate. I didn’t spend much time on understand the meaning of the artwork because Professor Hamilton just want us to duplicate what it looks like. The assignment is the duplicate one of Aaron Douglas’ work with the limitation of three colors and one background.
In second step, I start cutting shapes that match to the painting. Obviously I used to similar construction paper to original one, just to make people feel they are more connect to each other. I chose dark green, yellow, and red in my collage, although “The Creation” has four colors in it, due to the color limitation, I get rid of least use color. First, I use dark green construction paper cut a semi-oval shape, and then I cut down a rectangle and a circle. I cut two lines at rectangle’s both middle sides, to make it look like a person with its hand. Then I cut a line on circle, and cut the circle into similar shape in the painting. Then I cut some small oval shape, and connect them to form a plant that stands next to human. Then I use red construction paper to make a foot, a small start, and a semi-circle shape. Then I cut out series of yellow circle, and connect them together. I also cut down two long irregular rectangles, and replace them as rainbow. The cutting process takes me about 30 minutes. Since I am duplicate the painting, I notice I don’t need to spend much time arrange the shapes. I am just placing the shapes as similar as possible to the painting. So this process should take about 30 minutes. I made a mistake, so I took longer times, so be aware to glue things looks transparent first, things as rainbow, light, because those are transparent, and construction paper is not transparent. It takes me about another 30 minutes to fix the mistake; because it takes me time to think how cut the figure so it doesn’t cover any other part.
In general, the duplicate process takes around an hour without making any mistake. Although duplicate is a type of copy, but it is a way to admire artist and to respect artist through understand their work and recreate their artwork with your own hand. It is similar to bronze art creation, people duplicate bronze art to admire those bronze artists. Although I didn’t actual thinking what “The creation” means, but while I am duplicating it through collage, I am interpret the painting unconsciously.
Professor Cambridge
Blues Aesthetic
October 30, 2011
Process of duplicate collage
Duplicate an artwork is a way of respect artist and his artwork. Unlike plagiarist, duplicator expresses their admiration through art. Plagiarism is a way to take something and make it belongs to you without think it is someone’s work. But duplicate is a form make same thing similar to its original form. Despite the fact that both are making similar thing to its original form, duplicate is more likely for academic purpose, and plagiarism is more likely for economic purpose.
The topic is to duplicate Aaron Douglas’ artwork with collage form. So I gather myself enough scissors, glue or glue stick, and construction papers. Then I search on of Aaron Douglas’ art work online, and I find “The Creation” is the one I want to duplicate. I didn’t spend much time on understand the meaning of the artwork because Professor Hamilton just want us to duplicate what it looks like. The assignment is the duplicate one of Aaron Douglas’ work with the limitation of three colors and one background.
In second step, I start cutting shapes that match to the painting. Obviously I used to similar construction paper to original one, just to make people feel they are more connect to each other. I chose dark green, yellow, and red in my collage, although “The Creation” has four colors in it, due to the color limitation, I get rid of least use color. First, I use dark green construction paper cut a semi-oval shape, and then I cut down a rectangle and a circle. I cut two lines at rectangle’s both middle sides, to make it look like a person with its hand. Then I cut a line on circle, and cut the circle into similar shape in the painting. Then I cut some small oval shape, and connect them to form a plant that stands next to human. Then I use red construction paper to make a foot, a small start, and a semi-circle shape. Then I cut out series of yellow circle, and connect them together. I also cut down two long irregular rectangles, and replace them as rainbow. The cutting process takes me about 30 minutes. Since I am duplicate the painting, I notice I don’t need to spend much time arrange the shapes. I am just placing the shapes as similar as possible to the painting. So this process should take about 30 minutes. I made a mistake, so I took longer times, so be aware to glue things looks transparent first, things as rainbow, light, because those are transparent, and construction paper is not transparent. It takes me about another 30 minutes to fix the mistake; because it takes me time to think how cut the figure so it doesn’t cover any other part.
In general, the duplicate process takes around an hour without making any mistake. Although duplicate is a type of copy, but it is a way to admire artist and to respect artist through understand their work and recreate their artwork with your own hand. It is similar to bronze art creation, people duplicate bronze art to admire those bronze artists. Although I didn’t actual thinking what “The creation” means, but while I am duplicating it through collage, I am interpret the painting unconsciously.
Collage Essay
Process of constructing collage
When you hear the scissor cutting through a piece of paper, you notice something fun going to happen and most likely an artwork called collage will be produce. Collage is an artwork combine with materials and objects. To make a collage, it takes approximate 6 steps. Each step is necessary for a meaningful collage to be done and will affect the result of the collage.
The most important step is obviously get yourself enough materials, scissors, glue or glue stick, and construction papers. The second step is to spend about 5 minutes brainstorm about as many topics as possible your want to express in the collage. After brainstorm, check the limit of the requirement your collage will be. For example, number of colors should be use particular shape should be use, and length of the collage. Sometime, if you are lack of certain type of color construction paper, you have to avoid the certain topics and choose the best one base on your materials. Then select the color of construction paper base on your requirement and your topic. For example, if you want to show green grass, you may want to use green construction paper, and cut them into many small triangles connect together. So when someone sees the picture will immediately think it is green grass. Third step is starts to cut the shapes. While cutting the shapes, think about the size of the shape, different shape will have different view to audience. For example bigger size object will seem more powerful compare to small object.
