The Black American Short Story in the 20th Century

by Peter Bruck

  cunning, Dunba r show s hi s determinatio n t o brea k wit h th e imag e

  of th e exemplary citizen :

  It was his wisdom rather more than his morality tha t made the managers

  after a while cast their glances toward him as a man who might be useful

  to their interests. It would be well to have a man - a shrewd powerful man

  — dow n in that par t o f the town who could carry his people's vote in his

  vest pocket an d who at any time its delivery might be needed, could hand

  it over without hesitation, (p. 5)

  Asbury's strength s enabl e hi m t o ignor e th e rule s o f decorum . H e

  has n o obligation s eithe r t o whit e patrons , o r th e blac k middle -

  class.

  In th e "Scapegoat " Dunba r appear s t o b e drawin g o n th e folk -

  tale. B y takin g th e them e o f intrigu e an d th e blac k trickster-her o

  from hi s plantatio n storie s an d settin g hi m i n a contemporar y

  urban situation , h e coul d ste p outsid e th e value s impose d b y th e

  white literar y code . Th e black folktal e di d not celebrate the values

  of th e middle-class , bu t o f the race. Robinson Asbur y realize s tha t

  competing wit h th e whit e ma n i s bu t hal f th e game . A talente d

  black i n a hostil e societ y i s a peculiarl y vulnerabl e man . An d s o

  Asbury instinctivel y fall s bac k o n the wisdom of the black folktale s

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  that teac h th e importance o f subterfug e an d cunning .

  In escapin g fro m th e limitin g influence s o f th e whit e literar y

  code Dunba r wa s abl e t o dro p tha t "fin e perceptio n o f irony "

  which had vitiated hi s early writing . Iron y i s present in "The Scape -

  goat" bu t i t i s a n iron y directe d a t th e false , élitis t idealis m o f th e

  black middle-class . Instea d o f decorum , ther e i s a spirit o f amora l

  mischief rulin g thi s story . Asbury' s virtue s deriv e fro m th e etho s

  of th e folktal e where , "I t i s no t virtu e tha t triumphs , bu t help -

  lessness; not malice , but mischievousness." 21

  Asbury provide s th e blac k wit h a strateg y fo r survival . Dunba r

  had alread y show n i n The Strength of Gideon storie s tha t th e

  idealistic blac k wa s th e natura l pre y o f th e unscrupulou s whit e

  patron. Asbury , shrew d an d resourceful , regard s virtu e a s th e

  questionable luxur y o f thos e bor n int o th e blac k middle-class .

  Asbury, wh o has been a former bootblac k an d barber , understand s

  human nature . Hi s rise t o fam e a s a local ward politicia n doe s no t

  change him . Instea d o f movin g uptow n wher e th e blac k ric h live ,

  he stay s wit h th e poo r an d identifie s wit h them . Asbur y scorn s

  "the bette r class " black s tha t ru n th e politic s o f th e town , an d

  draws his political strengt h fro m th e people. B y refusing t o observe

  the ideas of social decorum tha t characterize the black middle-class,

  Asbury overcome s th e divisivenes s tha t weaken s th e blac k com -

  munity i n politics . I n fac t h e embodie s Dunbar' s ow n earlie r crit -

  icism o f th e blac k middle-clas s o f Ne w Yor k Cit y wh o destroye d

  racial solidarit y throug h thei r inabilit y t o identif y wit h th e poo r

  of th e ghetto :

  So if the better class Negro would come to his own he must lift not only

  himself, but the lower men, whose blood brother he is. He cannot affor d

  to look down upon the citizens of the Tenderloin o r to withdraw himself

  from them ; for th e fate o f the blacks there degraded, ignorantly vicious as

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  they may be, is his fate.

  Asbury's characte r suggests , then , a n implici t rejectio n o f th e

  politically impoten t exemplar y black . S o thoroughgoin g i s hi s

  political realism , tha t Dunba r neve r allow s hi m t o discus s the sub -

  ject o f racia l injustices . Th e empt y rhetori c o f th e blac k pres s i s

  not fo r him . Even th e sig n that hang s above his store "Equal Rights,

  Barber Shop " i s designe d primaril y t o attrac t custom , no t t o

  express an ideal. The ideals of th e middle-class ca n be read an y da y

  in thei r newspapers , alon g wit h suc h trivi a a s "ho w Mis s Bosto n

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  entertained Mis s Bluefor d t o tea. " Asbur y ha s more practica l con -

  cerns, an d help s hi s customer s b y keepin g thei r "polic y returns, "

  which wa s wise, if not moral. " (p. 5)

