Margaret Danner (1915–1984) (Margaret Esse Danner, Margaret Danner Cunningham) was an American
poet
A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator ( thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems ( oral or wri ...
,
editor and cultural activist known for her poetic imagery and her celebration of African heritage and cultural forms.
Early life and Chicago years
Born in 1915, Margaret Esse Danner came of age in
Chicago
(''City in a Garden''); I Will
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during the
Great Migration. Sources place her birth in
Pryorsburg, Kentucky, in 1915, although she adamantly claimed Chicago as her birthplace. In eighth grade, she won first prize in a school contest for "The Violin", a poem describing
Stradivarius
A Stradivarius is one of the violins, violas, cellos and other string instruments built by members of the Italian family Stradivari, particularly Antonio Stradivari (Latin: Antonius Stradivarius), during the 17th and 18th centuries. They are c ...
and
Guarnerius
The Guarneri (, , ), often referred to in the Latinized form Guarnerius, is the family name of a group of distinguished luthiers from Cremona in Italy in the 17th and 18th centuries, whose standing is considered comparable to those of the Amati ...
violins. Danner's college education included courses at
Loyola University,
Northwestern University
Northwestern University is a private research university in Evanston, Illinois. Founded in 1851, Northwestern is the oldest chartered university in Illinois and is ranked among the most prestigious academic institutions in the world.
Charte ...
,
YMCA College, and the newly founded
Roosevelt College.
[“Guide to the Margaret Danner Papers 1940–1984”]
University of Chicago Library 2009. Accessed 11 Dec 2011. Perhaps equally significant was her education in the
African-American
African Americans (also referred to as Black Americans and Afro-Americans) are an ethnic group consisting of Americans with partial or total ancestry from sub-Saharan Africa. The term "African American" generally denotes descendants of ensl ...
cultural community of Chicago's
South Side, which in the 1930s and 1940s harbored grassroots cultural institutions and informal circles devoted to politics, education, art and literature and often tied to the Communist Popular Front. Although Danner stayed detached from
Communism
Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a ...
and would eventually oppose all radical politics, she participated in various South Side groups, including Inez Cunningham Stark's poetry workshop at the
South Side Community Art Center
The South Side Community Art Center is a community art center in Chicago that opened in 1940 with support from the Works Progress Administration's Federal Art Project in Illinois. Opened in Bronzeville in an 1893 mansion, it became the first blac ...
, along with
Gwendolyn Brooks and
Margaret Goss Burroughs, her "sometime friends (and rivals)."
[Smethurst, ''Black Arts Movement'', 205.] In 1946, Danner founded Art Associates to gather and promote Chicago's black writers and poets. She counted as friends the poet and critic
Edward Bland
Edward Osmund Bland (July 25, 1926–March 14, 2013) was an American composer and musical director.
Biography
Bland was born on the South Side of Chicago to Althea and Edward Bland. His father was a postal worker but also a self-taught lite ...
, as well as
Hoyt Fuller Hoyt W. Fuller (September 10, 1923 – May 11, 1981) was an American editor, educator, critic, and author during the Black Arts Movement. Fuller created the Organization of Black American Culture (OBAC) in Chicago. In addition, he taught cr ...
, who would head the revived ''
Negro Digest
The ''Negro Digest'', later renamed ''Black World'', was a magazine for the African-American market. Founded in November 1942 by publisher John H. Johnson of Johnson Publishing Company, ''Negro Digest'' was first published locally in Chicago, Illi ...
'' (later ''Black World'') beginning in 1951.
Danner attracted mentors outside the South Side, including the poets Paul Eagle and
Karl Shapiro
Karl Jay Shapiro (November 10, 1913 – May 14, 2000) was an American poet. He was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Poetry in 1945 for his collection ''V-Letter and Other Poems''. He was appointed the fifth Poet Laureate Consultant in Poetry to the ...
.
