Comparison between 'How it feels to be Colored Me' and 'Fourth of July.' (Essay Sample)

Student's Name Professor Institution Date Comparison between 'How it feels to be Colored Me' and 'Fourth of July.' Zora Neale Hurston and Audre Lorde wrote about their experiences as strong African-American young women experiencing considerable racial prejudice in the early twentieth century. Their essays gave a detailed, comparable, but quite a distinct tale. These narratives vary in their treatment of their predicament. Still, they are characteristic of the generation's voice and an unhappy but truthful portrayal of several historical events. They both use figurative language and colorful images to a descriptive picture that drives the reader back to their childhoods. Hurston was born in Eatonville, Florida, in an all-black neighborhood. She recalls singing, dancing, and greeting neighbors in the streets, as well as observing her town from a comfortable and safe place on her front porch. She was "everyone's Zora" at the time, with no sense of estrangement or distinction. (Hopkins, 2007) When she was thirteen, her mother died, and she had to leave home to go to a boarding school in Jacksonville, Florida, where she "felt her race." This is where she realized that she was "colored" right away. She then proceeded to Barnard College in New York, describing herself as "a black rock rushed upon, over washed by a milky sea." (Hopkins, 2007) On the other hand, Audre Lorde was born in New York, where she first discovered she was "different." She flew to Washington DC after graduating from the eighth school (the trip was a gift to both her and her sister, Phyllis). Lorde, meanwhile, described her experience as "all white." While her family was attempting to cool down at Breyer's, her white server at the white counter refused to give her white ice cream so that she could go away from the white heat on the white sidewalk, where she couldn't admire the city's white stone monuments. She also uses the terms "colored," "black," and "negro" to describe herself and those who look like her. ("Audre Lorde", 2021) During their trip to Washington, she realized that her sister Phyllis was to the city during her high school senior class trip but was racially discriminated. The nuns gave her back her deposit in private, telling her that all white people except her would be staying in a private hotel where she "would not be happy." Their dad explained to her sister that they did not rent rooms for "negroes”. Audre uses these terms to reveal that she sees her innocence eroded and that the world is reduced to black and white. ("Audre Lorde", 2021) Lorde's transition from infancy to maturity is evident when her family is denied service at an ice cream parlor in Washington, DC. They calmly get down from their chairs, offended, as if they "had never been black before," without any complaint. Her parents believed that they might have averted it if they had foreseen the circumstances. ("Audre Lorde", 2021) The tone of her story swiftly turns from joy to regret when actual racist America is revealed. Audre is so touched by the waitress' deed that she sends an angry letter to the President of the United States, unhappy and sickened by the graduation present she got. ("Audre Lorde", 2021) On the other hand, these ladies have an opposing point of view. Zora Neale Hurston uses extensive metaphors to describe the finding of her identity and self-pride, and she does not consider herself "tragically colored." She claims that African-Americans have had to downplay their racial identities to get people to regard them as equals or to reduce prejudice. (Hopkins, 2007) She emerges stronger from all of her trials as she "sharpens her oyster knife," preparing for the world rather than mourning for it. Despite this, Zora recognizes racial inequality when she depicts a scene from The New World Cabaret (a music club), emphasizing the contrast between shades. While her white male buddy sits still, smoking a cigarette. The jazz melodies engage her spirit, and she feels "like she is in the wild, dwelling in a wild manner." (Hopkins, 2007) "He has just heard what I felt," she says. Audre Lorde, on the other hand, has been traumatized by white people's hereditary supremacy, and she recognizes that she is not equal, "according to her essay." She struggles with her classification and identification, categorizing citizens of the United States into several groups. Her newfound adulthood corresponds with her realization that America is not the country she believed it was, given the prevalence of prejudice. From a toddler to a lady, she feels exposed to the facts of life. As she encounters prejudice and tyranny, what was once regarded as a pristine country is marred by injustice and bigotry. Despite the challenges they faced, it influen...