Zora Neale Hurston

• Lived from 1891 - 1960
• Born in Notasulga, Alabama and raised from an early age in Eatonville, Florida, Hurston was educated at Howard University, at Barnard College, and at Columbia University.
• Wrote fiction.
• Known for her metaphorical language, her story telling abilities, and her interest in and celebration of southern black culture in the united states. 
• Best known for her novel, Their Eyes Were Watching God,  written in 1937
• This book was about a black woman's search for her true identity over the course of 25 years.
• Hurston's work was not political, but her characters' use of dialect, her manner of portraying black culture, and her conservatism created controversy within the black community. 
• Throughout her career she addressed issues of race and gender, often relating them to the search for freedom.
• In her later years Hurston experienced health problems, and she died impoverished and unrecognized by the literary community.
• Her writings, however, were rediscovered in the 1970s by a new generation of black writers, notably Alice Walker, and many of Hurston's works were republished.Microsoft ® Encarta ® 2009. © 1993-2008 Microsoft Corporation. All rights reserved.
  
  
  

  

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