Zora Neale
Hurston
Why should you care who she was?
“I do not belong to that
sobbing school of Negrohood who
hold that nature somehow has given
them a lowdown dirty deal."
- Zora Neale Hurston
Why should you care who
she was?
Zora was a flamboyant women who always
made a scene
She never let anyone lessen her because
she was “black”
She was the most significant black female
writer during the 1930’s and 40’s
Childhood

Born to John and Lucy Hurston on
January 7, 1891 in Notasulga,
Alabama. She was the fifth of eight
children.
However, she moved to Eatonville,
Florida as a toddler.
Zora grew up in an 8 room house, on
5 acres of land
Zora’s mom always told her “Jump at
de sun, you might not land on the
sun, but at least you would
get off the ground."
How did Zora
Suffer?
Her Childhood Had an Abrupt Stop!
In 1904 when Zora was 13, her
mother passed away.
After the death, John Hurston, Zora’s
father had little time or money
for his children.
He quickly remarried a young
women, whom Zora almost murdered.
Things Continued to
Look Down For Zora
After the fistfight with her stepmother,
she was sent by her father to
her brother’s household to clean,
cook, and watch the children. To do
so, Zora was taken out of school
leaving her with an 8th grade
education.
At the age of 16, a restless Zora left
her brother’s household to join a
traveling theater.
During this time she occasionally
worked domestically for a white
household.
What made Zora start to write?
The woman Zora worked for gave her
her first book, which inspired Zora to
start writing.
Those 10 years she lost
were never restored.
From that point on, Zora Neale
Hurston always claimed she was 10
years younger then she really was.
Zora went back to high school
When she was 26 years old,
Zora lied about her age claming
she was only 16 and enrolled
in Morgan Academy and graduated
from high school.
How did Zora get her success?
According to a friend Zora had the gift
to walk into people’s hearts
Zora befriended people of great
importance such as Langston Hughes
and Ethel Waters. These people
helped her get reconized as a writter.
After High School…
Zora graduated Barnard College in
1928.
During College Zora had published
short stories, articles, and a novel
called Jonah’s Gourd Vine.
The Harlem
Renaissance
While Zora was in New York during
college, The Harlem Renaissance
was occurring.
This was a time when “Blacks” stood
up for themselves
They found ways to express
themselves through dance, music,
writing, and art
Her Most Well Known Piece of
Literature.
The highlight of Zora’s career was in
the 1930’s and 1940’s.
In 1937 she published probably her
most famous piece of work, Their
Eyes Were Watching God.
Their Eyes were watching God
Her most memorable novel.
This book was about a girl named
Janie who was a product of rape, and
herself was raped.
The character grew up in Eastonville,
Zora’s hometown.
This book was so fameous that Oprah
Winfrey’s production Harpo created a
movie after it starring Halle Berry.
Some other novels Zora
published
1938, Moses, Man of the Mountain
1942, Dust tracks on the Road
1948, Seraph on the Suwannee.
$$ Money Failure $$
Zora published
many pieces of
amazing
literature, but
never received
proper pay.
The Burial Conflict
Zora Neale Hurston died on
1/28/1960 from a stroke.
Because Zora never recied proper
pay, she had no money saved for her
burial. She was buried in an
unmarked grave until 1973.
Alice Walker
Alice Walker in
the summer of
1973 flew to
Eatonville,
Florida to mark
her hero’s grave
with a
headstone.
Links
http://historymatters.gmu.edu/d/5131/
http://www.zoranealehurston.com/
http://www.webster.edu/~woolflm/hurston.html
http://www.library.csi.cuny.edu/dept/history/lavender/386/zhurston.html
http://www.teenreads.com/authors/au-hurston-zora.asp
http://www.jimcrowhistory.org/resources/pdf/amlit_lp_hurston.pdf
http://www.amazon.com/Dust-Tracks-Road-Neale-Hurston/dp/0060921684
http://itech.fgcu.edu/faculty/wohlpart/alra/hurston.htm#Hurston%20Biography
http://www.howard.edu/library/reference/guides/hurston/default.htm
http://www.lewrockwell.com/orig/epstein2.html
http://dclibrary.org/blkren/bios/hurstonzn.html
http://www.enotes.com/feminism-literature/hurston-zora-neale
http://authors.aalbc.com/zoraneal.htm
http://www.gradesaver.com/classicnotes/authors/about_zora_neale_hurston.html
http://www.galegroup.com/free_resources/bhm/bio/hurston_z.htm
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