Propaganda and Aesthetics: The Literary Politics of African-American Magazines in the Twentieth Century

A detailed work that weaves the histories of different magazines and their various strands of black political thought in this century, proving the claim that black magazines, in providing outlets for black writers and recording their concerns, are therefore historical documents in their own right. The study is replete with factual data, interpetive commentary and appropriately selected quotations. The balance is sustained in explaining the journals’ influence on politics, social moevements and aesthetics. The epilogue ties together such aspects as the interrelationships among personalities, journals and the public.