--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Responding to Wright’s critique, Hurston…" description: "\"“Responding to Wright’s critique, Hurston claimed that she had wanted at long last to write a black novel, and “not a treatise on sociology.” It is thi..." image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/zora-neale-hurston-923_black_responding-to-wright-s-critique-hurston_401912.jpg" --- # Responding to Wright’s critique, Hurston claimed that she… ![“Responding to Wright’s critique, Hurston claimed that she had wanted at long last to write a black novel, and “not a treatise on sociology.” It is this urge that resonates in Toni Morrison’s Song of Solomon and Beloved, and in Walker’s depiction of Hurston as our prime symbol of “racial health—a…” quote by Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/zora-neale-hurston-923_black_responding-to-wright-s-critique-hurston_401912.jpg) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/zora-neale-hurston-923_black_responding-to-wright-s-critique-hurston_401912.jpg) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/0d4/zora-neale-hurston-923_black_responding-to-wright-s-critique-hurston_401912.jpg) > ““Responding to Wright’s critique, Hurston claimed that she had wanted at long last to write a black novel, and “not a treatise on sociology.” It is this urge that resonates in Toni Morrison’s Song of Solomon and Beloved, and in Walker’s depiction of Hurston as our prime symbol of “racial health—a sense of black people as complete, complex, undiminished human beings, a sense that is lacking in so much black writing and literature.” In a tradition in which male authors have ardently denied black literary paternity, this is a major development, one that heralds the refinement of our notion of tradition: Zora and her daughters are a tradition-within-the-tradition, a black woman’s voice.”” [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. Hurston sought to write a black novel, not a sociological treatise, influencing later black women writers and reshaping literary tradition. **In simple terms:** Hurston wanted a black novel, not sociology, inspiring later writers. Key Takeaway Write authentic stories that center black humanity. Themes authenticity literary tradition racial representation Mood reflective inspired Type analytical inspirational When to use this quote - Literary criticism - creative writing workshops - academic courses on African American literature Key Concepts Black feminism authorial voice cultural identity Questions to Reflect On - How can writers balance artistic intent with social expectations? - What defines a 'black novel' today? A Different Perspective May overlook other literary forms that also convey black experiences. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [Black](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black/) [Black Literary](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-literary-3602101/) [Black Novel](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-novel-3602105/) [Black people](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/black-people/) [Books](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/books/) [Critique Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/critique-hurston-3602103/) [Depiction Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/depiction-hurston-3602102/) [Hurston Claimed](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/hurston-claimed-3602104/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/toni-morrison/) ## Related quotes > [Black writers, of whatever quality, who step outside the pale of what black writers are supposed to write about, or who black writers are…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/audre-lorde/black-writers-of-whatever-quality-who-step-outside-the-pale-of-what/) [Audre Lorde](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/audre-lorde/) > [I don't think there was a time I ever thought of myself as anything but a writer. I thought I was going to be…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/shonda-rhimes/i-don-t-think-there-was-a-time-i-ever-thought-of-myself-as-anything/) [Shonda Rhimes](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/shonda-rhimes/) > [“There is no time for despair, no place for self-pity, no need for silence, no room for fear. We speak, we write, we do…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/there-is-no-time-for-despair-no-place-for-self-pity-no-need-for/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [I loved 1930's women's pictures'films by Josef Von Sternberg or William Wyler. So, I fashioned a style out of that. The integrity and ethos…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kola-boof/i-loved-1930-s-women-s-pictures-films-by-josef-von-sternberg-or/) [Kola Boof](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kola-boof/) > [I am very bad at remembering the books I've read and so recently I had a wonderful experience. I decided I wanted to teach…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/samantha-hunt/i-am-very-bad-at-remembering-the-books-i-ve-read-and-so-recently-i/) [Samantha Hunt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/samantha-hunt/) > [I take inspiration from books, movies, television, music - it all goes in the hopper. Depending on the project, I'm drawing from this or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/i-take-inspiration-from-books-movies-television-music-it-all-goes-in/) [Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/) > [I was allowed to write about race using an elevator metaphor because of Toni Morrison and David Bradley and Ralph Ellison. Hopefully, me being…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/colson-whitehead/i-was-allowed-to-write-about-race-using-an-elevator-metaphor-because/) [Colson Whitehead](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/colson-whitehead/) > [I read 'Song of Solomon' by Toni Morrison in college, and it just blew my mind.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jamila-woods/i-read-song-of-solomon-by-toni-morrison-in-college-and-it-just-blew/) [Jamila Woods](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jamila-woods/) > [I'm a huge fan of Toni Morrison. I just think she's so incredible. And also Nayyirah Waheed, who's a poet.