Looking for Literary Production in Washington, D.C
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ABSTRACT Title of Thesis: “WE SEEK WHAT WE FIND ; WE SEE WHAT WE LOOK FOR”: LOOKING FOR LITERAR Y PRODUCTION IN WASHINGTON, D.C. 1921 -1928 Ebony V. Bowden, Master of Arts, 2006 Thesis directed by: Professor Nancy Struna Department of American Studie s Though acknowledged as the intellectual and cultural hub of African American enlightenment, many artists’ experiences attest that the reputation of Harlem as an artistic haven has in many ways , been overestimated. The promotion of Harlem’s dominant char acteristics has led many historians to overlook other culturally productive locations like Washington, D .C., which was also a major center for literary and artistic development during the twenties. My project explores Georgia Douglass Johnson as D.C.’s ag ent of cultural and literary production through her hostess -ship of Saturday -night literary salons held in her 1461 S. Street Northwest D.C home from 1921 -1928. The discussion of this literary salon is original because it includes theories of cultural prod uction and cultural studies submerged within a traditional literary context. Allowing room to cross interdisciplinary lines, this paper involves an investigation of members of the salons as well as the internal and external dynamics of the literary communi ty itself. “WE SEEK WHAT WE FIND – WE SEE WHAT WE LOOK FOR”: LOOKING FOR LITERARY PRODUCTION IN WASHINGTON, D.C. 1921 -1928 By Ebony Vanessa Bowden Thesis submitted to the Faculty of the Graduate School of the University of Mary land, College Park in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Master of Arts 2006 Advisory Committee: Professor Nancy Struna, Chair Associate Professor Joe Paoletti Assistant Professor Psyche Williams -Forson ©Copyright by Ebony Vanessa Bowden 2006 ii TABLE OF CONTENTS Table of Contents……………………………………………………………………… ….ii List of Illustrations… …………………………………………………………………… ..ii i Chapter I: Introduction….. ……………………………………………………………1 Rese arch Quest ions……………………………………………………………………….. 6 Literature Rev iew………………………………………………………………………… .9 Research Focus & Framework………………………………………………………… . .27 Primary Sourc es…………………………………………………………………………. 30 Structure of The sis……………………………………………………………………….31 Significanc e to America n Studies………………………………………………………..34 Chapter II: Locating Place & Defining Personality: Washington’s Greater U Street Historic District ……………………………………….. 36 Introduction………………………………………………………………… ……………36 Greater U Street Historic District………………………… ……………………………..38 Strivers Section Historic Di strict………………………………………………………...49 Chapter III: It Takes Three to Tango : The Formation of the Saturday -Nighters... …... .57 Biographical Sketch of Georgia Douglas Johnson…………… …………………………58 Alain Locke: A Catalys t of the New Negro Renaissance………………………………. 63 Jean Toomer: The Original Creator of the Saturday -Nighters………………………….. .68 Chapter IV: An Informal Community: Exploring the Composition of Georgia Douglas Johnson’s Saturday -Night Literary Salons ……………………………… 76 Introduction……… ……………………………………………………………………… 76 Salon Members: Bruce Nugent, Jessie Fauset, and Edward Christopher Williams…….87 Chapter V: Conclusion ……………………………………………………………...114 Summary ……… ………………………………………………………………………..114 Weaknesse s……………………………………………………… …………… ………..116 Call for Future Research……………………………………… ………………………..117 Conclusi on……… ……………………………………………………………………...119 iii ILLUSTRATIONS Figure Page 1. Wheel Model of Literary Pro duction in Washington, D.C. …………... 29 2. Map of Greater U Street Historic ; Government of D.C.’ s Historic Preservation Office, 2004 …………………………… . 39 1 Chapter 1 Introduction “I thought it amazing too, that a young playwright of ability and three or four poets of promise were l iving in Washington unknown to the best society. At least, I saw nothing being done to encourage these young writers, for the leading women’s clubs appeared to be founded solely for the purpose of playing cards, and the cultured doctors and lawyers and ca terers and butlers and government messengers had little concern for poets or playwrights. In supposedly intellectual gatherings I listened to conversations as arid as the sides of the Washington monument” 1 In his 1927 essay entitled, “Our Wonderful Soci ety: Washington,” Langston Hughes expressed his dissatisfaction with Washington D.C.’s “cultured” Negro community. In the above passage, Hughes recognized the literary genius of Washington natives such as Jean Toomer and Rudolph Fisher. Despite their tale nt, Hughes suggested that the nation’s capitol in the 1920s did not possess the necessary social structures that provided the encouragement and support to produce a thriving Black literary community. With the advantage of hindsight, one has to wonder whe ther Hughes’ judgment was correct. Although Hughes and other members of the “New Negro Movement” felt that Harlem was the most conducive location for Black literary prosperity and cultural production, others did not. He in particular, was critical of Black Washingtonian’s lack of focus on literature that appealed to ordinary people. This attitude may have led him to dismiss literature in Black Washington more fully than was warranted. This study explores a site for literary production and the people involv ed in it. It establishes that Georgia Douglas Johnson and her literary salons were more significant than Hughes acknowledged. 