She also struck up a correspondence with
Langston Hughes that would continue until his death. In 1945, she wrote to Hughes: "My life as a poet looks very bleak to me now.... Only last night I read one of mine and was told it was elusive, ethereal etc. Not much help for my people in that sort of verse." She aimed "to inject some strength" into her work and to train her naturally delicate style to carry forceful messages of African-American pride and
racial equality
Racial equality is a situation in which people of all races and ethnicities are treated in an egalitarian/equal manner. Racial equality occurs when institutions give individuals legal, moral, and political rights. In present-day Western societ ...
, what she called "the social conscious"
Poems such as "Etta Moten's Attic" and "Africa, Drifting Through Me Sings" demonstrate Danner's growing passion for black African arts, cultures and peoples in the 1940s and 1950s. She looked to ''
National Geographic'' magazines, anthropology books and American museums for information and images.
[June Aldridge, "Benin to Beale Street: African Art in the Poetry of Margaret Danner", ''CLA Journal'' 2 (December 31, 1987): 203.] Professing "the power of the African pull to be stronger than Western Civilization in my psyche,"
Danner framed many of her poems around encounters with
African art
African art describes the modern and historical paintings, sculptures, installations, and other visual culture from native or indigenous Ethnic groups of Africa, Africans and the African continent. The definition may also include the art of the ...
objects. She wrote in 1968, "I believe (and have tried for many years to do something positive about this conviction) that the Black should be awakened to his vast beauty."
[Margaret Danner, interview in "Writers Symposium", ''Negro Digest'' 17.3 (January 1968): 19.]
Danner joined the staff of ''
Poetry: A Magazine of Verse'' as an editorial assistant in 1951 and in 1956 became the first African American to serve as a ''Poetry'' assistant editor.
"Far From Africa: Four Poems," which would become one of Danner's most anthologized works, appeared in ''Poetry'' in 1951 and earned her a
John Hay Whitney fellowship for a trip to
Africa
Africa is the world's second-largest and second-most populous continent, after Asia in both cases. At about 30.3 million km2 (11.7 million square miles) including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of Earth's total surface area ...
, which she delayed until 1966. June M. Aldridge notes that Danner "recall
dthe association with Poetry as one of the most rewarding experiences of her life." However, by the late 1950s, according to James Edward Smethurst, "Danner's career as a poet seemed to her stalled... perhaps in part due to her proclivity for intense emotional and intellectual crushes on individuals and near-paranoid fears of plots against her career."
Details of Danner's personal life are scarce. She first married Cordell Strickland, with whom she had one child, Naomi. Danner later remarried to Otto Cunningham.
Detroit years and Boone House
Danner moved to
Detroit
Detroit ( , ; , ) is the largest city in the U.S. state of Michigan. It is also the largest U.S. city on the United States–Canada border, and the seat of government of Wayne County. The City of Detroit had a population of 639,111 at t ...
in 1959 to join that city's vibrant community of black writers and artists. She quickly became a part of the "Detroit Group," which included writers such as Danner,
Dudley Randall
Dudley Randall (January 14, 1914 – August 5, 2000) was an African-American poet and poetry publisher from Detroit, Michigan. He founded a pioneering publishing company called Broadside Press in 1965, which published many leading African-America ...
, Oliver LaGrone,
Woodie King, Jr., James Thompson and
Naomi Long Madgett. In 1962, Danner was named a poet-in-residence at
Wayne State University
Wayne State University (WSU) is a public research university in Detroit, Michigan. It is Michigan's third-largest university. Founded in 1868, Wayne State consists of 13 schools and colleges offering approximately 350 programs to nearly 25,000 ...
. That same year, Danner talked a local Baptist pastor at
King Solomon Baptist Church into lending her an empty parish house to found a cultural center for black writers, artists and musicians. Boone House became the artistic home of the Detroit group from 1962 to 1964 and hosted visitors such as
Robert Hayden
Robert Hayden (August 4, 1913February 25, 1980) was an American poet, essayist, and educator. He served as Consultant in Poetry to the Library of Congress from 1976 to 1978, a role today known as US Poet Laureate. He was the first African-Ameri ...
