ABSTRACT
"Characteristics of Negro Expression" was one of six essays Zora Neale Hurston contributed to the British writer and activist Nancy Cunard's Negro: An Anthology, a collection of criticism, literature, and art by and about African Americans. Some scholars consider "Characteristics" a critical document in the tradition of black aesthetic theory, though it was barely read on first publication. Black aesthetic theory attempts to describe the unique characteristics of African American art. "Characteristics" builds on the work of numerous predecessors, most prominently Frederick Douglass and W. E. B. Du Bois. Du Bois also introduces the idea that African American culture, as the only culture born and raised on American soil, should be seen as emblematic of America as a whole. Franz Boas also proved influential in the study of folklore, believing that it best uncovered the values held by different cultures. As his student, Hurston remained committed to these views, and many traces of them can be seen in "Characteristics".
