Fifty Years and Other Poems (1917) is a collection of poems by
James Weldon Johnson. Although less popular than his book God's
Trombones: Seven Negro Sermons in Verse (1927), Johnson's second
poetry collection showcases his talents as a rising star of African
American literature. Including some poems that would be featured in
The Book of American Negro Poetry (1922), an influential anthology
compiled and edited by the poet himself, Fifty Years and Other
Poems remains essential to Johnson's legacy as a leading figure of
the Harlem Renaissance. "Fifty Years" opens the collection with an
ode to emancipation, a starting point from which millions of men,
women, and children were given the opportunity, however fragile it
was, to pursue better lives. Rather than give thanks for freedom
granted, however, Johnson implores his fellow Black Americans to
remain proud, assured that liberty is their hard-earned right:
"This land is ours by right of birth, / This land is ours by right
of toil; / We helped to turn its virgin earth, / Our sweat is in
its fruitful soil." Hopeful and resilient, Johnson reflects on his
own place in this history of struggle, paying particular heed to
his status as a poet, his ability to sing despite centuries of
violent oppression. In his poem "O Black and Unknown Bards," he
asks "O black and unknown bards of long ago, / How came your lips
to touch the sacred fire?" Recognizing the need for a
reconciliation between the long tradition of black culture and the
overwhelming erasure of his own contemporary artists, Johnson
highlights the efforts of those poets such as himself, who "Within
[their] dark-kept soul[s], burst into song." >With a beautifully
designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this edition
of James Weldon Johnson's Fifty Years and Other Poems is a classic
of African American literature reimagined for modern readers.
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