Some Reading

Passing, God's Little Acre, Emily Dickinson

Nella Larsen’s Passing

Nella Larsen (white mother/black father) had a literary career during the 1920s, writing a few short stories (three found in a "complete" collection of her works available, though she had other minor ones) and two short works (perhaps novellas -- together, they amount to the length of a novel) reflecting her own experiences and racial concerns. After a plagiarism accusation, marriage problems, and a failed attempt to write another novel, she went back to her original career as a nurse.

Passing concerns two childhood friends who meet again as an adult at a "white" establishment. The driving force in the book is a biracial woman who passes, after marrying a bigoted white man who isn't aware of her background. The book however is in the voice of her friend, who also sometimes passes, but is married with kids to a black man. Her old friend's reappearance brings out various concerns she has with her marriage and the unhappiness in her life that she tries to keep hidden.

I recently re-read the book (it was on the free rack at the local library, which regularly has resulted in some treasures) and enjoyed it. The narrator (Irene) might be a stand-in for the author herself. She lived in the black community but might have been light enough to “pass” now and again. Like Irene, she would not have done this all of her life. But, it very well could have led to complicated emotions.

A film version written and directed by Rebecca Hall received good reviews.

Erskine Caldwell’s God’s Little Acre

Erskine Caldwell is a white writer who started his half-century writing career around Larsen’s heyday. He wrote a lot about poor whites in the South.

I heard about God's Little Acre (from the early 1930s) in a few ways. It is one of the classic novels subject to censorship as sexually explicit. The reputation is fairly well earned with one unmarried daughter having sex with multiple guys and her sister-in-law lusted after by multiple characters (of both races).

Ensign Pulver also enjoys the book in Mister Roberts:

He's been reading God's Little Acre for over a year now. He's underlined every erotic passage and added exclamation points. And after a certain pornographic climax, he's inserted the words "Well written."

The film version has multiple familiar faces, including Michael Landon (as an albino!) and Jack Lord (not in Hawaii yet). Tina Louise (Ginger on Gilligan's Island) plays Griselda, the object of all that lust.

The book concerns the family of Ty Ty, a widower with five children (three boys) and a mania for digging holes in his land because he thinks there is gold there. He set aside an acre for God but keeps on moving it to make sure no actual profits have to be supplied to the local church. Meanwhile, his son-in-law has been out of work for over a year, on strike from the cotton mill. His desperation to go back to work and control his own life leads to tragedy. As does all that lusting.

The book is a combination of humor and tragedy. It supplies a universal narrator so that we can obtain the views of various characters. The women too. Nonetheless, it is a male-focused book, with the women characters failing the Bechtel test.

I enjoyed the book overall. My version of the book also has hand-drawn photos of the main characters by Milton Glaser. 

I read this young adult biography of Emily Dickinson partially in honor of National Poetry Month. The book covers a lot of bases, including providing lessons on poetry concepts and talking about the efforts to publish her work over the years. It also references the possibility of her same-sex relationships and how her gender-bending poetry continues to provide new insights for modern-day readers.

I will end with a mini-biography of my own, partially inspired by the book.

Emily Dickinson’s Life 

Emily Elizabeth Dickson was born on December 10, 1830. 

Her father was a lawyer and served in multiple state and federal offices. Emily had an older brother (Austin) and a younger sister  (Lavinia or “Vinnie”). 

The Dickinsons lived in Amherst, Massachusetts. Emily Dickinson was an outgoing, lively girl.  She enthusiastically expressed her feelings in letters to family and friends. Letters were a fundamental way to communicate before computers or phones.

Many people today associate Emily Dickinson as a morbid recluse. A closer look at her life shows this is an unfair stereotype. Modern portrayals try to provide a more complex look. She never married. Neither did Jane Austen. Both had complex lives without leaving their family homes.  

Emily had the writing bug. She wrote a ton of poetry. Emily’s poetry was primarily a private affair, including to family and friends. Family members who lived next door included. She did not see much of her poetry published in her lifetime. 

She never married. Dickinson suffered health problems, including panic attacks. She mostly stayed at home after the mid-1860s. She continued to have rich connections through her letters. Thomas Wentworth Higginson, for instance, was a mentor and friend. 

Emily Dickinson died on May 15, 1886.  

Complex Family Drama 

Emily’s father was a strict head of the household. His two daughters never married. Edward Dickinson closely controlled their lives as if they were perennial teenagers. 

Emily Norcross Dickinson was a traditional wife and mother. She had bursts of depression and ill health, especially when her husband was away on business. 

William Austin Dickinson (“Austin”) was the beloved brother. He married Susan Dickinson. Emily remained a close friend. She often asked Susan for advice about her poetry. Emily and Susan’s relationship is one of multiple cases where Dickinson scholars see hints of same-sex attractions.

Austin had an open affair with Mabel Loomis Todd. The affair led to a lot of hard feelings and family drama.  Mabel helped Emily’s sister publish her poetry. 

Emily’s Poetry 

I’m Nobody! Who are you?
Are you – Nobody – too?
Then there’s a pair of us!
Don't tell! they'd advertise – you know!

How dreary – to be – Somebody!
How public – like a Frog –
To tell one’s name – the livelong June –
To an admiring Bog!

Emily Dickinson composed almost 1800 poems. She is a beloved poet. Her work is often colorful, powerful, and quirky. She loved using different-sized dashes and other creative punctuation. Her rhyme schemes did not follow traditional rules.  

Emily’s “death poems” are famous. To be fair, death was a large part of everyday life in the 19th Century, before, after, and during the Civil War. She also loved nature, including having special knowledge about plants and flowers. Love, music, nature, and religion are common themes. 

Dickinson left a ton of manuscripts behind when she died. The people who published her work sometimes tried to “correct” her outside-the-box thinking. They used the first lines to provide nonexistent titles. They tried to decipher her suspect handwriting. I can relate. 

Readers continue to study Emily Dickinson’s letters and poetry to obtain new interpretations. Her flexible usage of gender provides an LGBTQ flavor to her work. Emily’s writings allow us a window into her inner life. They supply new insights each time we read them. 

Religious Faith

Religion has played a significant role in American history from the times of the Puritans and Pilgrims. The theme continued in the 19th Century, including the growth of the Church of Latter Day Saints (the Mormons). Religion influenced reform movements, including anti-slavery efforts.

The Second Great Awakening involved a high degree of individual religious enthusiasm. People did not just worry about personal salvation. They had a desire to improve society.  

Transcendentalism 

Transcendentalism was a philosophy honoring the goodness of all humans and nature. Individuals could instinctively determine moral truths. Certain truths “transcended” all things. The philosophy was popular in the mid-19th Century in New England among liberal Protestants. People like Brandon Alcott (Louisa’s dad), Ralph Aldo Emerson, and Walt Whitman come to mind.

A personal connection to nature, outside of more strict religious institutions, was a significant theme in Dickinson’s poetry. She was an “I’m more spiritual than religious” person.  

Women’s Rights 

Women played a significant role in anti-slavery and other reform movements. Women could appeal to traditional roles to care for society as they care for their families. Likewise, religious and philosophical beliefs held that everyone, men and women, had value to the community.  

Emily Dickinson’s father had an old-fashioned view of the proper roles of his daughters. Nonetheless, they still had the opportunity to obtain an education. 

Women were public speakers and published authors. Fiction provided a means as much as nonfiction to spread ideas and values. Students continue to read Jane Austen, the Bronte sisters, and Dickinson’s poetry.  Her inner life continues to shine through her writings.