About.com African-American History
Arna Bontemps: Poet and Archivist
By Femi Lewis, About.com Guide
October 31, 2012
October 31, 2012
In the anthology, The Portable Harlem Renaissance Reader, Arna Bontemps'
biography is short, describing him as "not a prolific poet." I would
agree--considering that Bontemps' poetry never matched the rage of
Claude McKay or the lyricism of Countee Cullen.
However,
I do believe that Bontemps was a prolific writer and a vital archivist
of African-American culture. Although Bontemps published only a few
books during the Harlem Renaissance,
his work as the head librarian of Fisk University is remarkable. In his
twenty-five years as head librarian, Bontemps developed a collection of
African-American literature and culture. Most notably, the Langston
Hughes Collection, housed at Fisk University and the James Weldon
Johnson Collection at Yale University
No comments:
Post a Comment