Scissor cutting through paper is process of fun, and glue paper is just like a machine produce fun. Place figure you cut on paper that match to your requirement collage length. Don’t glue them yet; spend like 10 minutes arrange with the picture because after glue is dry, it is hard to move to another position. Arrange is always hard, a way to arrange is to stand up and look down at the work with audience’s view. This way, you can use audience’s view to arrange to picture, and most likely audience with have the similar view as you. Think about foreground, midground, and background; think about what kind of story you want to tell in each place. Also think about what kind of relation exists among three places audience will receive. You have to notice you are making a collage for you own pleasure and to share your pleasure with audience, so also use audience’s view to look at collage. Start glue figures, and look at it frequently. If possible don’t use glue stick because the side of the figure you glue will peel off when it is dry. If you use glue stick, glue the side again when it peel off, because most time people don’t glue the side of picture. The last step is to look at your art work deeply, and sometime you may want to add something new to the collage. That’s great, if add new things to the collage, you still have to think about the size of the object, and also the place to put the object.
A process of collage seem very easy, but when you actual hand on it, it take you at least 60 minutes to accomplish a fine art. The longer time you spend in each process, the better outcome it will be. Making a collage is just similar to all other process; you have to take step by step in order to accomplish the goal. For example, making a comedy movie, first you need a script, then actors, then filming, and film editing. Whole processes require them to use audience’s point of view because they want audience to laugh. Same as collage, you want to use audience’s view because you want them to know what you are making, and also you want to share you idea to your audience through the college. Collage is an art work materials and objects that share your idea to its audience.
When you hear the scissor cutting through a piece of paper, you notice something fun going to happen and most likely an artwork called collage will be produce. Collage is an artwork combine with materials and objects. To make a collage, it takes approximate 6 steps. Each step is necessary for a meaningful collage to be done and will affect the result of the collage.
The most important step is obviously get yourself enough materials, scissors, glue or glue stick, and construction papers. The second step is to spend about 5 minutes brainstorm about as many topics as possible your want to express in the collage. After brainstorm, check the limit of the requirement your collage will be. For example, number of colors should be use particular shape should be use, and length of the collage. Sometime, if you are lack of certain type of color construction paper, you have to avoid the certain topics and choose the best one base on your materials. Then select the color of construction paper base on your requirement and your topic. For example, if you want to show green grass, you may want to use green construction paper, and cut them into many small triangles connect together. So when someone sees the picture will immediately think it is green grass. Third step is starts to cut the shapes. While cutting the shapes, think about the size of the shape, different shape will have different view to audience. For example bigger size object will seem more powerful compare to small object.
Scissor cutting through paper is process of fun, and glue paper is just like a machine produce fun. Place figure you cut on paper that match to your requirement collage length. Don’t glue them yet; spend like 10 minutes arrange with the picture because after glue is dry, it is hard to move to another position. Arrange is always hard, a way to arrange is to stand up and look down at the work with audience’s view. This way, you can use audience’s view to arrange to picture, and most likely audience with have the similar view as you. Think about foreground, midground, and background; think about what kind of story you want to tell in each place. Also think about what kind of relation exists among three places audience will receive. You have to notice you are making a collage for you own pleasure and to share your pleasure with audience, so also use audience’s view to look at collage. Start glue figures, and look at it frequently. If possible don’t use glue stick because the side of the figure you glue will peel off when it is dry. If you use glue stick, glue the side again when it peel off, because most time people don’t glue the side of picture. The last step is to look at your art work deeply, and sometime you may want to add something new to the collage. That’s great, if add new things to the collage, you still have to think about the size of the object, and also the place to put the object.
A process of collage seem very easy, but when you actual hand on it, it take you at least 60 minutes to accomplish a fine art. The longer time you spend in each process, the better outcome it will be. Making a collage is just similar to all other process; you have to take step by step in order to accomplish the goal. For example, making a comedy movie, first you need a script, then actors, then filming, and film editing. Whole processes require them to use audience’s point of view because they want audience to laugh. Same as collage, you want to use audience’s view because you want them to know what you are making, and also you want to share you idea to your audience through the college. Collage is an art work materials and objects that share your idea to its audience.
Understanding of Blues Aesthetic
Deng Lin
Professor Cambridge
Blues Aesthetic
December 12, 2011
Blues, a great art form invented by Southern Afro-American folk. The Blues was an attitude people used to face the problems. Blues included other people’s experience, which helped another transformed to a better mental status in their life stage. The blues existed in painting, literature, music, life, and everywhere.
The blues spoke to its audiences through tragic and comic way. It expressed profound life experience shared by African American. This experience was inherited hundreds of years ago, since African Americans were slavery. It expressed slaves’ painful life through laughing. It expressed slaves’ pain of separated from their family in Africa and became someone’s slave in another continent; it expressed slaves’ hope in the approached future.
Religious people could not accept blues music, because blues sang the opposite of hymn. Literately different, but both blues and hymn’s primarily goal was helped people overcame the problems. Hymn sang out the solution in the beautiful and unrealistic way, its solution was after life, whatever people didn’t received during present day, they would receive it after life in heaven. The blues expressed the solution through realistic way; it focused on people’s current life. Lyrics in the blues often concealed meaningful idea, or wisdom to people, but still it was too realistic for those religious people because blues sang out the pain and the joy.
