ANTHOLOGY OF AMERICAN
NEGRO LITERATURE

THERE are a few words that ought to be said in explanation of the nature of this volume. It is an anthology which is representative above everything else. This does not mean that an attempt has not been made in every case to choose work of merit, but that in a number of instances it has been necessary to include material because of its representative value, although it is without fine, literary distinction. Certain nineteenth-century poems, for instance, which have been included are pathetically naïve and sentimental; yet in the development of Negro literature they undoubtedly have their place, and, therefore, have been used. In other words, these stories, poems, essays, and selected chapters from novels, purport simply to represent what the Negro in America has achieved in the art of literary forms.

Certain difficulties inherent in a volume of this kind should be obvious to every reader. In selecting chapters from various novels, there is always the danger that the chapters will seem strange and unconvincing when removed from their context. Naturally, in every case, those chapters have been chosen which stand most definitely apart, and convey meaning and movement within themselves, disengaged though they are from their surrounding substance. In the instance of the spirituals and blues, it is unfortunate that they must appear in this bare form, without notes, but in an anthology of this character the presence of scales would be somewhat incongruous.

Since this is the first anthology of Negro literature which, in terms of historical background as well as diversity of forms, has endeavored to be so inclusive, it is hoped that

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it will be excused from inadequacies that are inevitable in such a work. It should be noted, also, that no selections were made from such recent novels as Banjo, Plum Bun, and Passing, or Walter White’s very significant social study, Rope and Faggot, because they appeared at a time when it was too late to insert anything from them in this anthology.

In order to organize this volume into its present form, it was necessary to have the aid of many writers and publishers, and to thank them all in this quiet, formal way bespeaks little of the depth of my gratitude. In many cases, the authors of selections included in this volume lent their aid generously in the way of advice and suggestion. It would be extremely ungenerous, indeed, not to mention also, my great indebtedness to Mr. W. C. Handy for his wonderfully kind cooperation in aiding me in the matter of securing certain rights to publish the Blues which appear in this collection. For material directly used I am indebted to the following publishers:

The Atlantic Monthly; A. & C. Boni; Century Magazine; Cornhill Publishing Co.; The Carolina Magazine; Duffield and Company; Dodd, Mead & Company; Doubleday, Doran and Company; Horace Liveright, Inc.; Harcourt, Brace and Co.; Harper Brothers; Houghton Mifflin Company; Alfred A. Knopf; McClurg and Company; Macaulay Company; The Modern Quarterly; Opportunity; Vanguard Press; Viking Press; The Lantern.

V.F.C.