Anita Scott Coleman
Encyclopedia
Anita Scott Coleman was an American short story writer, and poet
. She published her earliest work, thirteen short stories, in New Mexico
between 1919 and 1925, the most famous of which, "The Little Grey House," appeared in 1922."
, New Mexico, close to Ft. Bayard, and in Los Angeles. Her writing career spanned nearly thirty years and culminated in Reason for Singing, a collection of poems published by Decker Press
in Prairie City, Illinois, in 1948. Coleman came from a military family and her poetry and fiction often explored issues of concern to veterans such as war, peace, post-service employment, and the definition of patriotism
. Although hailed by the Harlem Renaissance journal The Messenger, as “one of the best of the Negro writers and a winner of many prizes for short stories, ”Coleman’s publications on war and peace have been virtually ignored by critics."
, California in 1926 to join her husband James who moved looking for work two years earlier. There she raised four children, ran a boarding house, and published her most sophisticated stories over an eight-year period between 1926 and 1933. Among her best stories are "The Brat" and "Three Dogs and a Rabbit." She took a seven year hiatus from writing, but in the early forties published at least five more stories and then in 1948 she published a volume of poetry, Reason for Singing. A children's book, The Singing Bells, was published posthumously in 1961. Coleman published stories, essays, and poems which appeared in national magazines such as The Half-Century Magazine, The Competitor, The Crisis, The Messenger, and Opportunity: Journal of Negro Life during the 1920s and 1930s. The last three periodicals were major outlets for Harlem Renaissance writers. Her publications emphasize racial pride and issues of import to black women as well as inveighing against white racism, lynching
, employment discrimination, and segregation
. Her poetry appeared in anthologies such as Beatrice Murphy's Negro Voices (1938) and Ebony Rhythm (1948). Much of Coleman's writing focused on the Southwest
. In "The Little Grey House," Coleman describes the availability of home ownership for southwestern African Americans. The story "El Tisico" suggests Coleman's Afro-Latino
cultural heritage and her knowledge of the Southwest and of Mexico. The lead character in "Bambino Grimke" is a jazz band manager in Los Angeles. Her essay "Arizona and New Mexico-the Land of Esperanza," solicited for the series, "These ‘Colored' United States" by The Messenger magazine, shows her respect for the history and élan of the Southwest. Anita Scott Coleman died in relative obscurity in Los Angeles in 1960."
Black Baby:
Poet
A poet is a person who writes poetry. A poet's work can be literal, meaning that his work is derived from a specific event, or metaphorical, meaning that his work can take on many meanings and forms. Poets have existed since antiquity, in nearly all languages, and have produced works that vary...
. She published her earliest work, thirteen short stories, in New Mexico
New Mexico
New Mexico is a state located in the southwest and western regions of the United States. New Mexico is also usually considered one of the Mountain States. With a population density of 16 per square mile, New Mexico is the sixth-most sparsely inhabited U.S...
between 1919 and 1925, the most famous of which, "The Little Grey House," appeared in 1922."
Early life
"Coleman spent her life in Silver CitySilver City, New Mexico
Silver City is a town in Grant County, New Mexico, in the United States. As of the 2000 census, the town population was 10,545. It is the county seat of Grant County. The city is the home of Western New Mexico University.-History:...
, New Mexico, close to Ft. Bayard, and in Los Angeles. Her writing career spanned nearly thirty years and culminated in Reason for Singing, a collection of poems published by Decker Press
Decker Press
The Press of James A. Decker was a poetry publishing house once located in the tiny hamlet of Prairie City, Illinois. The Decker Press received national attention in the 1940s, when it published work by famous authors like Edgar Lee Masters, August Derleth, Hubert Creekmore, William Everson , David...
in Prairie City, Illinois, in 1948. Coleman came from a military family and her poetry and fiction often explored issues of concern to veterans such as war, peace, post-service employment, and the definition of patriotism
Patriotism
Patriotism is a devotion to one's country, excluding differences caused by the dependencies of the term's meaning upon context, geography and philosophy...
. Although hailed by the Harlem Renaissance journal The Messenger, as “one of the best of the Negro writers and a winner of many prizes for short stories, ”Coleman’s publications on war and peace have been virtually ignored by critics."
Life and career
"Her teaching career ended in 1916 when she married James Harold Coleman, a printer and photographer born in Virginia. She later moved to Los AngelesLos Ángeles
Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants...