In page 46 and 47 of A Note On The Blues by Raymond R. Patterson, “Blues lyrics can be playful, witty, satiric, bitter, irreverent, vulgar, strident, or joyful and triumphant. And the blues finds its themes in urban as well as rural life and deals with problems peculiar to both men and women.” and “Rather than an exhalation despair or resignation, the spirit of the blues is the spirit of confrontation and transformation, often through an alchemical rendering of pain and humor” showed the was designed to help people confronted the problem and to overcome the problem. Blues encouraged people came out from despair, to make some actions that solved their current problems.
“There is no need to hitch your wagon to a star because there wasn’t any stars. You got only what you fought for.” by Clarence Williams talking to E. Simms Campbell in Jazzmen showed the meaning of blues, life in blues perspective was fought to obtain things you wanted, unlike hymn, where good people obtained everything they wanted after life. Blues often my woman left me, I lost my job, I am in the jail for rest of my life and I lost all my money, and other negative things happened in ones life, but it sang in an attitude. An attitude that mentioned everything wouldn’t become better, unless you stepped out and fought for it.
Blues, a miracle art form invented by African American. It was a solution to the problems. I was an attitude that encouraged people overcame the problems. It was invented from painful, and solved problems with laugh. It gave people the reason to try, to survive, and granted them the hope in the future.
Cited Source:
NEAL, LARRY. "THE ETHOS OF THE BLUES." Black Scholar Summer, 1972: 42-48. Print.
Raymond R. Patterson. “A NOTE ON THE BLUES.” Merrick, New York, September, 1982: 46-47. Print.
Professor Cambridge
Blues Aesthetic
December 12, 2011
Blues, a great art form invented by Southern Afro-American folk. The Blues was an attitude people used to face the problems. Blues included other people’s experience, which helped another transformed to a better mental status in their life stage. The blues existed in painting, literature, music, life, and everywhere.
The blues spoke to its audiences through tragic and comic way. It expressed profound life experience shared by African American. This experience was inherited hundreds of years ago, since African Americans were slavery. It expressed slaves’ painful life through laughing. It expressed slaves’ pain of separated from their family in Africa and became someone’s slave in another continent; it expressed slaves’ hope in the approached future.
Religious people could not accept blues music, because blues sang the opposite of hymn. Literately different, but both blues and hymn’s primarily goal was helped people overcame the problems. Hymn sang out the solution in the beautiful and unrealistic way, its solution was after life, whatever people didn’t received during present day, they would receive it after life in heaven. The blues expressed the solution through realistic way; it focused on people’s current life. Lyrics in the blues often concealed meaningful idea, or wisdom to people, but still it was too realistic for those religious people because blues sang out the pain and the joy.
In page 46 and 47 of A Note On The Blues by Raymond R. Patterson, “Blues lyrics can be playful, witty, satiric, bitter, irreverent, vulgar, strident, or joyful and triumphant. And the blues finds its themes in urban as well as rural life and deals with problems peculiar to both men and women.” and “Rather than an exhalation despair or resignation, the spirit of the blues is the spirit of confrontation and transformation, often through an alchemical rendering of pain and humor” showed the was designed to help people confronted the problem and to overcome the problem. Blues encouraged people came out from despair, to make some actions that solved their current problems.
“There is no need to hitch your wagon to a star because there wasn’t any stars. You got only what you fought for.” by Clarence Williams talking to E. Simms Campbell in Jazzmen showed the meaning of blues, life in blues perspective was fought to obtain things you wanted, unlike hymn, where good people obtained everything they wanted after life. Blues often my woman left me, I lost my job, I am in the jail for rest of my life and I lost all my money, and other negative things happened in ones life, but it sang in an attitude. An attitude that mentioned everything wouldn’t become better, unless you stepped out and fought for it.
Blues, a miracle art form invented by African American. It was a solution to the problems. I was an attitude that encouraged people overcame the problems. It was invented from painful, and solved problems with laugh. It gave people the reason to try, to survive, and granted them the hope in the future.
Cited Source:
NEAL, LARRY. "THE ETHOS OF THE BLUES." Black Scholar Summer, 1972: 42-48. Print.
Raymond R. Patterson. “A NOTE ON THE BLUES.” Merrick, New York, September, 1982: 46-47. Print.
Research Paper Annotated Bibliographies
Annotated bibliography
"I am Bringing All of the Atomic Energy Into Subjection and by It I am Bringing Out Many Invention-Father Divine." The New Day [Philadephia] 8 Dec. 1945.
In this newspaper’s headline, Father Divine described himself as god. In August 1945, atomic bomb had been used, and the world had little knowledge about atomic energy, and Father Divine said he could use the atomic energy. He also said he knew WWII going to happen, and send message to Cezechoslovakia, but no one respond to him, thus WWII happen. Father Divine his newspaper had influence the United States by gave people a god. A god, who can use atomic energy, knows thing beforehand and a god who alive.
Annotated bibliography
Life, Philip. Letter To Whom It May Concern. 12 Mar. 1956. 764 S.Broad Street, Philadelphia, 46, Pa.
