Why should there be an urgently renewed interest among the black women to read the long forgotten black woman writers like Zora Neal Hurston and Jean toomer

Walker was influenced by Zora Neale Hurston whose writing during the Harlem Renaissance helped teacher Walker how to celebrate cultural identity through art. As an author, she feels her point of view is valuable because she represents a part of society that is often marginalized, in her experience. Reading Hurston's work was like hearing her talk... her writing was genuine, and her characters were depicted realistically. According to Walker, Hurston is one of the "most misunderstood, least appreciated writers of this century."

Toomer is a male, black writer. His stories were based upon the stories of his grandmother... her personal history. His book, Cane, was unique. And according to Hurston, "a book that sang naturally and effortlessly of the beauty, passion, and vulnerability of black, mostly southern, life."