DuBose Heyward Criticism
DuBose Heyward (1885-1940), an influential American novelist, short story writer, poet, playwright, and librettist, emerged as a significant figure among Southern regionalist writers during the Harlem Renaissance. Heyward is best known for his novel Porgy, which depicted African-American life in a sympathetic and realistic manner, challenging prevailing stereotypes. Set in the cultural milieu of Charleston, South Carolina, his works often explore themes of racial and social conflict, drawing from his experiences and observations as a Charleston native.
Heyward's literary career began in earnest with the publication of poems and short stories during a period of convalescence due to poor health. His collaborative work with Hervey Allen, Carolina Chansons: Legends of the Low Country, garnered national attention in 1922. Porgy, published in 1925, became his most notable success and was later adapted into a celebrated play and opera, Porgy and Bess, with music by George Gershwin. Despite the play and opera's enduring fame, Heyward's broader literary reputation waned as noted by William H. Slavick.
Heyward's fiction is deeply rooted in Charleston's local history and culture, as seen in works like Mamba's Daughters, which also explores the intersection of race and identity in America. His themes often revolve around the vibrant life of African-American communities juxtaposed against the sterile world of white Charleston society, a duality acknowledged in Anthony Harrigan's essay. Peter Ashley and Lost Morning further examine the conflicts between artistic ambition and societal obligations.
Critically, Heyward's portrayal of African-Americans was groundbreaking for a white author of his time. As noted in A Romance of Negro Life, his characterizations in Porgy were particularly praised. However, his narrative style was sometimes seen as conventional, and his plots criticized for sentimentality and melodrama, as suggested by contemporary reviews. Nevertheless, Langston Hughes and Countee Cullen recognized his contributions to depicting African-American life with nuance and empathy, an aspect also highlighted in Frank Durham's analysis of Heyward's early short stories.
Contents
- Principal Works
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Essays
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A Romance of Negro Life
(summary)
In the following review, the critic comments favorably on Porgy, focusing on the quality of Heyward's characterization in the work.
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A review of Porgy
(summary)
In the following review, Sayler assesses the stage version of Porgy, lauding the 'rhythmic' qualities of the production and declaring it superior to the novel on which it was based.
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An Author Divided Against Himself
(summary)
In the following review, which originally appeared in the Nashville Tennessean on February 3, 1929, Davidson discusses what he considers the artistic failings of Heyward's third novel, Mamba's Daughters.
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DuBose Heyward: Memorialist and Realist
(summary)
In the following essay, Harrigan examines the primary themes in Heyward's writing, while touching on elements of style, tone, and characterization.
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DuBose Heyward's 'Lost' Short Stories
(summary)
In the following essay, Durham argues that Heyward's early short stories stylistically and thematically foreshadow his later works.
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Going to School to DuBose Heyward
(summary)
In the following essay, Slavick presents an overview of Heyward's works. DuBose Heyward's brief ascendancy among Southern regionalists in the middle 1920s—as poet, novelist, and playwright—was quickly eclipsed by the emergence of the Fugitive poets, Elizabeth Madox Roberts, Thomas Wolfe, and William Faulkner by the end of the decade. Today he is little more than mentioned in discussion of important figures in the Southern Renascence, but his social realism, which juxtaposes the sterility of the white Charleston aristocracy and the possibility of life in the Negro community, deserves recognition.
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On DuBose Heyward's Peter Ashley
(summary)
In the following essay, Brown examines Peter Ashley, maintaining that the novel, while engaging, fails to explore the significant social and psychological issues it raises.
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A Romance of Negro Life
(summary)
- Further Reading