In this letter, author described his thought toward Father Divine; writer was Father Divine’s follower. He used word “He” describe Father Divine, word “He” was referring to God like Jesus. Philip had been Father Divine’s follower for 7 years when he wrote down this letter. He keep mentioned Divine taught them to live a virtuous, holy, pure, chaste life. Author pointed out there were hundreds of people worshiped Father Divine, and they lived in chaste lives. Author concentrated on people who followed Father Divine would live on successful Christ life and chaste life.
Annotated bibliography
Fleming, Thomas. "The Columbus Free Press - Reflections on Black History." The Free Press -- Independent News Media. Thomas C. Fleming, 20 Jan. 1999. Web. 16 Nov. 2011..
In this article, author reflected his life back to the Great Depression period. Author described poor economic condition in the Great Depression. Author described Father Divine’s churches were all over the country during depression period. Churches were offer food for people. People gave them a quarter, and say “Thank you Father” then they would receive food. Even if people didn’t have quarter they would still receive food. Author tried to say some people attended church because of food to survive, at least he did.
Annotated bibliography
Watts, Jill. God, Harlem U.S.A.: the Father Divine Story. Berkeley: University of California, 1992. Print.
This book was well combination of sources, author described Father Divine’s life, from normal African American became a God. Father Divine. Father Divine had a partner at beginning, which declared himself as God, and Divine at beginning declared himself as son of that God. Later Bishop questioned Divine’s partner, and Father Divine clear himself as only God. The book also included Father Divine’s quotes, and situation during the Great Depression. Author also described Father Divine’s position toward racism. The book was well written for anyone who interested about Father Divine, and the Book was well organized.
"I am Bringing All of the Atomic Energy Into Subjection and by It I am Bringing Out Many Invention-Father Divine." The New Day [Philadephia] 8 Dec. 1945.
In this newspaper’s headline, Father Divine described himself as god. In August 1945, atomic bomb had been used, and the world had little knowledge about atomic energy, and Father Divine said he could use the atomic energy. He also said he knew WWII going to happen, and send message to Cezechoslovakia, but no one respond to him, thus WWII happen. Father Divine his newspaper had influence the United States by gave people a god. A god, who can use atomic energy, knows thing beforehand and a god who alive.
Annotated bibliography
Life, Philip. Letter To Whom It May Concern. 12 Mar. 1956. 764 S.Broad Street, Philadelphia, 46, Pa.
In this letter, author described his thought toward Father Divine; writer was Father Divine’s follower. He used word “He” describe Father Divine, word “He” was referring to God like Jesus. Philip had been Father Divine’s follower for 7 years when he wrote down this letter. He keep mentioned Divine taught them to live a virtuous, holy, pure, chaste life. Author pointed out there were hundreds of people worshiped Father Divine, and they lived in chaste lives. Author concentrated on people who followed Father Divine would live on successful Christ life and chaste life.
Annotated bibliography
Fleming, Thomas. "The Columbus Free Press - Reflections on Black History." The Free Press -- Independent News Media. Thomas C. Fleming, 20 Jan. 1999. Web. 16 Nov. 2011.
In this article, author reflected his life back to the Great Depression period. Author described poor economic condition in the Great Depression. Author described Father Divine’s churches were all over the country during depression period. Churches were offer food for people. People gave them a quarter, and say “Thank you Father” then they would receive food. Even if people didn’t have quarter they would still receive food. Author tried to say some people attended church because of food to survive, at least he did.
Annotated bibliography
Watts, Jill. God, Harlem U.S.A.: the Father Divine Story. Berkeley: University of California, 1992. Print.
This book was well combination of sources, author described Father Divine’s life, from normal African American became a God. Father Divine. Father Divine had a partner at beginning, which declared himself as God, and Divine at beginning declared himself as son of that God. Later Bishop questioned Divine’s partner, and Father Divine clear himself as only God. The book also included Father Divine’s quotes, and situation during the Great Depression. Author also described Father Divine’s position toward racism. The book was well written for anyone who interested about Father Divine, and the Book was well organized.
Research Proposal+Thesis Statement
Proposal
People will follow a person and believe what he said when it is difficult life time. As Great Depression spread throughout United States, many families lost their job, house, and money. As people’s life getting worse, Father Divine willing to provide basic need to families, and huge amount of people willing to follow him because of his material support. By year 1942, the branches had spread out to other states, and countries. Time Magazine estimated there were nearly two millions followers. Since material support was offered to everyone in the United States, and everyone could got it. People who follow Father Divine because it is hard time and Divine provide them material support, not his religious claimed.
Thesis Statement: People followed Father Divine because of food, not his religious claimed.
People will follow a person and believe what he said when it is difficult life time. As Great Depression spread throughout United States, many families lost their job, house, and money. As people’s life getting worse, Father Divine willing to provide basic need to families, and huge amount of people willing to follow him because of his material support. By year 1942, the branches had spread out to other states, and countries. Time Magazine estimated there were nearly two millions followers. Since material support was offered to everyone in the United States, and everyone could got it. People who follow Father Divine because it is hard time and Divine provide them material support, not his religious claimed.
Thesis Statement: People followed Father Divine because of food, not his religious claimed.
