In the preface he contributed to Mules and Men, he wrote: “Ever since the time of Uncle Remus, Negro folklore has exerted a strong attraction upon the imagination of the American public. In her inimitable style, Zora described how she delved into the field of ethnography: “When I pitched headforemost into the world I landed in the crib of negroism. In short, Mules and Men is a great book. . Many of them are slave narratives, some of which repeat with variation. And she seems to have added a subtitle, “Voodoo and Life in Haiti and Jamaica,” to embrace those chapters where she departs widely from her primary subject. She has seen what she describes — unlike certain returned “adventures” from Haiti and such places. The Question and Answer section for Mules and Men is a great She champions voodoo, or at least defends it, and chides the Haitian leaders for their refusal to do the same. John displays intelligence and cunning in the face of a more powerful adversary and succeeds. The story of the song (found in the glossary) “...is of John Henry, who is a great steel-driver [a man who... Start your 48-hour free trial to unlock this Mules and Men study guide and get instant access to the following: You'll also get access to more than 30,000 additional guides and 300,000 Homework Help questions answered by our experts.

Miss Hurston tells of him and his rituals, of many others and their rituals. Includes some folktales . An editor . From the original review by John Selby in the Pennsylvania Wilkes-Barre Record, October 1935:  Those of us who were reared among Negroes sense, with exasperating finality, the underlying mysticism of the race.

The story is a grand one; nobody can pretend to understand the United States without knowing it. . . . The first half of this book is amassed in Florida.

It was only when I was off in college, away from my native surroundings, that I could see myself like somebody else and stand off and look at my garment. These notes were contributed by members of the GradeSaver community. “Many a man thinks he is making something when he’s only changing things around.”, “It seems to me that organized creeds are collections of words around a wish. Literary Ladies Guide to the Writing Life .

Throwing herself into the project, she actually becomes a hoodoo apprentice to several practitioners. The sheriff was thinking of calling on her and scolding her severely.” (from Folklore, Chapter 4). But very few of us, because we are white, really break through the crust and learn what it all is about. From the earliest rocking of my cradle, I had known about the capers Brer Rabbit is apt to cut and what the Squinch Owl says from the house top. … To the student of cultural history the material presented is valuable not only by giving the Negro’s reaction to everyday events, to his emotional life, his humor and passions, but it throws into relief also the peculiar amalgamation of African and European tradition which is so important for understanding historically the character of American Negro life, with its strong African background in the West Indies, the importance of which diminishes with increasing distance from the South.”. .

In the second tale, “How Jack Beat the Devil,” the struggle is expanded to mythological proportions, but the end result is the same—the Devil defeats himself despite being more powerful. John and the Frog; John and Noah; Also (and maybe more importantly) includes the “toe party” scene of Hurston partying and ending up passed-out drunk and waking up to waffles; ALSO ( and also important) written in thick …

. She gains real life experience over the course of the book's research in order to reflect those experiences accurately for her reader, as a denizen between and across cultures. . One of the significant themes to emerge from the story about the daughter writing a letter from the father is the complexity of knowledge. Young Julius Henry, “who should have been home in bed,” jumps into the conversation. This extensive analysis is highly recommended for those who’d like to delve deeper into this work. . .

. Mules and Men is a compilation of stories that Zora collected on two trips — one in Florida, including Eatonville (the town in which she was raised) and Polk County, and the other in New Orleans. . Our summaries and analyses are written by experts, and your questions are answered by real teachers. Marie Leveau of New Orleans is dead, but Turner, her nephew, is alive and practicing.

She studied with the noted anthropologist Franz Boas, who recognized her talent and abiding interest in the black cultures of the American South and Caribbean. You can help us out by revising, improving and updating © 2020 eNotes.com, Inc. All Rights Reserved. Analysis

They “know quite well and acknowledge privately,” she says, “that voodoo is a harmless pagan cult that sacrifices domestic animals at its worst.

62) Mules and Men is a collection of black stories and hoodoo (voodoo), published by Zora Neale Hurston in 1935. More importantly she invites the reader into her travels alongside the actual stories. These two 1935 reviews of Mules and Men suggest that her account of folklore and race are important to the full picture of American history. Negro tales, songs and sayings without end, as well as descriptions of Negro magic and voodoo, have appeared but in all of them the intimate setting in the social life of the Negro has been given very inadequately. She is the perfect writer, then, to make a study of Negro folklore and folk practice.

