Title: How It Feels to Be Colored Me Summary & Analysis | LitCharts
Headings: How It Feels to Be Colored Me
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How It Feels to Be Colored Me Summary & Analysis

Content: The fact that claiming different ancestry is common and sometimes effective illustrates how vague and malleable racial identity can be. Nevertheless, Hurston chooses to run towards rather than away from her African-American identity. Active Themes
Related Quotes with Explanations
Hurston claims she remembers the first day she “became colored,” which occurred when she was thirteen. 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. Active Themes
Related Quotes with Explanations
Hurston describes her childhood growing up in Eatonville, Florida, a successful all-black community. The only time she saw white people was when they were traveling through their town on their way to or from Orlando. The people of the town were indifferent to southern whites on their horses, but northern whites who drove through in cars were a spectacle, and many ventured out to the porch to gawk at them. Hurston introduces class and geography as crucial factors in her childhood understanding of race.