,
Owen Dodson
Owen Vincent Dodson (November 28, 1914 – June 21, 1983) was an American poet, novelist, and playwright. He was one of the leading African-American poets of his time, associated with the generation of black poets following the Harlem Renaissance ...
, Fuller and Hughes, who provided crucial support and publicity for several Boone House writers.
The Boone House group also benefited from the attention of
Rosey Pool, who included Danner and four other Detroit writers in her 1962 anthology ''Beyond the Blues''.
Madgett remembered Boone House as an "old house
hat
A hat is a head covering which is worn for various reasons, including protection against weather conditions, ceremonial reasons such as university graduation, religious reasons, safety, or as a fashion accessory. Hats which incorporate mecha ...
was beautiful in its details but in poor repair. It lacked central heat, some of the lights did not work, and the toilet lacked a seat, but we were glad to have this meeting place and to huddle together good-naturedly in front of the fireplace in cold weather."
[Boyd 105.] According to Randall, "At the Boone House poetry meetings we didn't criticize each other's work. It wasn't a workshop. Instead, we created a poetry community to inspire each other."
At Boone House, Danner and Randall collaborated on ''Poem Counterpoem'' (1966)—the first book out of Randall's Broadside Press, an important independent black publisher still in operation today.
In 1962 Danner was noted as "a fellow Bahai" in October 1962 in the foreword of her poem ''Through the Varied Patterned Lace'' published in the ''Negro History Bulletin'' while she lived in Detroit. She joined the
Baháʼí Faith
The Baháʼí Faith is a religion founded in the 19th century that teaches the essential worth of all religions and the unity of all people. Established by Baháʼu'lláh in the 19th century, it initially developed in Iran and parts of the ...
, which she shared with Robert Hayden; she was a touring poet sponsored by the Baháʼí Teaching Committee,
and shared stories of her experiences promoting the religion.
Later career
In 1966, Danner took her long-desired trip to Africa through the John Hay Whitney Fellowship to join prominent African-American cultural figures at the First
World Festival of Negro Arts
The World Festival of Black Arts (French: Festival Mondial des Arts Nègres), also known as FESMAN, is a month-long culture and arts festival that takes place in Africa. The festival features poetry, sculpture, painting, music, cinema, theatre, f ...
in
Dakar
Dakar ( ; ; wo, Ndakaaru) (from :wo:daqaar, daqaar ''tamarind''), is the capital city, capital and List of cities in Senegal, largest city of Senegal. The city of Dakar proper has a population of 1,030,594, whereas the population of the Dakar ...
,
Senegal
Senegal,; Wolof: ''Senegaal''; Pulaar: 𞤅𞤫𞤲𞤫𞤺𞤢𞥄𞤤𞤭 (Senegaali); Arabic: السنغال ''As-Sinighal'') officially the Republic of Senegal,; Wolof: ''Réewum Senegaal''; Pulaar : 𞤈𞤫𞤲𞤣𞤢𞥄𞤲𞤣𞤭 ...
. The poem "At Home in Dakar" (also published as "At Home in Africa") recalls this trip.
Danner's enthusiasm for the
Black Arts Movement emerging in the mid-1960s apparently "blew hot and cold." She presented the spiritual orientation of the Baháʼí Faith in some of her work. Still, she participated in conferences and readings with younger poets and generally supporting the new literary generation. As ''Negro Digest'' acknowledged in 1968, Danner's "poetry long had reflected the now-fashionable 'black is beautiful' philosophy." During terms as poet-in-residence at
Virginia Union University
Virginia Union University is a private historically black Baptist university in Richmond, Virginia. It is affiliated with the American Baptist Churches USA.
