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Zora Neale Hurston posing in front of "Sassy Susie", the Nash Coupe she used to travel throughout the US South for fieldwork.
Zora Neale Hurston posing in front of "Sassy Susie", the Nash Coupe she used to travel throughout the US South for fieldwork.
“Research is formalized curiosity. It is poking and prying with a purpose. It is a seeking that he who wishes may know the cosmic secrets of the world and they that dwell therein...
“Research is formalized curiosity. It is poking and prying with a purpose. It is a seeking that he who wishes may know the cosmic secrets of the world and they that dwell therein...
Two weeks before I graduated from Barnard [in 1928], Dr. Boas sent for me and told me that he had arranged a fellowship for me. I was to go south and collect Negro folklore...My first six months were disappointing. I found out later that it was not because I had no talents for research, but because I did not have the right approach. The glamor of Barnard College was still upon me. I dwelt in marble halls. I knew where the material was all right. But, I went about asking, in carefully accented Barnardese, “Pardon me, but do you know any folk-tales or songs?” The men and women who had whole treasuries of material just seeping through their pores looked at me and shook their heads. No, they had never heard of anything like that around here. Maybe it was over in the next county. Why didn’t I try over there? I did, and got the selfsame answer. Oh, I got a few little items. But compared with what I did later, not enough to make a flea a waltzing jacket…My search for knowledge of things took me into many strange places and adventures.”
Two weeks before I graduated from Barnard [in 1928], Dr. Boas sent for me and told me that he had arranged a fellowship for me. I was to go south and collect Negro folklore...My first six months were disappointing. I found out later that it was not because I had no talents for research, but because I did not have the right approach. The glamor of Barnard College was still upon me. I dwelt in marble halls. I knew where the material was all right. But, I went about asking, in carefully accented Barnardese, “Pardon me, but do you know any folk-tales or songs?” The men and women who had whole treasuries of material just seeping through their pores looked at me and shook their heads. No, they had never heard of anything like that around here. Maybe it was over in the next county. Why didn’t I try over there? I did, and got the selfsame answer. Oh, I got a few little items. But compared with what I did later, not enough to make a flea a waltzing jacket…My search for knowledge of things took me into many strange places and adventures.”
- Zora Neale Hurston, Dust Tracks on a Road: An Autobiography, p 124-129
- Zora Neale Hurston, Dust Tracks on a Road: An Autobiography, p 124-129
“When she was walking around through Eatonville asking a lot of questions, we didn’t know what she was trying to do…”
“When she was walking around through Eatonville asking a lot of questions, we didn’t know what she was trying to do…”
- Eatonville resident who encountered Zora Neale Hurston during her fieldwork in Florida
- Eatonville resident who encountered Zora Neale Hurston during her fieldwork in Florida
Legend has it that Zora Neale Hurston wrote Their Eyes Were Watching God in seven weeks while doing anthropological research in Haiti before it was published in 1937. Trained as an anthropologist at Barnard College, Hurston did pioneering fieldwork in the US South and the Caribbean which became the foundation for her rich storytelling. Watch this video to learn more about Hurston’s research work and its complexities and legacy.
Legend has it that Zora Neale Hurston wrote Their Eyes Were Watching God in seven weeks while doing anthropological research in Haiti before it was published in 1937. Trained as an anthropologist at Barnard College, Hurston did pioneering fieldwork in the US South and the Caribbean which became the foundation for her rich storytelling. Watch this video to learn more about Hurston’s research work and its complexities and legacy.
All storytellers engage in research of some kind to develop the tales they tell. Consider yourself as a storyteller. What research* do you draw on? Research often involves telling the stories of others - what ethical complexities might this raise? Respond to these questions in your notebook in whatever way you see fit.
All storytellers engage in research of some kind to develop the tales they tell. Consider yourself as a storyteller. What research* do you draw on? Research often involves telling the stories of others - what ethical complexities might this raise? Respond to these questions in your notebook in whatever way you see fit.
*Keep in mind Hurston’s definition, “research is formalized curiosity”. Remember that “research” does not always yield data in the form of numbers and reports or nonfiction…
*Keep in mind Hurston’s definition, “research is formalized curiosity”. Remember that “research” does not always yield data in the form of numbers and reports or nonfiction…
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