Alaine Locke's analysis of the New Negro is localized in Harlem and argues the explosion of Negro art and expression as the revolutionary indicator of the New Negro. He argues that the new shift into the self-expression of the Negro, about his internal world, signals a change in the Negro spirit that is proud, confident, and defiant. Locke suggests that "the elements of truest social portraiture...in the artistic self-expression of the Negro to-day [is] a new figure on the national canvas and a new force in the foreground of affairs"(Locke, xxv). Therefore, Locke defines the New Negro as the artist who exposes the internal reality of the their own mind and spirit, and take back a narrative about themselves that has so long been defined by the language and paradigms of white society.
While Locke defines the New Negro as the ground-breaking artists of Harlem, Baldwin defines the New Negro as the rising Black Entrepreneurs in Chicago, who are challenging the hegemonic structures of white society through the economic arena. Baldwin explores the success of Madam C.J. Walker, who established herself as a prominent staple in the beauty market. Madam C.J. Walker 'promoted herself ' from the cotton fields to the typically white, and typically male world of business. While she didn't experience the universal support of black leadership at the time, and the "old settlers" of Chicago, she established herself as a lucrative business woman making it on her own accord. Madam C.J Walker fundamentally shifted the paradigms of beauty culture and ignited the "emergence of black beauty not just as an enterprise but also as a vibrant intellectual discourse about about alternative expressions of New Negro womanhood"(Baldwin, 56). Baldwin describes Madam C.J. Walker and others who broke through the economic restraints of the "invisible hand" and single-handedly creating a new black middle class.
Although Locke and Baldwin differ on their specific definitions of the New Negro, both look to a population that is disrupting the racial hierarchy and hegemonic structures through their own means. This blatant assertion of agency in both the economic and artistic realms reveals a New Negro set on defining his reality beyond the narratives of white society. No longer does the "Negro" passively, adhere to the abuses and oppression of White society, rather he (she) finds new ways to challenge, destabilize, and disrupt the structures of white society that have inhibited the black community for too long.
I like how you addressed confidence, defiance and pride in relation to the artistic side of the New Negro. All of these aspects are definitely crucial in regards to the development of the New Negro. Also, your comparison of the artist to the entrepreneur Madam C.J. Walker proves that although Locke and Baldwin have differing overall opinions, they agree that the Negro should no longer let succumb to the suppression of White society. Well said. Great job.
ReplyDeleteI agree that the New Negro deals with “defining a world set beyond narratives of white society.” The narratives that both Baldwin and Locke reveal are crucial for analyzing the different dynamics of the New Negro. Because Baldwin looked at entrepreneurs, athletes, and others from the Black working-class rather than artists it gave a fuller view of who can embody the New Negro. Also, I liked how you tied in the concept of the “invisible hand” with the story of Madame C.J. Walker. She definitely broke through a lot of constraints that were both visible and invisible.
ReplyDeleteHi Becca, can you see the post I made on your blog?? It isn't showing anymore.
ReplyDeleteOkay well I am not sure where my post went, so I am going to post it again. (or at least try).
ReplyDeleteI mentioned that I found your comment, "This blatant assertion of agency in both the economic and artistic realms reveals a New Negro set on defining his reality beyond the narratives of white society" specifically insightful. To me, much more important than determining the categories and classifications with regards to what constitutes a "New Negro," is the fact that for the first time, African Americans were able to transform the meaning of being Black in a white hegemonic society. For the first time, Black people were able to create the terms that they lived their lives and expressed their identity, emotions, ideas, and beliefs (of course in still a very limited way, due to the blatant segregation still present in U.S. society). Perhaps more significant than what specific professions qualified you as a New Negro, was the fact that Black people, through this newfound racial pride and identity that de-colonized the mind, the New Negro could be anything they desired it to be. It could be an artist, a writer, a poet, a singer, an entertainer, a boxer, a salesman or a grocer. What mattered is that they transformed what it meant to be suppressed, oppressed, and Black in American society, and they completely inverted a socially constructed racialized hierarchy that had dictated their lives for hundreds of years. It was a movement to reclaim dignity, which is somewhat glossed over when one attempts to deconstruct the meaning by deciding who gets to be referred to as a New Negro, and who doesn't.