What is the thesis of How It Feels to Be Colored Me?

Popular thought holds that race is an essential or biological characteristic of an individual. By stating that she became colored, Hurston argues that race can be more a matter of social reinforcement and changing perspective. In short, she was not colored until people made her feel that way.

What figurative language is in How It Feels to Be Colored Me?

Hurston declares that she does not “weep at the world” or for her skin color within it, something she claims that many “colored” persons do; rather, she says, “I am too busy sharpening my oyster knife.” Presumably, she is not actually sharpening a knife, and so this statement appears to be a metaphor for preparing …

What is the metaphor in How It Feels to Be Colored Me?

Zora Neale Hurtson uses metaphors throughout her writing titled, How it Feels to Be Colored Me. The metaphor that stands out to me is when she compares her life to a track race. Hurston writes, I am off to a flying start and I must not halt in the stretch to look behind and weep.

What is the author’s purpose in How It Feels to Be Colored Me?

Hurston’s purpose in writing “How it Feels to be Colored like Me” is to assert her pride in being black. She pushes back against the idea, articulated by many of her black friends during the Harlem Renaissance of the 1920s, that segregation and racial discrimination harmed the black soul and needed to be addressed.

Who is the audience of How It Feels to Be Colored Me?

Hurston displays her colloquial tone when she uses common language and simple senteces to appeal to her audience, young people of her generation. She embodies this tone when she speaks about her hometown, Eatonville, and uses a simple sentece to describe it, “It is exclusively a colored town” (Hurston 182).

How does it feel to be Colored Me irony?

The irony of “colored me” The title is ironic, because the speech seems to be about Hurston’s life as a black person, so perhaps the title might have just been, “My life as a colored person,” but instead, she intentionally calls it “How It Feels to Be Colored Me,” where the “color” simply refers to identity.