Strength Within Creativity

Despite oppression, African-American women of the past were able to overcome obstacles by taking on the role of artists. They relied on their creative spirits to carry them through their wretched existence. In Alice Walker’s essay “In Search of Our Mothers’ Gardens,” she explains how the mothers and grandmothers of her generation held on to their dignity and strength through their expression of creativity. The boldness represented by this creativity shows the dynamic depth …

…strength of their mothers and grandmothers and the courage and hope held deep within their souls, the same courage and hope about which Frances Harper wrote. There is light beyond the darkness, Joy beyond the present pain; There is hope in God’s great justice And the negro’s rising brain. Though the morning seems to linger O’er the hilltops far away, Yet the shadows bear the promise Of a brighter coming day. (Harper 282)