Research Paper
Deng Lin
Professor Cambridge
Blues Aesthetic
December 7, 2011
Purpose of People Follow “God”
The Great Depression emerged in the United States like a storm. It destroyed anything, physical and non-physical things, such as economy, life, environment, and “tomorrow”. In October 1929 The Great Depression started with a stock market crash. As the Depression became worse, and no one stepped up to give them a hand, life in United States during this period was such a hell. By year 1932, people came together and formed Bonus Army for the purpose of receiving a cash payment redemption during World War I. Those people will follow whoever came out and helped them survive in the Great Depression, what they needed during the Depression was a “god”, who could help them survive with the necessities of life.
George Baker was born in 1876; he was later known and called Father Divine. In year 1906, there was big change in George Baker’s life: he attended the Azusa Street Revival in Los Angeles, and George Baker later explained he got his divine identity, and claimed himself to be Christ of God, and his mission was to spread God’s message in the country from that revival
Morris Baker adopted new names and New Thought ranks to symbolize their spiritual regeneration: Morris Father Jehovia, God in the Fathership degree; Baker, the Messenger, God in the Sonship degree. Baker’s new name signified another critical step in his spiritual metamorphosis and separation from his roots. By 1907, the Messenger believed that he was the son of God and that his destiny was to spread God’s word to ignorant and unredeemed….and the Messenger delivered a stirring message indirectly asserting that Father Jehovia was God. (Watts 27)
Baker collaborated with Morris and spread their religious claim. But when a problem arrived and it was associated with personal interest, everything became different. Around 1912, Bishop started to question Father Jehovia, and Baker threw away his partner, and declared him as only God.
The Bishop had begun to question Father Jehovia’s monopoly on divinity, contending that the Bible implied that God was equally present in all people. The two frequently quibbled over the interpretation of the biblical verse “whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him and he is God.” At first the Messenger distanced himself from the squabbling, but finally he entered the battle and announced he would take neither side. He rejected both Father Jehovia’s claim to divinity and the Bishop’s assertion that everyone was God. The messenger declared that he himself was the only true and pure expression of God’s spirit. (Watts 30)
A person who declared himself as son of the God at beginning and when problem came and against his “Father”, the son became full grown, and became an adult, who could take over his “Father’s” position, and declared him was the only God and pretended his “Father”, a God who was already dead.
Father Divine became popular with onset of the Great Depression. As the Peace Mission Movement came out, Father Divine became even more popular. When the Peace Mission was first started, it had around 10,000 core followers of Father Divine, and they would devote all their possessions to Father Divine’s Peace Mission Movement. The purpose of Peace Mission Movement was help people by provided them food, jobs, shelters, and services. Peace Mission had members from all racial backgrounds. Peace Mission operated grocery stores, barbershops, gas stations, lunchrooms, and other stores where poor people could purchase goods and services at cheap prices. They also operated a number of model farms and hotels throughout the country. By that time they had established around 150 Peace Mission centers around United States. But in general, their goal was to help poor people survive. During the Depression era, Divine had churches all over the country. Many whites and Blacks joined those churches and they offered dining rooms for poor people, where you could come in and receive all people could eat for a quarter. They would still feed people if they didn’t have 25 cents. According to Thomas C. Fleming, a survivor during Great Depression:
I went into the dining hall on 8th Street in Oakland -- more out of curiosity than anything else, because I had heard about the meals you could get there real cheap…. The main entree could have been chicken or beef stew or lamb stew, and they served vegetables, rice and potatoes, dessert, and a small bowl of salad. They could probably seat 100 at one time, at long tables. People were dressed in their Sunday best, because lots of them attended the religious service before the mealtime. If you had the quarter, you'd put it in and say, "Thank you Father." And if you didn't have money, you would say it anyway. He fed a lot of hungry people in those days. Of course they would try to convert you, to become a Christian, but they didn't bother you too much. (Surviving the Depression by Thomas C. Fleming)
It was embarrassing to say “I follow Father Divine for food” but there was no doubt that some people did follow Father Divine for food. Since there was no requirement for people who could or couldn’t enter to eat, everyone would just go there and eat the food. Those people would never participated in church meeting, because they were not religious, or those people would converted and seek for more benefit they might received in the future.
Among the true followers the word “He” referred to Father Divine. “He” with capital, represented the respect and admiration as if Father Divine were God. Phillip Life, who had been follower of Father Divine for 7 years, declared that Father Diviner taught and demanded every one of His true followers to live a virtuous, holy, pure, chaste life. “Furthermore, there are hundreds of young men known as Crusaders of Father Divine, who are loving, adoring, worshiping and obeying Him wholeheartedly, who are living chaste lives, who would not be fooled if what the slanderers said was true. They know, as well as millions of others, that Father Divine lives and teaches the highest form of Christian life.” (Life, Letter to whom it may concern). As Phillip Life said there were people who followed Divine because of his religious claimed, and hundreds of followers would believe Father Divine, no matter how the other people insulted him. Those followers claimed themselves as crusaders of Father Divine, because they really believed in Father Divine’s religious claimed, and they willing to defend Father Divine’s thought, and helped Father Divine spread out his thought.