  Asbury, unlik e Dunbar' s previous heroes, is not naive. The moral

  ambivalence o f white s does not com e a s a suprise t o him . Conside r

  the followin g scene . Afte r havin g passed hi s law exam Asbur y ask s

  for admissio n t o th e bar , bu t hi s ol d frien d Judg e Davi s advise s

  him agains t this . Th e judg e i s afrai d that , shoul d h e fail , h e wil l

  lose hi s estee m i n th e blac k community . O n th e othe r hand , if h e

  passes, h e will mov e uptow n and , again , los e influence . Asbury ,

  amused b y th e judge' s underestimatio n o f hi s shrewdness , smile s

  and whisper s his plan in th e ol d man' s ear :

  "Asbury," h e said , "yo u ar e — yo u ar e — well , you ough t to be white,

  that's all . When w e find a black ma n lik e yo u w e sen d hor n t o State' s

  prison. If you were white, you'd go to the Senate." (p. 7)

  The firs t politica l campaig n tha t Asbur y enter s bring s him int o im -

  mediate conflic t wit h th e blac k middle-class . Tw o lawyer s calle d

  Bingo an d Latchett , wh o als o hav e politica l ambitions , hea r new s

  of Asbury' s activities . Ironically , th e innocen t sig n abov e th e

  barber's sho p anger s the m mos t o f all . Political idealism, they feel ,

  belongs properly t o th e middle-class :

  Is it an y wonder, then, that the y viewe d with alarm his sudden rise? They

  kept their counsel, however, and treated wit h him, for its was best. They

  allowed hi m hi s scop e withou t ope n revolt unti l the da y upon which he

  hung ou t his shingle. This was the last straw. They could stand no more.

  Asbury had stolen their other chances from them, and now he was poaching

  upon the last of their preserves. So Mr. Bingo and Mr. Latchett put thei r

  heads together to plan the downfall of their common enemy, (p. 9).

  Although a s resourcefu l a s Br'e r Rabbit , Asbur y ha s forgotten th e

  art o f th e possum wh o lays low so as to avoi d danger. 24 Mr . Bingo,

  who neve r doe s anythin g openly , understand s th e valu e o f thi s

  subterfuge a t thi s stage better tha n Asbury .

  An appeal t o blac k ideals becomes a central them e i n Mr. Bingo's

  campaign agains t Asbury . Bingo , wh o i s no t i n th e least idealistic ,

  finds a suitabl e fron t i n th e for m o f a Mr . Issa c Morton , th e un -

  suspecting principa l o f a loca l school . Morto n exemplifie s fo r

  Dunbar th e ineffectual idealis m o f th e middle-class :

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  Mr. Morton wa s really a n innocen t young man, and he had ideals which

  should neve r hav e bee n expose d t o th e air . When th e wily confederate s

  came to him with their plan he believed that his worth had been recognised,

  and at last he was to be what Nature destined him for - a leader, (p. 10)

  Dunbar's attac k o n thi s form o f
idealism i s recorded in the language

  of thes e worth y citizens . Thei r vocabular y i s full o f suc h term s as,

  "ideal," "moral, " an d "bette r clas s o f people. " Althoug h thi s

  rhetoric i s enoug h t o wi n th e suppor t o f th e middle-clas s blacks, it

  fails t o convinc e th e blac k electorat e a s a whole. Mr. Bingo gives it

  up an d goe s downtow n t o pledg e suppor t t o Ashbury' s faction .

  The conversatio n tha t take s plac e betwee n th e tw o me n help s u s

  to defin e wha t kin d o f "morality " Ashbur y stand s for . Bing o

  begins by takin g Asbury t o tas k fo r livin g in th e ghetto :

  "Well, it was well done, and you've shown that yo u are a manager. I con-

  fess that I haven't alway s thought tha t yo u were doing the wisest thing in

  living down here and catering to this class of people when you might, with

  your ability, to be much more to the better class."

  "What do they base their claims of being better on?"

