McNair Research Journal - University of St. Thomas

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Humanities and Social Sciences whites. Lula asks Clay: “And who did you think you were? Who do you think you are now?” Lula even goes so far as to say to Clay: “I bet you never thought you were a black nigger. [Mock serious, the she howls with laughter. CLAY is stunned but after initial reaction, he quickly tries to appreciate the humor. LULA almost shrieks.]” Clay believes that Lula is joking so he agrees to her last comment; Lula replies to Clay’s affirmation of her comment by telling him that he “should be on television” (1952). This particular exchange accuses the black integrationists of forgetting who they are. They have forgotten who they were and where they have came from; they have forgotten about slavery and the horrific mistreatments of blacks. They have forgotten that the men who beat their fathers are the same men who they are holding up on pedestals and imitating. Baraka is implying that the integrationists have forgotten that they are black; in a sense they have forgotten themselves. He is alleging that blacks have forgotten past and present in order to strive for a whiter future. What Baraka accuses black integrationists of is so severe that without the veil of satire it is hard to believe that Dutchman would have garnered the same praise if it were not a satirical piece. If Baraka had plainly said that black integrationists were forgetting who they were and where they came from, most people would disregard Dutchman. However, by adding satire into Dutchman, Baraka has made his critique humorous. It is the entertainment that gets people to read it, and as they read it they are exposed to the message that Baraka wants to get out. The humor that is an aspect of satire is one reason that Dutchman is such an effective and provocative piece. Ishmael Reed satirizes the ideological mindset that Western culture is superior to other cultures in his novel Mumbo Jumbo. Reed does this by providing an alternate historical perspective that denies the preeminence of Western culture. This alternate perspective given by Reed is used as an endeavor to showcase the belief of Reed that most of Western culture and ideas are not original and in fact have been stolen from others. At the outset of the novel, an outbreak called Jes’ Grew starts to spread in America during the 1920s. When people are infected by the Jes’ Grew outbreak, they break out in dance. As Jes’ Grew spreads around the country, those in power seek for a way to stop it. Papa LaBas, seeks to find the text of Jes’ Grew in order to better understand the epidemic. Throughout Mumbo Jumbo, Reed uses historical events (e.g., the death of Warren G. Harding and America’s occupation of Haiti during the early 1900’s) as well as embellishments (e.g., Hinckle Von Vampton being immortal) to make the reader question the belief of pure truths, and therefore question the accuracy of Westernized history (Hogue 182). He also includes characters that are based on historical people to make Mumbo Jumbo a more credible historical text. One such character is Hinckle Von Vampton, who represents Carl Van Vechten, a patron of the Harlem Reniassance and controversial author of Nigger Heaven (Helbing 39). Von Vampton is a member of the Knights Templar, who is in search for a Talking Android in Von Vampton’s attempt to stop the plague (Reed 69). Reed also incorporates real characters into the story such as President Warren G. Harding and James Weldon Johnson. President Harding is brought into Mumbo Jumbo in order for Reed to bring to light rumors that President Harding was black. To further Reed’s claim that Western culture is stolen culture, Reed gives a timeline of events through the character of PaPa LaBas (Reed 160). The use of satire within Mumbo Jumbo is a prime example of how satire, and its use of humor, provides security for the author from those in power; especially seeing as how Reed in Mumbo Jumbo attacks the American government as well as those who hold power within America. Out of the three African American writers whose work I have researched, Percival Everett, by far, is the writer on whom I have found the least amount of research. Everett is known for placing blacks into unconventional locations, including Montana and ranches. He is also known for having blacks act in non-traditional ways, such as fly fishermen. Because of Everett’s placements of blacks, a continual dialogue occurs on what “black” novels should look like. Everett scrutinizes the habits of mainstream publishers, critics, and readers in his book Erasure, in which the story of Thelonious ‘Monk’ Elison, a disgruntled African American writer, is chronicled. Throughout the novel Reginald Evans The Importance of Satire Monk, as he is referred to in the book, faces constant pressure by publishers, family, and colleagues to write a “black” novel. The interjection of black characters who also call for Monk to write “black” novels, displays the idea of seeing with “‘American’ eyes,” which means seeing with eyes that have been encoded with American ideas and are content with “safe” perceptions about what is acceptable (Everett 10). Therefore, Erasure not only criticizes the publishing habits of mainstream publishers, but also the reading habits of blacks who fall into the trap of stereotyping black works as well. In Bernard Bell’s review of Erasure, Bell states that Everett directs his satire toward “African American double-consciousness…and popular culture in the United States” (475). Throughout the novel, Monk refuses to write the “black” novel and is sickened by the new novel written by author Juanita Mae Jenkins called We’s Lives In Da Ghetto. Eventually, Monk grows tired of the attention and praise that the overtly stereotypical We’s Lives In Da Ghetto is receiving; Monk is also in need of money. Therefore he decides to write his own book titled My Pafology, later renamed Fuck, to poke fun at the idea that black authors writing stereotypical “black” novels were the only authors receiving acclaim. In writing Fuck, Monk dons a pseudonym, Stagg R. Leigh, in order to protect his true identity. However, Monk soon finds out that publishers and critics view the book he has written to be “so honest, so raw, so down-and-dirty-gritty, so real,” instead of seeing it as making fun of the “black” novel (289). Even the famous, black female talk-show host, Kenya Dunston, praises