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/amandla-stenberg/i-m-a-huge-fan-of-toni-morrison-i-just-think-she-s-so-incredible-and/) [Amandla Stenberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/amandla-stenberg/) > [I took a couple of creative writing classes with Joyce Carol Oates at Princeton University, and in my senior year there, I took a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mohsin-hamid/i-took-a-couple-of-creative-writing-classes-with-joyce-carol-oates-at/) [Mohsin Hamid](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mohsin-hamid/) > [“Toni Morrison’s The Bluest Eye”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dorothy-allison/toni-morrison-s-the-bluest-eye/) [Dorothy Allison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dorothy-allison/) > [Even Toni Morrison claiming Bill Clinton as 'black' could not prepare us for the election of America's first undeniably black president, Barack Obama.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-young/even-toni-morrison-claiming-bill-clinton-as-black-could-not-prepare/) [Kevin Young](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-young/) > [The ones that were relevant while I wrote my book were books like "Beloved" by Toni Morrison, which is based on a historical fact,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laila-lalami/the-ones-that-were-relevant-while-i-wrote-my-book-were-books-like/) [Laila Lalami](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laila-lalami/) > [“There in the dark her memory was refreshed, and she succumbed to her earlier dreams. Along with the idea of romantic love, she was…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/toni-morrison/there-in-the-dark-her-memory-was-refreshed-and-she-succumbed-to-her/) [Toni Morrison](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/toni-morrison/) > [I still love Carson McCullers and Raymond Carver and Toni Morrison and James Baldwin.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jacqueline-woodson/i-still-love-carson-mccullers-and-raymond-carver-and-toni-morrison/) [Jacqueline Woodson](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jacqueline-woodson/) ## More by Zora Neale Hurston > [It seemed to me that the human beings I met reacted pretty much the same to the same stimuli. Different idioms,yes. Circumstances and conditions…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/it-seemed-to-me-that-the-human-beings-i-met-reacted-pretty-much-the/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [“Ships at a distance have every man's wish on board. For some they come in with the tide. For others they sail forever on…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/ships-at-a-distance-have-every-man-s-wish-on-board-for-some-they-come/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [Please God, please suh, don't let him love nobody else but me. Maybe Ah'm is uh fool, Lawd, lak dey say, but Lawd, Ah…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/please-god-please-suh-don-t-let-him-love-nobody-else-but-me-maybe-ah/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [“But mostly she lived between her hat and her heels, with her emotional disturbances like shade patterns in the woods—come and gone with the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/but-mostly-she-lived-between-her-hat-and-her-heels-with-her-emotional/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [Light came to me when I realized that I did not have to consider any racial group as a whole. God made them duck…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/light-came-to-me-when-i-realized-that-i-did-not-have-to-consider-any/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [Gods always behave like the people who make them.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/gods-always-behave-like-the-people-who-make-them/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [Love, I find, is like singing. Everyone can do enough to satisfy themselves, though it may not impress the neighbors as being very much.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/love-i-find-is-like-singing-everyone-can-do-enough-to-satisfy/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [“The woman took the faded shirt and muddy overalls and laid them away from remembrance. It was a weapon against her strength and if…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/the-woman-took-the-faded-shirt-and-muddy-overalls-and-laid-them-away/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [“They plan and they fix and they do, and then some kitchen-dwelling fiend slips a scorchy, soggy, tasteless mess into their pots and pans…So…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/they-plan-and-they-fix-and-they-do-and-then-some-kitchen-dwelling/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [“Years ago, she had told her girl self to wait for her in the looking glass. It had been a long time since she…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/years-ago-she-had-told-her-girl-self-to-wait-for-her-in-the-looking/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [“Ah jus lak uh chicken. Chicken drink water, but he don’t pee-pee.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/ah-jus-lak-uh-chicken-chicken-drink-water-but-he-don-t-pee-pee/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [“Like the pecking-order in a chicken yard. Insensate cruelty to those you can whip, and groveling submission to those you can’t. Once having set…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/like-the-pecking-order-in-a-chicken-yard-insensate-cruelty-to-those/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [The Haitian people are gentle and lovable except for their enormous and unconscious cruelty.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/the-haitian-people-are-gentle-and-lovable-except-for-their-enormous/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [Now, suppose a Negro does something really magnificent, and I glory, not in the benefit to mankind, but in the fact that the doer…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/now-suppose-a-negro-does-something-really-magnificent-and-i-glory-not/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) > [Anybody depending on somebody else's gods is depending on a fox not to eat chickens.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zora-neale-hurston/anybody-depending-on-somebody-else-s-gods-is-depending-on-a-fox-not/) [Zora Neale Hurston](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) [Explore all 326 Zora Neale Hurston quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zora-neale-hurston/) ## More Black quotes > [I wanted to write about voodoo tradition that I feel has been very important to survival of black people here: people of the African…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jesmyn-ward/i-wanted-to-write-about-voodoo-tradition-that-i-feel-has-been-very/) [Jesmyn Ward](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jesmyn-ward/) > [When you go to a club it's not about being black or white or heavy or thick. 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