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How It Feels To Be Colored Me By Zora Neale Hurston

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How it Feels to Be Colored Me Commentary “How it Feels to Be Colored Me” was written by Zora Neale Hurston, an American author, and novelist. Throughout the piece, Hurston uses a series of literary devices to explain many conflicting emotions that she feels. The text begins with the life of Hurston as a child. She grew up in a small town that was predominately African-American. Within this town, she was well-known and often considered as a social butterfly. Her life changed after moving away from this town to college, where her darker-hued skin constantly stood out in a sea of white skin. Hurston uses epithets to express how she sees herself despite what others see. Religious motifs highlight the idea of all people being similar in the sense that we all live for the same reasons, and lastly imagery expresses how emotions can capture and change a person and their actions. “How it Feels to Be Colored Me” exemplifies the idea of humans being forced to accept stereotypes without considering what humans really are, which is much more than the color of one 's skin. The use of epithets produces a deeper meaning of the view one has of themselves by describing them and not their actions or looks. In paragraph 14 Hurston describes herself as “cosmic”. Hurston uses the word “cosmic” to show that she is powerful beyond belief when it comes to her mental strength. “The cosmic Zora emerges. I belong to no race nor time.” (paragraph 14). Hurston shows that race does not define who we

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