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How did Alice Walker draw inspiration from Zora Neale Hurston’s writing?

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Phillis Wheatley's first book of poetry — African American literature Frontispiece and title page of *Poems on Various Subjects, Religious and Moral* (1773) by Phillis Wheatley, the first Black woman to become a poet of note in the United States. The portrait on which the frontispiece's engraving is based is often attributed to Scipio Moorhead, an Black artist and writer who, like Wheatley, was enslaved and living in Boston.

Alice Walker played a pivotal role in the 1970s by reviving interest in the work of Zora Neale Hurston, whose literary legacy had largely faded from mainstream discourse.1

Walker’s inspiration and dedication were most notably expressed through her 1975 essay, "In Search of Zora Neale Hurston," which brought renewed attention to Hurston’s contributions to African American literature. Beyond her writing, Walker actively sought to honor Hurston by locating her unmarked grave in Fort Pierce, Florida, and installing a headstone inscribed with the title "A Genius of the South"—a phrase Walker herself coined to describe Hurston.12

By championing Hurston’s work, Walker helped reclaim the voices of Black women in literature, mirroring the broader struggle for the recognition of Black contributions to American culture. This act of historical recovery was deeply connected to Walker’s own literary mission, which often focused on the themes of gender equality and the preservation of Black women's traditions.13