In order to recruit more followers, Father Divine had his own newspaper. The New Day published weekly from 1937 to 1973. The newspaper was about Divine: since it was owned by Father Divine, only meaningful materials about Father Divine and written by him, would be published. Father Divine also used his The New Day to critize his opponent’s ideas. In Vol. 9, No. 49 of The New Day newspaper published in December 8, 1945, the headline ““I AM Bringing All of the Atomic Energy into subjection and by It I AM Bringing Out Many Inventions.” –Father Divine”. By that time, atomic energy was not widely known by the world, but the world had a view on atomic bombs dropped in Japan. Atomic energy was powerful, it destroyed Japan, and made Japan surrender during WWII, and atomic energy had shorted the war. He also published “RECOGNIZE FATHER DIVINE! Nineteen hundred and thirty-nine, according to the press, Czechoslovakia was invaded. Nineteen hundred and thirty-eight I had sent them a Message warning different heads of the nation…had they taken cognizance of MY Message, there would not have been a World War today.” A person declared he knew ahead of time that World War II was coming, and tried to prevent it from happening, but foolish people didn't trust him, and the result was the World War II. Imagine a person saying he could control atomic energy, and used it to create inventions and this person also declared that he had power to predict what was going to happen in the future. This was basically said “I am the God”, or “I have the power to change the world”. In a normal situation, nobody would believe at him, but when it was a harsh time, like the Great Depression, everything would be different. Yes, people needed hope, a hope that led them out from depression. These claims were taken as truth by those followers because they needed hope, and they would take the hope from a person who would help them. Especially, when this person taking physically action to help people survive during the harsh time.
Father Divine appreciate about Great Depression happening in his era: “Only through positive thinking and channeling God’s spirit could the country pull out of the downward economic spiral. Despite the suffering brought on by the depression, he actually considered the crisis beneficial, for it increased his following and spread his teachings.”(Watts 88). The Great Depression created a business, a stage, a religion, and a power for Father Divine. At the end of the Depression, Father Divine and his Peace Mission Movement had taken in an estimated around $15 million dollars. All this money was came from donations, and food that he offered to people was also donated from core followers and money that had been raised up.
The Great Depression created a horrible situation in the United States, but also created a miracle person in the United States. George Baker, also known as Father Divine, who became a miracle man during the Great Depression era. He helped poor people survive during the Depression and even after. He founded a new type of religion during the Depression and his followers were willing to devote everything they had. He offered free food to people, where people only needed to pay a quarter and said “Thank you Father” for food; even if they didn’t have money they still could get food and said “Thank you Father”. He created the Peace Mission Movement, which widely spread in United States during the Depression period. People could buy food and clothes at a cheap price in the Mission stores. People could receive jobs, and services from Peace Mission centers. There were people like Thomas C. Fleming, who followed Father Divine for material needs. Fleming was not a religious person, he never attended church events and he only participated in dining service to survive. Also there were people like Phillip Life, who was a religious follower of Father Divine, who declared that they followed Father Divine because of his religious claimed, not because of his food.
True followers claimed Father Divine taught them a better Christian life, to live virtuous, holy, pure, and chaste life, but if Father Divine claimed himself as the only true god, what was the point of continuously using Christian ideas to teach his followers? Also, what was the point for these followers to say Father Divine taught them better Christian Life? If the Great Depression never happened, would Father Divine’s claims become popular? For those who did follow Father Divine because of his religious claim, it could only be because of hope. Father Divine gave them the hope to continue their life, which other God never accomplished. For those who participated only in dinning room, could also because of hope, because Father Divine would provide them a way to survive, thus people would accept the assist. Father Divine created terrible ideas such as prediction, and control of atomic energy; those ideas granted people the hope that Father Divine could lead them out from the Great Depression and lead them into a better life. Those ideas had accomplished Father Divine to be a God in everyone’s thought with the necessities of life Divine provided. There was no doubt that different people followed Father Divine because of different purpose such as mental help, and physical help. But if Father Divine claimed himself as God and offered people food in a wealthy society, then people would think he was crazy, and no one would follow him, because his idea of controlling atomic energy was crazy, his predictions were crazy. The truth is, even today we are not in a wealthy society in which Father Divine’s material support and spiritual hope are not needed. And so his Peace Missions continually to provide these things for some people, even thought its founder, Father Divines is dead.
Cited Source:
"America and the Utopian Dream | Utopian Communities." America and the Utopian Dream. Yale.edu. Web. 28 Nov. 2011..
Fleming, Thomas. "The Columbus Free Press - Reflections on Black History." The Free Press -- Independent News Media. Thomas C. Fleming, 20 Jan. 1999. Web. 16 Nov. 2011..
"Historic Rockville African American Heritage Walking Tour." Rockville, Maryland - Official Web Site. Web. 28 Nov. 2011..
Life, Philip. Letter To Whom It May Concern. 12 Mar. 1956. 764 S.Broad Street, Philadelphia, 46, Pa.
"The Great Depression." Welcome to English « Department of English, College of LAS, University of Illinois. Ed. Cary Nelson. University of Illinois. Web. 05 Dec. 2011..
The New Day. Philadelphia: New Day Pub. Co. 1937-1973; Vol. 9, No. 49 December 8, 1945.
Watts, Jill. God, Harlem U.S.A.: the Father Divine Story. Berkeley: University of California, 1992. Print.