History
The American Baptist Home Mission Society (ABHMS) founded the school as Rich ...
in
Richmond
Richmond most often refers to:
* Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States
* Richmond, London, a part of London
* Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England
* Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada
* Richmond, California, ...
and
LeMoyne-Owen College in
Memphis
Memphis most commonly refers to:
* Memphis, Egypt, a former capital of ancient Egypt
* Memphis, Tennessee, a major American city
Memphis may also refer to:
Places United States
* Memphis, Alabama
* Memphis, Florida
* Memphis, Indiana
* Memp ...
, both historically black institutions, Danner continued her lifelong dedication to young people and edited two anthologies of students' verse.
In the late 1960s and 1970s, Danner published her third and fourth volumes of poetry, ''Iron Lace'' (1968) and ''The Down of a Thistle: Selected Poems, Prose Poems, and Songs'' (1976). Her work continued to draw upon African (as well as Western) art, flora and fauna, relationships with her fellow poets and scenes from urban life. Several of her poems address or discuss her grandson, Sterling Washington, Jr., whom she calls "Muffin," and who seems to represent an African-American future. Danner continued to be visible promoting her religion.
Margaret Esse Danner died on January 1, 1984, in Chicago. Her papers are held by the
University of Chicago
The University of Chicago (UChicago, Chicago, U of C, or UChi) is a private university, private research university in Chicago, Illinois. Its main campus is located in Chicago's Hyde Park, Chicago, Hyde Park neighborhood. The University of Chic ...
library.
Reception
"A word conjuror and artisan, she provides her reader with well-crafted 'word sketches' that are impressionistic and expressionistic. Her poetry, the result of a dialectic between voices of her past, present, and future, reveals her role and relation to a tradition of Western poetics; her artistic invention of poetry as a visual impression combines graphic social criticism and visual creation, that which is both didactic and mimetic, into an exciting synthesis of a new aesthetic; her verse makes her reader a viewer of art (synesthetic imagery) as well." Erlene Stetson
"One can perceive between the two covers of this one crafted volume, in its full imaginative scope, the web of intricate and brilliant imagery her pen has spun forth in the journey of a sensitive, independent and compassionate spirit across these turbulent times in this uncertain place." Samuel A. Allen
[Samuel A. Allen, introduction to ''The Down of a Thistle'' (Waukesha: Country Beautiful, 1976).]
Bibliography
Poetry collections
* ''Impressions of African Art Forms'', 1960
* ''To Flower'', 1963
* ''Poem Counterpoem'', with Dudley Randall, 1966
* ''Not Light, Nor Bright, Nor Feathery'', 1968
* ''Iron Lace'', 1968
* ''The Down of a Thistle: Selected Poems, Prose Poems, and Songs'', 1976
Volumes edited
* ''Brass Horses'', 1968
* ''Regroup'', 1968
In anthologies (selected)
* Rosey E. Pool (ed.), ''Beyond the Blues: New Poems by American Negroes''. Lympne, Kent, UK: Hand and Flower Press, 1962.
* Arna Bontemps (ed.), ''American Negro Poetry''. Revised Edition. New York: Hill and Wang, 1974.
* King, Woodie, ''The Forerunners: Black Poets in America''. Washington: Howard University Press, 1975.
* Erlene Stetson (ed.), ''Black Sister: Poetry by Black American Women, 1746–1980''. Bloomington: Indiana University Press, 1981.
Recordings
* ''Writers of the Revolution'', with Langston Hughes (Black Forum; alternately ''Poets of the Revolution'',
Motown Records)
References
External links
"Margaret Danner + music, soul, poetry", Garlic & Greens, October 15, 2012.
{{DEFAULTSORT:Danner, Margaret
African-American poets
1915 births
1984 deaths
Writers from Chicago
Loyola University Chicago alumni
Northwestern University alumni
Roosevelt University alumni
American women poets
20th-century American poets
20th-century American women writers
Converts to the Bahá'í Faith
20th-century Bahá'ís
Kentucky women writers