Jessie Redmon Fauset
Novelist, poet, short story writer, essayist, and literary critic, Jessie Redmon Fauset was born April 27, 1882, in Camden County, Snow Hill Center Township, NJ. She was raised in Philadelphia, PA. Her father was an African Methodist Episcopal minister She was the youngest of seven children borne by her mother. Fauset came from a large family mired in poverty. Jessie first attended the Philadelphia High School for Girls. Jessie graduated as valedictorian of her class and likely the school's first African-American graduate.
Jessie then went on to read classical languages at Cornell University in upstate New York. She graduated from Cornell in 1905, taking with her a degree and Phi Beta Kappa honors which was an unusual achievement for a Black woman at that time. Fauset later received her master's degree in French from the University of Pennsylvania (1919). Fauset entered teaching at M Street High School (later named Dunbar High School). This was an establishment exclusively for Black students in Washington DC.
In 1919 Fauset left teaching to become the literary editor for The Crisis, a magazine aimed at and run by members of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). For this job, she moved to New York City. There she began hosting salons, and became a lively presence in the neighborhood’s artistic scene. She worked with W.E.B. DuBois, both at the magazine and in his work with the Pan African Movement. Fauset became a member of the NAACP and represented them in the Pan African Congress.
Her apartment in Harlem, where she lived with her sister, became a gathering place for the circle of intellectuals and artists associated with "The Crisis" magazine. Her seven years in this post boosted her reputation as a talented writer and public speaker. She remained an active contributor to the Harlem Renaissance of Black writers and artists, encouraging others to write freely and honestly about Black racial issues. Future writers such as Countee Cullen, Nella Larsen, Georgia Douglas Johnson, Anne Spencer, Arna Bontemps, and Langston Hughes benefitted from being mentored by Jessie Fauset.
She traveled and lectured extensively, including overseas, during her tenure with The Crisis. Her role in discovering, promoting, and giving a platform to Black writers helped to create an authentic "Black voice" in American literature. Fauset published Langston Hughes’s first poem, “The Negro Speaks of Rivers,” in 1921. In his memoir The Big Sea, Hughes wrote, "Jessie Fauset at The Crisis, Charles Spurgeon Johnson at Opportunity, and Alain Locke in Washington were the people who midwifed the so-called New Negro Literature into being."
She also published Gwendolyn Bennett’s début poem, “Nocturne,” in 1923. In keeping with her desire to teach Black children pride in their heritage and to encourage their creativity, she cofounded and edited a monthly children’s magazine, the Brownies’ Book. This magazine featured historical biographies of notable Black people such as Denmark Vesey and Sojourner Truth, articles about Africa, current events, games, riddles, and music. As editor of "The Brownies' Book", she included a few of Langston Hughes early poems.
During her time with The Crisis, she contributed poems and short stories. She translated French writings by Black authors from Europe and Africa, and also contributed a multitude of editorials. She also published accounts of her extensive travels. Notably, Fauset included five essays, including "Dark Algiers the White," detailing her six-month journey with Laura Wheeler Waring to France and Algeria in 1925 and 1926. Jessie Fauset's time with "The Crisis" is considered the most prolific literary period of the magazine's run.
After eight years serving as Literary Editor, Fauset found that conflicts between her and Du Bois were taking their toll. In February 1927, she resigned her position. She was listed as a "Contributing Editor" the next month. When Fauset left The Crisis, she hoped to secure a job as a proofreader for a publishing house. But, despite appealing to Joel Spingarn, the co-founder of Harcourt Brace, she was unsuccessful. After leaving the magazine, Fauset concentrated on writing novels, while supporting herself through teaching.
From 1927 to 1944, she taught French at DeWitt Clinton High School in the Bronx, while continuing to publish novels. Between 1924 and 1933, Fauset published four novels all focusing on professional, middle class Black people and she also went back to teaching during this period, continuing her work until 1944. The first novel, "There is Confusion", was published in 1924 and was created as a response to what Fauset believed to be an inaccurate portrayal of Black life in fiction.
"There is Confusion", was applauded by Alain Locke in the 1924 February issue of the Crisis. The second novel, "Plum Bun", is the story of a woman trying to make people believe she is White. Light-skinned, educated Blacks, some of whom “pass” for White, are always central figures in her novels. They not only represent an existing group of Black people but also best fulfill Fauset's aim to politicize issues of color, class, and gender. Her writing questions racism and sexism, love and loss, risk and sacrifice
The novel is Fauset's most acclaimed piece of work. Her final two novels, "The Chinaberry Tree" and "Comedy, American Style", did not receive as much attention as her first two works. Although Fauset received many positive reviews on her literary work in the 1920s, she also faced negative feedback as well. Her new literary perspective was not received with open arms by everyone because it went against the stereotypical image White Americans made of middle-class African Americans.
In 1929, Jessie Fauset married an insurance broker and World War I veteran, Herbert Harris. They lived with Fauset's sister in Harlem until 1936 and moved to New Jersey in the 1940s. In 1949, she briefly served as a visiting professor at Hampton Institute and taught for a short time at Tuskegee Institute. After Harris died in 1958, Jessie Fauset moved to her half-brother's home in Philadelphia. Fauset once said that she liked to tell a “good story.” She insisted, despite the demands of the day, that Black middle-class society could be interesting and dramatic.
Jessie Redmon Fauset was in her early forties at the height of the Renaissance. She played a dual role of creator of her own body of work and mentor to the younger group of writers. Fauset did not possess the characteristics generally associated with the Renaissance. She was older, reserved in demeanor, meaningfully employed, and her lifestyle was not bohemian in nature. Jessie Redmon Fauset only received a small amount of recognition and honor during her life and career as a writer.
Some believe her modesty and selflessness kept her from becoming a greater figure in literature. Although she did not receive awards for her work, she is now remembered for her success in writing, editing, translating, and teaching. Her work has also been included in various anthologies. Jessie Redmon Fauset was a pioneering author whose ideas were ahead of her time. Her writing questions racism and sexism, love and loss, risk and sacrifice, and is well overdue for celebration and recognition.