Professor Cambridge
Blues Aesthetic
December 7, 2011
Purpose of People Follow “God”
The Great Depression emerged in the United States like a storm. It destroyed anything, physical and non-physical things, such as economy, life, environment, and “tomorrow”. In October 1929 The Great Depression started with a stock market crash. As the Depression became worse, and no one stepped up to give them a hand, life in United States during this period was such a hell. By year 1932, people came together and formed Bonus Army for the purpose of receiving a cash payment redemption during World War I. Those people will follow whoever came out and helped them survive in the Great Depression, what they needed during the Depression was a “god”, who could help them survive with the necessities of life.
George Baker was born in 1876; he was later known and called Father Divine. In year 1906, there was big change in George Baker’s life: he attended the Azusa Street Revival in Los Angeles, and George Baker later explained he got his divine identity, and claimed himself to be Christ of God, and his mission was to spread God’s message in the country from that revival
Morris Baker adopted new names and New Thought ranks to symbolize their spiritual regeneration: Morris Father Jehovia, God in the Fathership degree; Baker, the Messenger, God in the Sonship degree. Baker’s new name signified another critical step in his spiritual metamorphosis and separation from his roots. By 1907, the Messenger believed that he was the son of God and that his destiny was to spread God’s word to ignorant and unredeemed….and the Messenger delivered a stirring message indirectly asserting that Father Jehovia was God. (Watts 27)
Baker collaborated with Morris and spread their religious claim. But when a problem arrived and it was associated with personal interest, everything became different. Around 1912, Bishop started to question Father Jehovia, and Baker threw away his partner, and declared him as only God.
The Bishop had begun to question Father Jehovia’s monopoly on divinity, contending that the Bible implied that God was equally present in all people. The two frequently quibbled over the interpretation of the biblical verse “whosoever shall confess that Jesus is the Son of God, God dwelleth in him and he is God.” At first the Messenger distanced himself from the squabbling, but finally he entered the battle and announced he would take neither side. He rejected both Father Jehovia’s claim to divinity and the Bishop’s assertion that everyone was God. The messenger declared that he himself was the only true and pure expression of God’s spirit. (Watts 30)
A person who declared himself as son of the God at beginning and when problem came and against his “Father”, the son became full grown, and became an adult, who could take over his “Father’s” position, and declared him was the only God and pretended his “Father”, a God who was already dead.
Father Divine became popular with onset of the Great Depression. As the Peace Mission Movement came out, Father Divine became even more popular. When the Peace Mission was first started, it had around 10,000 core followers of Father Divine, and they would devote all their possessions to Father Divine’s Peace Mission Movement. The purpose of Peace Mission Movement was help people by provided them food, jobs, shelters, and services. Peace Mission had members from all racial backgrounds. Peace Mission operated grocery stores, barbershops, gas stations, lunchrooms, and other stores where poor people could purchase goods and services at cheap prices. They also operated a number of model farms and hotels throughout the country. By that time they had established around 150 Peace Mission centers around United States. But in general, their goal was to help poor people survive. During the Depression era, Divine had churches all over the country. Many whites and Blacks joined those churches and they offered dining rooms for poor people, where you could come in and receive all people could eat for a quarter. They would still feed people if they didn’t have 25 cents. According to Thomas C. Fleming, a survivor during Great Depression:
I went into the dining hall on 8th Street in Oakland -- more out of curiosity than anything else, because I had heard about the meals you could get there real cheap…. The main entree could have been chicken or beef stew or lamb stew, and they served vegetables, rice and potatoes, dessert, and a small bowl of salad. They could probably seat 100 at one time, at long tables. People were dressed in their Sunday best, because lots of them attended the religious service before the mealtime. If you had the quarter, you'd put it in and say, "Thank you Father." And if you didn't have money, you would say it anyway. He fed a lot of hungry people in those days. Of course they would try to convert you, to become a Christian, but they didn't bother you too much. (Surviving the Depression by Thomas C. Fleming)
It was embarrassing to say “I follow Father Divine for food” but there was no doubt that some people did follow Father Divine for food. Since there was no requirement for people who could or couldn’t enter to eat, everyone would just go there and eat the food. Those people would never participated in church meeting, because they were not religious, or those people would converted and seek for more benefit they might received in the future.
Among the true followers the word “He” referred to Father Divine. “He” with capital, represented the respect and admiration as if Father Divine were God. Phillip Life, who had been follower of Father Divine for 7 years, declared that Father Diviner taught and demanded every one of His true followers to live a virtuous, holy, pure, chaste life. “Furthermore, there are hundreds of young men known as Crusaders of Father Divine, who are loving, adoring, worshiping and obeying Him wholeheartedly, who are living chaste lives, who would not be fooled if what the slanderers said was true. They know, as well as millions of others, that Father Divine lives and teaches the highest form of Christian life.” (Life, Letter to whom it may concern). As Phillip Life said there were people who followed Divine because of his religious claimed, and hundreds of followers would believe Father Divine, no matter how the other people insulted him. Those followers claimed themselves as crusaders of Father Divine, because they really believed in Father Divine’s religious claimed, and they willing to defend Father Divine’s thought, and helped Father Divine spread out his thought.
