Dorothy West
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For other people named Dorothy West, see Dorothy West (disambiguation).
Dorothy West (June 2, 1907 - August 16, 1998) was a novelist and short story writer who was part of the Harlem Renaissance. She is best known for her novel The Living Is Easy, about the life of an upper-class black family.
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[edit] Harlem Renaissance
Shortly before winning the award, West moved to Harlem with her cousin, the poet Helene Johnson. There West met other writers of the Harlem Renaissance, including Langston Hughes, Countee Cullen, and the novelist Wallace Thurman. Hughes gave West the nickname of "The Kid", by which she was known during her time in Harlem.
West's principal contribution to the Harlem Renaissance was to publish the magazine Challenge, which she founded in 1934 with $40. She also published the magazine's successor, New Challenge. These magazines were among the first to publish literature featuring realistic portrayals of African Americans. Among the works published were Richard Wright's groundbreaking essay "Blueprint for Negro Writing," together with writings by Margaret Walker and Ralph Ellison.
[edit] West's Literary Works
After both magazines folded because of financial reasons, West worked for the Works Progress Administration's Federal Writers' Project until the mid-1940s. During this time she wrote a number of short stories for the New York Daily News. She then moved to Oak Bluffs on Martha's Vineyard, where she wrote her first novel, The Living Is Easy. Published in 1948, her novel was well received critically but did not sell many copies.
In the four decades after publishing her novel, West worked as a journalist, primarily writing for a small newspaper on Martha's Vineyard. In 1982 a feminist press brought The Living Is Easy back into print, giving new attention to West and her role in the Harlem Renaissance. As a result of this attention, West wrote a new novel at age 85, titled The Wedding. Jacqueline Onassis, a neighbor of West on Martha's Vineyard, encouraged her to complete The Wedding. Published in 1995, the novel was a best-seller and resulting in the publication of a collection of West's short stories and reminiscences called The Richer, the Poorer. Oprah Winfrey also turned The Wedding into a two-part television miniseries.
West died on August 16, 1998, at the age of 91. At her death, she was the last surviving member of the Harlem Renaissance.
[edit] See also
[edit] Reference
Shockley, Ann Allen, Afro-American Women Writers 1746-1933: An Anthology and Critical Guide, New Haven, Connecticut: Meridian Books, 1989. ISBN 0-452-00981-2
[edit] External links
- Biography and information about West from the University of Minnesota's VG: Voices from the Gaps (Women Artists and Writers of Color, An International Website)
