#racist lit

[wyrmfedgrave]

Pics:

1 & 2. The original poem that we're discussing, in the Brown U archives.

3 thru 5. Lovecraftian towns, enough said!

6. The real horror here is the racist hatred that drove most of HPL's tales.

1913: Output.

Intro: What lingers, from reading Lovecraft's tales, is a feeling of rapt captivity & blind fear.

But, what 'hurts' is the fact that it was Howard's own racism that empowers most his works.

While it's true that readers can't really separate an author's life experiences influencing their works, 1 can enjoy their fiction without liking the writer him or herself.

Though HPL was a bit rabid in his hateful thoughts, I still enjoy his take on cosmic horrors.

I'd gladly be chased thru time & space, 'projecting' myself back to Arkham in the early 1900s.

Or, slip thru the dimensions out to the Great Australian Desert. And then, plunge down into the depths of the Pacific Ocean!!

I'll even play the part of a lonely & scared academic who learns too much to survive any longer.

But, I won't act like some blind bigot. I'm not a racist & have friends of all kinds & sexes.

Hey! Watch where you put that sinful tentacle...

Plot: We start out with "New-England losing (its) original inhabitants¹ & agricultural atmosphere²."

"Being now the seat of... industries (run) by southern Europeans & West Asiatic immigrants of low grade³..."

"(Their) squalid, nosy village (now) asleep. Dusk & quiet hide a monstrous mill⁴... (now belonging to) alien serfs."

"Tainted air for (a) moment clears the ruin wrought by evil years⁵ & (my) tortured mind is lightened of its pain."

Suddenly "ancestral spirits reign anew & old New-England... lives again."

But, this only lasts for a moment.

The poem now focuses on describing "an empty green⁶, ancient structures rotting (away & a) temple spire (that) ascends no higher (due to) the Popish cross⁷."

Then, the poem asks "where dwells that race... whose rule is benign⁸?"

Suddenly, we get a twist!!

"From the woes which blend in modern times, new blessings emerge⁹!"

Yet, the poem ends with a final sad prediction, "contemplation mourns New England's end¹⁰ (for) draped in sack-cloth¹¹, 'She' (=s New England) chants her country's dirge¹²."

Notes:

1. At 1st, it sounds as if Howard's writing about the aboriginal American 'Indians' but, we know better!

If he were, he would be sadly correct. There's few of the aboriginal nations left - but, they're not extinct.

Not even in New England...

2. Wrong again.

Today, New England farms provide 50% of the dairy & 40% of the veggies consumed in the region.

Even though farms only make up 7% of the modern land use!!

Cheer on our modern practices.

3. Howard again ranks minorities as being of low quality as a whole.

Due, no doubt, to the then current pseudo-scientific 'thinking.'

But, Lovecraft liked to obsess on most things & didn't like 'change' at all.

The only type of changes that he allowed himself, were on scientific advances.

As even we are finding out, science is always changing. Usually by advances that are 'unexpected'.

Look at the amazing findings of the James Webb telescope, to see what I mean.

But, HPL couldn't seem to master his racial fears - whose origins still remain largely unknown...

4. This seems to refer to Howard's preference to water powered grind- stones & his 'hate' of coal powered mills.

I'd have to agree with him on this point.

5. Hmm... Methinks we can see the slow growth of Lovecraft's Mythos vocabulary in moments like this.

6. Dude, come on. Your poem takes place at night...

If someone (of any color) was there, it wouldn't be for romantic reasons.

7. Howard (the atheist) taking a pot- shot at Christianity while upholding a Protestant past.

8. In some fantasy realm? No 'rule' - especially a royal one - is ever 100% perfect.

Not even democratic 'rule'...

Every known form of government has had some kind of problem(s) during its existence.

9. Hmm... "The woes which blend?"

("Whatchu talking about, Willis?!")

I don't think this is sarcasm aimed at "race mixing."

Perhaps, it's a poetic way to say that America has a lot of problems.

Well, I'd match our problems with yours anytime, bro.

Though HPL would probably like the Big Orange Rump! Lovecraft was always attracted to 'royalty.'

10. Quite wrong again.

As stated before, New England is still in white hands & in no danger of being overrun by minorities - we just don't have the money to live there...

11. Sack-cloth were 'clothes' woven out of goat or camel hair! It was the proper garment to be worn during times of mourning.

In English, it also describes "coarsely woven fabrics made from flax, hemp or cotton."

12. Still wrong!!

We've certainly come close to extinction - several times! But, the U.S. is still here...

Right now, we're still fighting off the greedy power lust of an ex-prez who wants to become 'king.'

The kind of person that Lovecraft would like - at 1st sight!

But, HPL could change his mind!

As he did with Hitler, once Howard understood what kind of a danger Adolph posed - to HPL's beloved England!