1 Langston Hughes, Opportunity Magazine “ Washington: Our Wonderful Society” (August, 1927) pg. 226 2 My thesis recognizes that a “Harlem Renaissance” did exist; however, it aims to demonstrate that Harlem was not the only site fo r Black cultural and literary flowering in the 1920s. This project establishes that both Harlem and Washington were members of the larger New Negro Renaissance, and also recognizes the variables specific to each city’s movement. Class is one of the many va riables that deserve consideration. The acknowledgment of class is central to the exploration of cultural and literary production among African Americans nation -wide and especially within D.C. during the early twentieth century. This study unfortunately wa s not able to carry out an in -depth analysis of class. Instead, the focus of the study is to create a comprehensive yet informative narrative of cultural production via Georgia Douglas Johnson and her Saturday -Night literary salons. Though a heavy discussi on of class is not available, it is essential to consistently keep in mind that Johnson and her counterparts mainly consisted of middle - class Blacks. While generally critical of pretentious “snobs, and the high yellows, and the lovers of fur coats and au tomobiles and fraternity pins and A.B. degrees,” Hughes’ Opportunity essay would have been barren without acknowledging the activity of literary culture in Washington largely promoted by Georgia Douglas Johnson. Hughes’ essay paints Washington as a non -co nducive literary atmosphere and subscribes to a limited perspective of the New Negro Renaissance that scholars such as Sterling Brown have attempted to discourage. My project picks up where Hughes’ left off in the last paragraph of his essay: “Georgia Dou glas Johnson conversed with charm and poured tea 3 on Saturday nights for young writers and artists and intellectuals.” 2 Hughes’s description of Johnson is rather simplified and focuses more on Johnson as a socialite; however, my study is designed to compli cate her role and recognize her as a pivotal force who essentially acted as the link to Washington’s Black literary chain and provided literary salons that served as venues in which many artists gained access to publication opportunities in journals and ma gazines such as the NAACP’s Crisis and the Urban League’s Opportunity . The Urban Leagues’ Opportunity often featured essays like Langston Hughes’ “Our Wonderful Society: Washington” which explored the more conventional and materialistic side of D.C.’s Bl ack middle class. The journal also published opposing perspectives by incorporating essays like Brenda Ray Moryck’s “I, Too, Have Lived in Washington.” Written in response to Hughes’ argument, Moryck informed readers with a more well -rounded perception of Black literary and cultural conduciveness in D.C. While Hughes denounced literary productiveness among Black writers in Washington, Moryck responded to his criticism with the phrase “We seek what we find - we see what we look for. 3” This ancient oriental saying spoke to the preconceived notions and predispositions harbored by individuals like Hughes about Black literary productivity in D.C. Journalists and authors interested in showcasing the lavish standards of living and material achievements of the Bl acks in their community desired to represent Black culture in a way that did not seem inferior to white lifestyles. The depiction of Black 2 Langston Hughes. Opportunity Magazine “ Washington: Our Wonderful Society” (August, 1927) pg. 226 3 Brenda Ray Moryck. Opportunity Magazine “ I Too Have Lived in Washington” (August 1927) pg 228 4 Washingtonians in such an extravagant way was one method of racial uplift. Nonetheless, this particular method was no t favored by Langston Hughes. Rather than showcasing exceptional examples of Black prosperity and romanticizing Black life, Hughes chose to illustrate and express the ordinary voice of the Black masses. In his willingness to stand back and record, with m inimal intervention, aspects of the drama of black religion (and, later, music and dance), Hughes clearly showed that he had begun to see his own learned poetic art, even with his individual talent,