Newspaper Page Text
February, 1954
THE MAROON TIGER
Page 3
LITERARY NOOK
by RICHARD JOHNS
THE ARTIST AND
SOCIETY
The ordinary man of today
very often recognizes or discovers
himself in the artist of today,
for the latter usually expresses
the feelings of the present or that
of the recent past. Though this
brings a certain satisfaction to the
layman, only those artists who
point out new ways, who literal
ly force their ideas on a rather 1
complacent public actually a-
chieve something which can be
considered permanent. However,
worthwhile the reflection of man’s
surroundings may be demon
strated by a writer, painter or
poet, it is only those artists who
see the future and are courageous
enough to get their messages
across to the public who may
have any definite effect.
Very often people tend to sepa
rate creative work into compart
ments, usually putting more em
phasis on the aesthetic magic of
a composition as the only signi
ficant standard of judgment and
failing to see that difficulty and
incomprehensive beauty are not
enough, whatever quality appears
in poetry to distinguish it from
verse or mere prose cannot be
considered as being more impor
tant aspects of human life. The
social outlook of a creative writer,
is subordinated to his aesthetic
power. However, intrusions of all
sorts of undesirable social ideas
may unconsciously creep into the
writer’s work.
It may well be argued that it
is perfectly legitimate for a writer
to create work of a high order
which can be judged solely on
its intrinsic value, quite apart
from its meaning. However, such
an artist will remain in a cyclic
plane and never really achieve
anything definite. Action which
is so often suppressed can never
be released and its potentiality
can never be developed to emerge
to enrich life.
When one looks at the whole
aspsect of the writer and society
certain trends become clear. Thus
defeatism in a creative writer is
destructive because his work must
reflect a vitality for which there
is no substitute. A feeling of
fatalism or satire cannot foster
imaginative growth.
Only the search for the better
ment of society in the end will
be effective and in our time the
urgency of this is great. The
mere dazzling effect of creative
work may attract our contem
porary public, but may fail hope
lessly to interest posterity.
It must not be taken here into
(Continued On Page Six)
Marriage Institute To
Hold 19th Meeting
Here During March
“Successful Marriage and Fami
ly Living” will be the theme for
the 19th annual Marriage Insti
tute sponsored by the Morehouse
College Sociology Department
Wednesday, Thursday and Friday,
March 10, 11 and 12.
Featured as guest consultants
for the institution will be Dr.
Charles R. Lawrence, instructor
of sociology at Brooklyn College,
Brooklyn, N. Y., and his wife,
Mrs. Miriam Herandez, director of
the Hannah Center, New York
City. He received his doctorate
degree at the latter institution
while Mrs. Herandez is a pedia
trician.
Mr. Walter Chivers and Mrs.
Carrie G. Chivers are director and
co-director, respectively, of the
Annual Marriage Institute.
REFLECTIONS
YOUTH IN TODAY'S
WORLD
by LILLIE McKINNEY
The turbulent emotions, baf
fling behavior and insistant
searching of human beings do
not constitute a new phenomenon.
On the contrary, they are old
in human experience and human
nature itself. But their expres
sion and intensity are influenced
by the times in which we are
growing up.
Our job in these years is to
make the last long pull toward
Becoming independent, useful,
productive adults, each according
to his own capacity. We must
grow away—or break away from
the family apronstring, end our
schooling years and begin our
working years, learn to relate
to the opposite sex and grow
into mature relationships of all
kinds. We must establish a self
that can live with itself, with
other people, with the times;
that can go as far as possible
toward becoming a reliable mate,
an adequate parent, an accept
able social being, a responsible
citizen. The mysterious force
of growth within the human be
ing undertakes it.
This period of change and
growth is itself a time of conflict,
both within ourselves and the
world around us. This is as it
should be—a law of human de
velopment that the best pre
paration for tomorrow is to live
fully today. Infanthood, child
hood, ~ adolescence—each period
of development must be experi
enced to its fullest as a prere
quisite for handling the next
stage successfully, and finally for
realizing a full, nature adult-
problem of adjusting to the
world in which he finds himself.
Today’s youth must learn how to
live in a time as confused, chaotic
and conflicting as any other in
human history. Daily we are
torn between the need for change,
doubt about the way it can or
should come about, and its effect
in regard to millions of human be
ings. Our precious heritage of
belief in the worth of human per
sonality and the dignity of the
individual, which we have ma
tured and cultivated, is at odds
with the technological civiliza
tion we have created with its
inevitable valves of possessions,
power, and aggressions. Believ
ing one thing, in order to sur
vive, we feel that we are forced
to behave another way. We find
it difficult, too, to affirm this be
lief, to give it scope and opportu
nity for growth in an industrial
civilization such as ours.
The result of search for a solu
tion to conflict within our own
culture and world community
will inevitably be a change of
codes, creeds, and beliefs by
which our predecessors have
lived. The fact of life pulls the
human need to recognize un
changing truths amidst the ap
parent chaos of our time means
that confusion, anxiety and even
loss of morale are the common
lot of the great potentialities and
resilience of human nature. The
striving to make of exsistence a
way of life with purpose and
goals, has continually evolved and
changed, chiefly, because new
knowledge and understanding
suggests new and more mean
ingful patterns of life. This is
the challenge of the world to to
day’s youth and to all youth who
come after.