Criticism: Not really much written on "Village." So, I'll add some quick notes after the 1 comment that I could find...

The National Amateur said, "Lovecraft chants a dirge (death song) over the New England of American history... discovering that the New England of their dreams is not the New England of today."

Notes:

1. You could think of this poem as part three of Howard's "Racist Trio" for 1913!

The more racist poems being the already examined "Providence in 2000 AD" & "New-England Fallen."

2. But, if this is true, this poem is a toned down version of the other two poems' hateful bigotry! Because, for HPL, this poem is a minor exercise in Racism Lite...

Still, all such works hurt somebody.

[chamerionwrites]

Aimé Césaire saying that colonization works to decivilize the colonizer truly lives in my head rent-free

[dreamingamongthestars]

Céline Dion really said fuck the spygate us Canadians still have our dignity and was the final performance for the opening ceremony in FRANCE 😭😭😭😭

[thepersonalquotes]

I would like to get rid of the homophobes, sexists, and racists in our audience. I know they're out there and it really bothers me.

Kurt Cobain

[randomnameless]

Edelcultists are always talking about wanting Flayn in CF. Bitch the only way we'd see her in CF is as a new Relic for Linhardt, get out of here! Why would she side with her abusers?

Because of the fundamental rule of the Fodlan games and by extension, a very vocal part of their fandom :

Rhea BaD

[nukacourier]

I just know that Joshua Graham probably smells like absolute shit. bro probably smells like an infected scab. bro probably smells like dick cheese

[fuckmeyer]

hey bestie i'm finally here with that essay about jacob fighting for bella's humanity w/o being a love interest bc the potential that has! he's set up to be the perfect avenue for it! he's the warmth and sun that she loved from arizona; he's the community and family she could be deeply enmeshed in w/ charlie and billy; he's a childhood friend who grew up (which bella's going to lose the potential to do if she becomes a vampire! and she's going to forget that past!); he's someone who fixes up old damaged cars instead of having perfect ones, and they aren't the *same* but they're still good...he's literally thematically everything best abt being human that bella will lose, AND examples of the negatives she sees in humanity, (all the times she thinks abt how the wolves are fragile in comparison to the vampires)...and it would just be SO fascinating to see that played out w/out the romance. it would honestly be even more powerful! bc baked into smeyer's worldbuilding is that vampires prioritize their romantic partners above everything else and having jacob be the true contrast to that where he's a platonic connection that bella genuinely values equally and she has to think abt how becoming a vampire would cut her off from the potential of connections like that!!! i am thinking so many thoughts

BESTIE thank you as always for dropping the Jacob love in my inbox!

you're so right about Jacob being the perfect avenue to explore Bella's doubt about vampirism! the warmth & family & community & LOVE & acceptance & nostalgia she loves about humanity is all embodied in Jacob's character & in their relationship. she likes hand-me-downs & homemade gifts! she likes acts of service! she likes reckless stunts that remind her of her own fragility & weakness! she likes warm sodas & spaghetti dinners! she likes being reminded that she belongs somewhere! & THIS IS JACOB <3

the fact that their relationship isn't utilized to this end (or any end, really) is my biggest problem with Eclipse. Bella drops little hints in the narrative that she's nervous about becoming a vampire. there are so many opportunities— e.g. when Rose tells her story— for her to reflect on what she's giving up.

in the end, she doesn't sum up the argument in a compelling way & doesn't make her choice in a believable way.

in part because the event that kicks off her grand realization that she's not ready (AKA THE CONFLICT OF HER ENTIRE SERIES ARC) is ...graduation

big life event as a catalyst seems to make sense. but how relevant is it to her narrative? & once it's brought up, we don't we see her digging into why she's nervous. what about saying goodbye makes her not ready? what about getting what she wants terrifies her? what does she need to sort through? what plans does she need to make? we're left to wonder what's running through Bella's mind re: the biggest decision of the series...in a first person narrative. no!!!

Jacob, who embodies all these ideals of her humanity, should be the one to push her to this realization. the climax of her internal conflict should be focused around him: losing him physically/emotionally (or both), & everything he represents. there is so much weight that her relationship with Jacob adds to her choice if she's allowed to love him and Edward unconditionally! as a romantic interest, all Jacob's doing is pushing her away.

(& that's why this whole fucking triangle makes no sense. he loves her so much he remembers her from early childhood. he loves her so much he'll sit there for months & pick up her broken pieces. he loves her so much he'll spend every moment just doing silly little hobbies together. he loves her so much he wants to fight for her humanity "until her heart stops beating" AND EVEN AFTER. but he doesn't love her enough to respect her choices or opinions? he doesn't love her enough to know that by being an asshole, he's pushing her closer to death? imo this is where we see stephie's grubby hands moving pieces. Jacob loves her more than he's in love with her.)