  "Oh, there ain't any use discussing that." (pp. 13-14)

  Asbury ultimatel y win s th e electio n fo r hi s side , bu t commit s a

  few indiscretion s i n th e effort . Th e loser s challenge th e legality o f

  the ballot , an d evidenc e o f irregularity come s to light . Asbury, th e

  most conspicuous black i n th e community , present s himself a s the

  most obviou s victim t o quiete n outrage d publi c opinion :

  They bega n t o loo k aroun d them . The y mus t purif y themselves . They

  must give the people some tangible evidence of their own yearnings afte r

  purity. The y looke d around them for a sacrifice t o lay upon the altar of

  reform. Thei r eye s fel l upo n Mr . Bingo . No, he was not big enough. His

  blood wa s too scant to wash away the political stains. Then they looked

  into eac h other' s eye s an d turned thei r gaze away to let if fall upon Mr.

  Asbury. The y reall y hate d t o d o it . Bu t there must be a scapegoat. The

  god from the Machine commanded them to slay him. (p. 16)

  Thus Asbur y i s oblige d t o bea r th e collectiv e sin s o f th e entir e

  community. Asbury' s onl y consolatio n a t the trial lies in unmasking

  those wh o reall y playe d a han d i n th e fraudulen t ballot . Althoug h

  not entirel y innocen t himself , Asbur y ha s neve r lai d clai m t o an y

  moral superiority . Ther e is , thus , a kin d o f poeti c justic e i n hi s

  revealing the deepe r immorality o f thos e around him :

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  He did not mention the judge's name. But he had torn the mask from the

  face of every other man who had been concerned in his downfall, (p. 18)

  In the second part of 'The Scapegoat " Asbury returns from priso n

  and start s playin g possum . Althoug h h e i s no t a helpless anima l

  from blac k folklor e eve n a n important blac k remain s vulnerable.

  In th e hea t o f hi s successfu l campaig n Asbur y ha d momentarily

  forgotten this . Hi s firs t ac t o n returnin g i s t o remov e th e sig n

  "Equal Rights , Barbe r Shop " fro m hi s store . Doubtles s h e doe s

  this t o openl y demonstrate his retirement from th e political scene,

  but ther e i s another reason . Asbury ha s learned tha t conspicuou s

  idealism — even if, a s in his case, unintended — is the worst possible

  form o f advertisement.

  Like hi s vulnerabl e brethre n fro m th e blac k folktale , Asbur y

  realizes that h e is a natural pre y to hostile forces and must behave

  accordingly. Indeed , a s th e stor y progresse s h e begin s mor e an d

  more t o resembl e th e trickster-her o o f th e folktale . Despit e th e

  realistic settin g of Cadgers and the details of the election campaign,

  Asbury i s clearly a type. We neither kno w what he looks like, nor

  how he dresses. We know only that he is shrewd. The same may be

  said o f Bingo . These tw o men act out a seemingly unequal contest

  of wi t characteristi c o f th e folktale . Bing o must los e becaus e hi s

  social pretensions serve to identif y hi m wit h th e élite rather tha n

  the common people.

  The exact relationshi p between "Th e Scapegoat" and black oral

  culture woul d probabl y b e difficul t t o establis h withi n clearl y

  defined limits . And i t woul d see m unwis e t o pus h th e undoubted

  resemblances betwee n the m to o far . Wha t doe s seem t o me mor e

  readily ascertainable is that Dunbar's rejection of decorum in favour

  of th e blac k trickster' s disguis e ca n b e trace d t o hi s earl y stor y

  "The Ingrate." 23 Thi s story record s how Dunbar's father, Joshua ,

  tricked hi s maste r an d escape d fro m slavery . Th e detail s o f th e

  plot ar e for u s unimportant. Th e main point of reference betwee n

  "The Scapegoat " an d "Th e Ingrate " is that both the main charac-

  ters resort t o th e ol d tric k o f a slave trying'to outwi t hi s master :

  they disguis e thei r intelligenc e unde r a display o f outwar d weak -

  ness an d humility . Thu s w e ar e tol d o f Asbur y that , "H e cam e

  back wit h n o flouris h o f trumpets , but quietly , humbly." (p . 21 )

  He remain s "quiet, " an d whe n Bing o visit s to chec k o n Asbury ,

  the barber-lawyer' s demeanou r fool s him , "Mr . Bing o expresse d

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  the opinio n tha t Asbur y wa s quiet becaus e he was crushed." (p. 22)

  Asbury ha s t o displa y tha t hi s shrewdness no longer poses a threa t

  to hi s politica l enemies. Dunbar has adapted th e behaviou r o f Jos h

  from "Th e Ingrate " t o mee t contemporar y needs . Th e lor e o f

  surviving on the plantation stil l has relevance. Josh play s his role as

  follows:

  But he met his master with an impassive face, always silent, always docile;

  and Mr . Leckle r congratulate d himsel f tha t s o valuable an d intelligent a

  slave shoul d b e a t th e sam e tim e s o tractable . Usuall y intelligenc e i n a

  slave meant discontent; but not so with Josh.23

  The on e significan t differenc e betwee n th e storie s i s tha t Asbur y

  outsmarts a fellow black , and no t a white man . Bu t here I think w e

  must not e som e apparen t evasivenes s on Dunbar' s part. Ope n con -

  flict betwee n blac k an d whit e was , accordin g t o th e rule s o f

  decorum, impossible . Looke d a t mor e closel y however , doe s not a

  hidden struggl e exis t betwee n Asbur y an d th e whit e man ? I t i s

  true tha t Asbur y decline d t o expos e th e corruptnes s o f ol d Judg e

  Davis a t th e trial . On the surfac e n o over t conflic t betwee n Asbur y

  and white s i s t o b e seen . However , i t wa s no t th e blac k middle -

  class tha t le d t o his downfall: th e fina l decisio n t o offe r Asbur y t o

  the peopl e o f Cadger s a s a scapegoa t cam e fro m "Th e Go d o f th e

  Machine." Logicall y Asbury' s desir e fo r reveng e shoul d b e directe d

  at th e white-blac k powe r structur e behin d th e party. We will recall

  that Bing o wa s no t bi g enoug h t o satisf y th e part y managers . Why

  should h e no w provid e a satisfactor y targe t fo r Asbury' s revenge ?

  This i s bor n ou t b y th e en d o f th e story . Dunbar' s manoeuvr e

  would appea r t o b e t o presen t Bing o a s th e surrogat e victi m o f

  Asbury's revenge , fo r wha t ar e w e t o mak e o f the story's conclu -
>
  sion?:

  The lawye r wa s not alon e i n seein g Asbury' s han d i n hi s downfall. The

  party managers saw it too and they met together to discuss the dangerous

  factor which , whil e i t appeare d t o slumber, was so terribly awake . They

  decided that he must be appeared, and they visited him. (p. 29)

  Dunbar coul d readil y identif y wit h hi s hero' s triump h ove r th e

  custodians o f publi c opinion ; thei r powe r wa s a n eve r presen t

  threat t o hi s career as a writer .

  It woul d no t d o t o confus e th e character of Asbury with Dunbar .

  Nevertheless, th e similaritie s betwee n th e tw o ar e compelling .

  49

  Although Dunba r neve r face d hi s hero' s defat , h e ra n th e sam e

  kind o f dangers . Lik e Asbury , Dunbar' s silenc e o n civi l rights wa s

  part o f a strategy . Onl y b y a n almos t scrupulou s adherenc e t o de -

  corum coul d h e sav e himsel f fro m fallin g pre y t o public opinion .

  Only b y developin g a constan t vigilanc e coul d h e stee r a cours e

  between th e prejudice s o f bot h blac k an d white . I f th e stor y o f

  "The Scapegoat " help s u s t o understan d som e o f th e problem s

  facing th e blac k a s a publi c figure, i t als o argue s th e nee d fo r a

  reappraisal o f Dunba r in terms of his age.

  NOTES

  1. Willia m L . Andrews , "Willia m Dea n Howell s an d Charles W. Chesnutt:

  Criticism and Race Fiction in the Age of Booker T. Washington," American

  Literature, 48 (November, 1976), 338.

  2. Ibid., p. 334.

  3. Andrews , loc. cit.

  4. Thi s imag e o f th e blac k shoul d b e compare d wit h th e on e create d by

  Washington. Booker T. Washington, "Atlanta Exposition Address," in justice

  Denied: The Black Man in White America, ed. by William M. Chace and Peter

  Collier (New York, 1970), pp. 201-204.

  5. Benjami n Brawley , Paul Laurence Dunbar: Poet of his People (Chapel

  Hill, 1936), p. 77.

  6. Jame s Weldon Johnson, "The Dilemma of the Negro Author," American

  Mercury, 15 (1928), 477.

  7. Th e biographica l informatio n I borrowed chiefl y fro m Wagner . A great

  deal of material on Dunbar's life whic h is not readil y available has been con-