, California in 1926 to join her husband James who moved looking for work two years earlier. There she raised four children, ran a boarding house, and published her most sophisticated stories over an eight-year period between 1926 and 1933. Among her best stories are "The Brat" and "Three Dogs and a Rabbit." She took a seven year hiatus from writing, but in the early forties published at least five more stories and then in 1948 she published a volume of poetry, Reason for Singing. A children's book, The Singing Bells, was published posthumously in 1961. Coleman published stories, essays, and poems which appeared in national magazines such as The Half-Century Magazine, The Competitor, The Crisis, The Messenger, and Opportunity: Journal of Negro Life during the 1920s and 1930s. The last three periodicals were major outlets for Harlem Renaissance writers. Her publications emphasize racial pride and issues of import to black women as well as inveighing against white racism, lynching
Lynching
Lynching is an extrajudicial execution carried out by a mob, often by hanging, but also by burning at the stake or shooting, in order to punish an alleged transgressor, or to intimidate, control, or otherwise manipulate a population of people. It is related to other means of social control that...
, employment discrimination, and segregation
Racial segregation
Racial segregation is the separation of humans into racial groups in daily life. It may apply to activities such as eating in a restaurant, drinking from a water fountain, using a public toilet, attending school, going to the movies, or in the rental or purchase of a home...
. Her poetry appeared in anthologies such as Beatrice Murphy's Negro Voices (1938) and Ebony Rhythm (1948). Much of Coleman's writing focused on the Southwest
Southwestern United States
The Southwestern United States is a region defined in different ways by different sources. Broad definitions include nearly a quarter of the United States, including Arizona, California, Colorado, Nevada, New Mexico, Oklahoma, Texas and Utah...
. In "The Little Grey House," Coleman describes the availability of home ownership for southwestern African Americans. The story "El Tisico" suggests Coleman's Afro-Latino
Afro-Latin American
An Afro-Latin American is a Latin American person of at least partial Black African ancestry; the term may also refer to historical or cultural elements in Latin America thought to emanate from this community...
cultural heritage and her knowledge of the Southwest and of Mexico. The lead character in "Bambino Grimke" is a jazz band manager in Los Angeles. Her essay "Arizona and New Mexico-the Land of Esperanza," solicited for the series, "These ‘Colored' United States" by The Messenger magazine, shows her respect for the history and élan of the Southwest. Anita Scott Coleman died in relative obscurity in Los Angeles in 1960."
Works
"Coleman often wrote about things like racial pride, as she did in Black Baby. Her poetry, the majority of which consists of spiritual praises and contrasting images, has appeared in book-length publications; but her strength as a writer is in the short story genre. While a few of her poems explore issues such as the celebration of black identity, almost all of her fiction reveals social and political issues as relationships between blacks and whites in a racist society and the plight of black women in a sexist society. Coleman also shows the atrocities of segregation and the problems of black-white relations in other stories such as “Three Dogs and a Rabbit” and “The Brat.” As these stories demonstrate, throughout Coleman’s fiction frequently what is revealed through subtle symbols and metaphors is more important than what is stated outright. The portrayal of relationships between blacks and whites is blended with that of religion in “White Folk’s Nigger” to demonstrate that sometimes the kindness of blacks is unacknowledged by whites."Black Baby:
- The baby I hold in my arms is a black baby.
- Today I set him in the sun and
- Sunbeams danced on his head.
- The baby I hold in my arms is a black baby.
- I toil, and I cannot always cuddle him.
- I place him on the ground at my feet.
- He presses the warm earth with his hands,
- He lifts the sand and laughs to see
- It flow through his chubby fingers.
- I watch to discern which are his hands,
- Which is the sand. . . .
- Lo . . . the rich loam is black like his hands
- The baby I hold in my arms is a black baby.
- Today the coal-man brought me coal.
- sixteen dollars a ton is the price I pay for coal.-
- Costly fuel . . . though they say:
- - If it is buried deep enough and lies hidden long enough
- 'Twill be no longer coal but diamonds. . . .
- My black baby looks at me.
- His eyes are like coals,
- They shine like diamonds.
Works
- "Unfinished Masterpieces" by Anita Coleman is a culmination of her work as a Harlem Renaissance poet.
- Reason for Singing (1948)
- The Singing Bells (1961).