& so, because the "i'm not ready" realization is tied to something Bella doesn't give a shit about, the realization that she is ready is equally empty

what makes her decide she's ready to become a vampire is GUILT & FEAR & ANGUISH. she's "ready" to become a vampire because she feels weak & useless. worse, this realization is not touched on as the event (the training sesh) unfolds. she has this realization OFF-PAGE & then shows up to Edward's proposal like "yeah i'm ready to become a vampire but first i wanna fuck :)"

& we're supposed to buy that? girl, you resolved nothing internally. you didn't show us what changed for you. you're making this decision out of fear instead of out of love. & we're supposed to believe this is what little miss "thoughtful & responsible" wants???

it's such a blatant disregard to all the growth she went through & the relationships she developed. you can't just turn Jacob in a fucking asshole & turn the choice into a non-choice & call it day. Jacob deserves better, Bella deserves better, & the readers deserve better!!

MAKE 👏 EVERYONE 👏 SUFFER👏👏👏

(in the name of love!)

[firestorm09890]

Ishmael, chapter 48 of Moby Dick: The 4 boats with the mates and captain had completely different vibes. Starbuck was quiet and serious. Flask was yelling and throwing his hat around. Stubb was casual as always. And Ahab said things I can't repeat in this christian minecraft server

[thepersonalwords]

To those supremacist racists I ask what color will be their bodies when they turn to dust.

Bangambiki Habyarimana, Book of Wisdom

[heartslobbf]

has anyone played desdemona as a trans woman. or like written about transfeminism in othello generally. i haven’t looked anything up yet lol like i literally just thought of this and im like ohhhhhhh. that play makes me bonkers fr

[wyrmfedgrave]

Pics: Caricatures of HPL.

1912: Creation of N_s. Part 2.

Intro: "Creation" was written long before Lovecraft had any real adult friends or had even thought up of his major Mythos creatures.

"Creation" is a very minor work, whose racist tone is highly overt. Otherwise, it has no real literary value.

That it's an attempt at 'humor', just makes its racial impact worse.

Notes: There's much that's not known about the "Creation" poem & why it was written.

At that time, the poem's slurs were in everyday use. Racism was so common that it was enforced by the law!

Even some scientists thought that African-Americans were some kind of "missing links."

Howard, most likely, learned these pseudoscientific ideas when he was a youth.

(But, I've always wondered if HPL's loss of money, home & status was blamed on Jewish folks - by Sarah, his mom...)

Sadly, Lovecraft clung stubbornly to these stupid ideas - til his death bed.

And, it's impossible to separate this racism from his works. As it appears in, both, subtle & overt forms.

In some tales, this hatred completely overpowers Howard's plot.

"At least", as S.T. Joshi wrote, "this poem does not... convey HPL's racism by appealing to Christian imagery."

"No publication (date) has (ever) been found for this (work) & I can only hope (that) there's (never) one."

Life: Lovecraft exposed his racist beliefs mostly in his writings, though he also spit such venom aloud.

Sadly, such dangerous ideas were so common that even the Encyclopedia Britannica, of that time, agreed with them!

Thankfully, Howard's deep-seated xenophobia didn't make him into a KKK member, a cross burner or a lynch mob leader.

But, HPL's dotting aunts were certainly the "we don't want your kind here" type.

They wouldn't allow Sonia to set up shop in Providence - for fear of being embarrassed by Lovecraft's trades- woman wife.

Howard reigned in his more extreme views several times. Usually, at the behest of Sonia - who challenged his beliefs.

But, HPL never really learned to act otherwise. Never prevented his racism from continuously reappearing.

Instead, Lovecraft would always remain obsessed with the whole white Aryan supremacy.

For instance, when Howard & Sonia entertained, Aryan guests had to always exceed the # of Jews present...

Now, HPL's extreme views waxed & wanted thruout his life.

But, it wasn't just fear that drove Lovecraft's racial hatred.

After all, Howard's friends debated him on these important points.

Somehow, a personal prejudice grew into a tangle of literary racial & class attacks.

A stance that would go on to poison HPL's works & his understanding of the world.

So, it's not really surprising that the "Creation" poem doesn't capture the last of Lovecraft's venom on race relations...

Worse was to come.

[chamerionwrites]

Also a lot of people simply have terrible taste. But that is much easier to shrug off as people simply having terrible taste

[dieinct]

what books are out there that are like chrestomanci series

[greeds]

they keep giving the black and african lit classes to white professors i cant do this anymore i cant i cant i

[dragonomatopoeia]

i used to blog about literature here and then i was in academia. and so all of those thoughts went into like. actual essays. but then academia ended and Blogging began once more

[mothofmany]

is you believe in trans id you can gtfo off my blog pls and thank you