VISIT
BATE'S
MODERNISTIC
BARBER SHOP
THE BOOK NOOK
By G. T. Johnson
A GOOD MAN JEFFERSON
YOUNG, Bobbs-Merrills Co. —
239 p. p.
This wonderfully delightful no
vel concerns itself with the life
of a Mississippi Negro who aspires
to possess a respectable house,
simply by painting his shanty
white. No Negro farmer in this
community had ever dared to
think of such a thing—ever!
Consequently the whole white
community was aroused—be
cause this was a threat to their
dignity and sense of superiority.
The reader can immediately ex
pect violence to surround this
simple tale of virtue. The
principal character, Prince Al
bert (Albert Clayton), is every
thing that the whites expect from
a Negro farmer—hardworking,
sober, loyal, and faithful; but to
paint his house white is some
thing else!
Unlike most books by whites
about Negroes, Mr. Young’s'char
acters are simple, typical Ameri
can people. They are not driven
by sex or by characteristics that
are associated with primitive peo
ple. They are not Erskine Cald
well characters, though the dia
lect is perfectly accurate. Rather,
the characters are people con
cerned with making an honest,
good living; growing good crops;
rearing fine, decent children; and
striving to be clean from within.
This short novel is quite sym
bolic in its treatment. It shows
through its characters—Prince
Albert, Louella Clayton (Albert’s
wife), Mr. Tittle, and Mr. Mathis,
the Negro’s struggle for dignity
in the Deep South.
* * *
THE BRIDGES AT TOKO-RI.
James A. Michener. Random
House. 160 pp.
A novel that sounds more like
a report coming from the Korean
“Conflict,” the author weaves a
beautiful story around one prin
cipal character, Harry Brubaker,
a^young lawyer from the “Cen-
tennal State.” Brubaker is one
of the jet pilots whose base is
on a carrier in the waters off
Korea.
Though the author is attend
ing to show a type of “individual
heroism” (as the book jacket
claims), there is more emphasis
on other parts of the book. For
example, the descriptions of the
physical activity involved in
launching and landing a jet bom
ber, the actual combat encounter
ed in bombing their targets—the
bridges that carry vital materials
to the enemies, the rescues made
by the helicopter when pilots
were downed in the icy waters,
and the precautions that must be
taken when a number of jets must
land in an allotted time. All of
these very interesting and intri-
gueing details occupy a large par-
tion of the book. But the char
acters receive very little attention
when compared with the other
action in the book.
Though one of the best books
to come from the Korean “Con
flict.” and one of the best-sellers
for ’53, Mr. Michener’s Tales of
the South Pacific still remains
his masterpiece.
UNIVERSITY
FLOWER SHOP
Miss Bertha Mosely, prop.
“FLOWERS FOR ALL
OCCASIONS”'
138 CHESTNUT ST., S. W.
LAmar 9629
WAlnut 9391
’ v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v v ♦♦♦ v v v v v *•* v*** *!♦ ♦!« «J» «j* »j» *j*»j»*j
PERSONALITY PORTRAIT
by GEORGE CLARK
WILBERT WASHINGTON
Washington, a twenty-one year
old senior, is a pride and product
of Beaufort, South Carolina,
from which he hails.
Washington’s record at More
house is commendable. It is one
which is worthy of imitation. His
3.4 average rockets him to fifth
place in the heated race among
pace setters for top academic
honors. His position as president
of the Senior Class serves as an
other salient signal Which marks
his well-liked personality.
Besides maintaining a coveted
scholastic average, r ' W ashington
takes time to participate in nume
rous extra-curricular activities.
He serves as president of the De
bating Society—incidentally, they
walked away with second honors
at the Southeastern Debate Tour
nament in 1953. In addition, he
is basileus of the Omega Psi Phi
fraternity, a member of the Uni
versity Players and the W. E. R.
D. radio theatre.
Washington is a chemistry
major and plans to enter Me-
h-arry School of Medicine next
September.
When not reading, which is his
principal hobby, he likes to meet
interesting people. He greets you
with a warm-hearted, gentle
smile which could be called his
trademark.
When asked how he felt about
his school, he hesitated momen
tarily, staring fixedly out of the
window through which winter’s
sun streamed a chilly shaft of
light. Then, regaining his pos
ture, he replied, “I am proud to
be a student at Morehouse. I
am proud because it stands high
among the councils of colleges.
“I would like to see the position
of our football elevated. I think
it would score a moral victory for
the school.” “However,” he em
phasized, “I would not want to
see scholarship sacrificed for a
good team.” Morehouse has more
room for men of his ability.
Paschal
Brothers
“We Specialize in
Fried Chicken and
Sea Food”
857 HUNTER ST., N. W.
AMhersl 7811
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