Mules and Men is effectively an anthology of African American folktales compiled by Zora Neale Hurston. . . It is the great merit of Miss Hurston’s work that she entered into the homely life of the southern Negro as one of them and was fully accepted as such by the companions of her childhood … Miss Hurston has been equally successful in gaining the confidence of the voodoo doctors and she gives us much that throws a new light upon the much discussed voodoo beliefs and practices. I couldn’t see it for wearing it. To collect such stories, you don't just Google your question; you need to listen carefully. Studying voodoo and recalling folk stories through personal adventures and dialogue among practicing community members, Zora presents traditions that white people are rarely exposed to. There is no good to be had from listing the stories; it is more important to say what Miss Hurston herself points out — that the tellers themselves recognize the stories as fables. by Zora Neale Hurston [ Hurston, Zora Neale. 1928. .

Once Bennie Lee falls asleep, the storytelling session can continue, and Shug tells a story in which three men compete for a pretty girl: “The Quickest Trick.” Henry “Nigger” Byrd responds with another folktale about speed. It’s well known that Zora was an incredible storyteller, evidenced by novels like Their Eyes Were Watching God, and short stories, but she was an accomplished anthropologist as well. 433 (Summer, 1996) wrote: “While Mules and Men seems (and was, in fact, read by most of her contemporary reviewers as) a straightforward depiction of the humor and “exoticism” of African American folk culture, Zora Neale Hurston carefully arranged her folktales and meticulously delineated the contexts in which they were narrated to reveal complex relationships between race and gender in Black life. *This is an Amazon Affiliate link. Here are two excerpts: In “Conflict and Resistance in Zora Neale Hurston’s Mules and Men” Susan Meisenhelder, in The Journal of American Folklore, Vol. Mules and Men is a 1935 ethnographical collection by Zora Neale Hurston, one of the most celebrated of Harlem Renaissance authors.It’s well known that Zora was an incredible storyteller, evidenced by novels like Their Eyes Were Watching God, and short stories, but she was an accomplished anthropologist as well.. Zora was the first black student at Barnard College, the women’s college connected with Columbia. Whites often have the odd idea that the opposite is the case. She received funding for her to conduct this research in person, so she started visiting places. .

We are thankful for their contributions and encourage you to make your own.

. You might also like: Every Tongue Got to Confess .

The book is divided into two equally important parts, one of which retells a great number of folk tales, the other of which is the most intelligent discussion of voodoo (the Negroes call it “hoodoo”) this department has seen. The reader may conclude that John has an appeal to the townspeople because of his continuous use of intelligence and cunning to overcome more powerful adversaries.

eNotes - Mules and Men Detailed study guides typically feature a comprehensive analysis of the work, including an introduction, plot summary, character analysis, discussion of themes, excerpts of … When the consciousness we know as life ceases, I know that I shall still be part and parcel of the world.”, “Mouths don’t empty themselves unless ears are sympathetic and knowing.”, “One woman had killed five when I left that turpentine still where she lived. Mules and Men is partly an anthology of folktales and the common theme of the "Stranger" in a community is seen throughout. Julius Henry: a young boy who tells stories for Zora and the people of Eatonville. . this section. She studied with the noted anthropologist, ... and lots more (look for a bonus in your welcome letter! She tells the tale of how most of these folktales were told to her, remarking often upon how challenging it was to gain the narrator's confidence. In Florida she documented some seventy folktales, while in New Orleans, she documented voodoo traditions and other stories. Hurston did a great service in recording African American folklore traditions at a particular … Mules and Men is partly an anthology of folktales and the common theme of the "Stranger" in a community is seen throughout. Although the other men joke with Julius because he is so young, Julius responds with an excellent tale, “Ah’ll Beatcher Makin’ Money,” which is applauded by everyone. New Characters: GradeSaver, 7 August 2019 Web. If she had brought to her accounts of the folk mysteries, the same degree of specification she employed in her chapter on curry goat, the preparation of young girls for marriage, Miss Hurston would probably have said the last word on voodoo. Her cause is aided by Hurston's investment in the people. I feel no need for such. .



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