In order to recruit more followers, Father Divine had his own newspaper. The New Day published weekly from 1937 to 1973. The newspaper was about Divine: since it was owned by Father Divine, only meaningful materials about Father Divine and written by him, would be published. Father Divine also used his The New Day to critize his opponent’s ideas. In Vol. 9, No. 49 of The New Day newspaper published in December 8, 1945, the headline ““I AM Bringing All of the Atomic Energy into subjection and by It I AM Bringing Out Many Inventions.” –Father Divine”. By that time, atomic energy was not widely known by the world, but the world had a view on atomic bombs dropped in Japan. Atomic energy was powerful, it destroyed Japan, and made Japan surrender during WWII, and atomic energy had shorted the war. He also published “RECOGNIZE FATHER DIVINE! Nineteen hundred and thirty-nine, according to the press, Czechoslovakia was invaded. Nineteen hundred and thirty-eight I had sent them a Message warning different heads of the nation…had they taken cognizance of MY Message, there would not have been a World War today.” A person declared he knew ahead of time that World War II was coming, and tried to prevent it from happening, but foolish people didn't trust him, and the result was the World War II. Imagine a person saying he could control atomic energy, and used it to create inventions and this person also declared that he had power to predict what was going to happen in the future. This was basically said “I am the God”, or “I have the power to change the world”. In a normal situation, nobody would believe at him, but when it was a harsh time, like the Great Depression, everything would be different. Yes, people needed hope, a hope that led them out from depression. These claims were taken as truth by those followers because they needed hope, and they would take the hope from a person who would help them. Especially, when this person taking physically action to help people survive during the harsh time.
Father Divine appreciate about Great Depression happening in his era: “Only through positive thinking and channeling God’s spirit could the country pull out of the downward economic spiral. Despite the suffering brought on by the depression, he actually considered the crisis beneficial, for it increased his following and spread his teachings.”(Watts 88). The Great Depression created a business, a stage, a religion, and a power for Father Divine. At the end of the Depression, Father Divine and his Peace Mission Movement had taken in an estimated around $15 million dollars. All this money was came from donations, and food that he offered to people was also donated from core followers and money that had been raised up.
The Great Depression created a horrible situation in the United States, but also created a miracle person in the United States. George Baker, also known as Father Divine, who became a miracle man during the Great Depression era. He helped poor people survive during the Depression and even after. He founded a new type of religion during the Depression and his followers were willing to devote everything they had. He offered free food to people, where people only needed to pay a quarter and said “Thank you Father” for food; even if they didn’t have money they still could get food and said “Thank you Father”. He created the Peace Mission Movement, which widely spread in United States during the Depression period. People could buy food and clothes at a cheap price in the Mission stores. People could receive jobs, and services from Peace Mission centers. There were people like Thomas C. Fleming, who followed Father Divine for material needs. Fleming was not a religious person, he never attended church events and he only participated in dining service to survive. Also there were people like Phillip Life, who was a religious follower of Father Divine, who declared that they followed Father Divine because of his religious claimed, not because of his food.
True followers claimed Father Divine taught them a better Christian life, to live virtuous, holy, pure, and chaste life, but if Father Divine claimed himself as the only true god, what was the point of continuously using Christian ideas to teach his followers? Also, what was the point for these followers to say Father Divine taught them better Christian Life? If the Great Depression never happened, would Father Divine’s claims become popular? For those who did follow Father Divine because of his religious claim, it could only be because of hope. Father Divine gave them the hope to continue their life, which other God never accomplished. For those who participated only in dinning room, could also because of hope, because Father Divine would provide them a way to survive, thus people would accept the assist. Father Divine created terrible ideas such as prediction, and control of atomic energy; those ideas granted people the hope that Father Divine could lead them out from the Great Depression and lead them into a better life. Those ideas had accomplished Father Divine to be a God in everyone’s thought with the necessities of life Divine provided. There was no doubt that different people followed Father Divine because of different purpose such as mental help, and physical help. But if Father Divine claimed himself as God and offered people food in a wealthy society, then people would think he was crazy, and no one would follow him, because his idea of controlling atomic energy was crazy, his predictions were crazy. The truth is, even today we are not in a wealthy society in which Father Divine’s material support and spiritual hope are not needed. And so his Peace Missions continually to provide these things for some people, even thought its founder, Father Divines is dead.
Cited Source:
"America and the Utopian Dream | Utopian Communities." America and the Utopian Dream. Yale.edu. Web. 28 Nov. 2011.
Fleming, Thomas. "The Columbus Free Press - Reflections on Black History." The Free Press -- Independent News Media. Thomas C. Fleming, 20 Jan. 1999. Web. 16 Nov. 2011.
"Historic Rockville African American Heritage Walking Tour." Rockville, Maryland - Official Web Site. Web. 28 Nov. 2011.
Life, Philip. Letter To Whom It May Concern. 12 Mar. 1956. 764 S.Broad Street, Philadelphia, 46, Pa.
"The Great Depression." Welcome to English « Department of English, College of LAS, University of Illinois. Ed. Cary Nelson. University of Illinois. Web. 05 Dec. 2011.
The New Day. Philadelphia: New Day Pub. Co. 1937-1973; Vol. 9, No. 49 December 8, 1945.
Watts, Jill. God, Harlem U.S.A.: the Father Divine Story. Berkeley: University of California, 1992. Print.
Tuesday, December 13, 2011
Monday, December 12, 2011
Wednesday, November 23, 2011
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)