Fuck for what she feels to be “gripping and truly realistic” (277). All the acclaim and attention that Stagg R. Leigh and Fuck receive for what critics presume to be the true to life nature of the book is the exact practice that Everett is condemning. He is suggesting that many publishers, critics, and readers, whether white or black, are guilty of pigeonholing African American authors to write about stereotypical black people, namely those who live in urban areas. The publishers, critics, and readers feel that works that fit into their stereotypical definition of blackness are the only true black novels. Everett then goes on in his article “Signing to The Blind” to say that African American authors have to face a readership that is highly influenced by America’s preconceived ideas of a black novel. Everett expresses his belief that African American authors need a readership that does not see with “American eyes” in order for the authors to freely write (10). These sources are substantiated by Anthony Stewart’s interview with Everett in which Everett reveals some of his ideas behind the satire in Erasure. Everett uses satire to show that African American authors are faced with publishers and readers who wish to constrain the authors to write only a certain kind of black novel. Without the veil of satire, it seems ridiculous to think that Everett would have been able to get Erasure published since it is a stark critique of publishers. Satire allows Everett to freely condemn publishers and readers under the guise of humor. It is important to note that satire does not blind the reader from the criticism; rather it entertains the readers so that they continue to read regardless of the criticism. Amiri Baraka, Ishmael Reed, and Percival Everett all use satire for different reasons in different ways; however, all three have the common thread of using satire to highlight black integrationists, Western superiority, and America’s biased views, respectfully. What satire allows these authors is a veil of safety; it permits the authors to attack racist mindsets in America. Satire gives the authors a way to flat out condemn the prevailing power while the authors can supply the readers with laughter; laughter allows for the criticism of the authors to remain hidden in plain sight. Although these three authors more than likely have no fear when dealing with those in power, satire affords them protection to speak out. Satire helps to give those who are not in power a means to safely critique society without fear of retaliation from those in power. Given the status of African Americans in America, it is understandable that contemporary African American writers use and are attracted to satire because it affords them the opportunity to critique the status quo and those who hold power (i.e., publishers) with a relative sense of safety. 10 University of St. Thomas McNair Research Journal
Humanities and Social Sciences Works Cited Reginald Evans The Importance of Satire Baraka, Amiri. “Dutchman.” The Norton Anthology of African American Literature. Ed. Henry Louis Gates Jr. and Nellie Y. McKay. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, 2004. Bell, Bernard W. “Erasure (Book).” African American Review 37.2/3, Amri Baraka Issue (Summer - Autumn, 2003): p474-477. JSTOR. O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library, St. Paul, MN. 4 June 2008 . Dickson-Carr, Darryl. “Sacredly Profane: Toward a Theory of African American Literary Satire.” African American Satire: The Sacredly Profane Novel. Columbia, MO: University of Missouri Press, 2001. 14-38. Dickson-Carr, Darryl. “Taking the Offensive: The Quest for New Politics in Contemporary Black Satire.” Canadian Review of American Studies 29.3 (Oct. 1999): 1. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. O'Shaughnessy-Frey Library, St. Paul, MN. 16 June 2008 . Davidson, Jiton Sharmayne. “Sometimes funny, but most times deadly serious: Amiri Baraka as political satirist.” African American Review. 37.2-3 (Summer-Fall 2003): p399. Literature Resource Center. Gale. University of St. Thomas Libraries. 13 June 2008 . Everett, Percival. Erasure. New York: Faber and Faber, 2001. Everett, Percival. “Signing to The Blind.” Callaloo 14.1 (Winter, 1991): p9-11. JSTOR. O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library, St. Paul, MN. 4 June 2008 . Fox, Robert Elliot. “African American Satire (Book).” African American Review 36.2 (Summer2002 2002): 329. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library, St. Paul, MN. 16 June 2008 . Mark Helbling. “Carl Van Vechten and the Harlem Renaissance”. Negro American Literature Forum, Vol. 10, No. 2 (Summer, 1976), pp. 39-47. St. Louis University. 17 November 2008 Hogue, Lawrence W. “Postmodernism, Traditional Cultural Forms, and the African American Narrative: Major’s “Reflex”, Morrison’s “Jazz”, and Reed’s “Mumbo Jumbo””. NOVEL: A Forum on Fiction, Vol. 35, No. 2/3, Contemporary African American Fiction and the Politics of Postmodernism (Spring - Summer, 2002), pp. 169-192. Novel Corp., Brown University. 14 September 2008. . Jordan, Jennifer. “The New Literary Blackface.” Black Issues Book Review 4.2 (Mar. 2002): 26-28. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library, St. Paul, MN. 4 June 2008 . Lacey, Henry C. “Baraka, Amiri.” The Concise Oxford Companion to African American Literature. Ed. William L. Andrews. Ed. Frances SmithFoster. Ed. TrudierHarris. Oxford African American Studies Center. 15 September 2008 . Piersen, William D. “Puttin’ down Ole Massa: African Satire in the New World.” Research in African Literatures 7.2 (Autumn, 1976): p166-180. JSTOR. O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library, St. Paul, MN. 4 June 2008 . Quintero, Ruben. “Introduction: Understanding Satire.” A Companion to Satire: Ancient and Modern. Ed. Ruben Quintero. Blackwell Publishing, 2007. Blackwell Reference Online. 25 June 2008. . Reed, Ishmael. Mumbo Jumbo. New York: Scribner Paperback Fiction, 1972. “satire.” Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary. 2008. Merriam-Webster Online. 6 June 2008. . Stewart, Anthony. “Uncategorizable Is Still a Category: An Interview with Percival Everett.” Canadian Review of American Studies 37.3 (Oct. 2007): 293-324. Academic Search Premier. EBSCO. O’Shaughnessy-Frey Library, St. Paul, MN. 16 June 2008 . University of St. Thomas McNair Research Journal 11
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