The Great Gatsby

Harlem Renaissance
Paul Laurence Dunbar (1872-1905)





Born in 1872 in Dayton, Ohio, Paul Laurence Dunbar was already in the midst of greatness. His two classmates were Orville and Wilbur Wright. Dunbar proved his greatness as the first African-American to gain national recognition as a poet. Although he only lived a short life of 33 years, he was able to produce short stories, novels, librettos, plays, songs, essays, and poetry. His works were popular among Blacks and Whites and are still celebrated today. His style encompasses two distinct voices: the standard English of a classic poet and the evocative dialect of the Black community. His extraordinary gift in poetry was using dialect to portray character.




Bibliography

www.udayton.edu/~dunbar/

Back to Harlem Renaissance Page Page last updated on April 27, 1999.
Curator: Cassandra Jackson