George Schuyler's "Black No More"

Paper Summary:

The paper examines George Schuyler's "Black No More" that illustrates how race in America is used to reinforce capitalism. The paper discusses Dr. Crookman's treatment of whitening the skins of Blacks that eventually recreates the same racial hierarchy among society. The paper therefore points out how Schuyler saw race as an artificial divide, with the real issues rooted in class struggle.

From the Paper:

"Schuyler's opinion that African Americans and Caucasian Americans are much more alike than different, is illustrated in his novel Black No More. Schuyler posits the invention of a machine which can use "electrical nutrition and glandular control" (11) to change Blacks into Caucasians. Dr. Crookman's process doesn't just lighten the skin, its participants also gain Anglo features and blonde hair. With this bizarre premise, Schuyler envisions African Americans scurrying to have the process done. With an ever-shrinking Black population, Schuyler demonstrates the cultural resonance of Dr. Crookman's invention. Specifically, Schuyler shows how American capitalist society is threatened, and how the power structures therefore adapt to the change."

Sample of Sources Used:

• Haslem, Jason. "'The Open Sesame of a Pork-Colored Skin": Whiteness and Priviege in "Black No More." Modern Language Studies, Vol. 32, No. 1, The "White Problem": The Critical Study of Whiteness in American Literature. (Spring 2002), 15-30.
• Hutchinson, George. "Mediating 'Race' and 'Nation': The Cultural Politics of the Messenger." African American Review, Vol. 28, No. 4 (Winter 1994), 531-548.
• Kuenz, Jane. "American Racial Discourse, 1900-1930: Schuyler's 'Black No More'." NOVEL: A Forum on Fiction, Vol. 30, No. 2 (Winter 1997), 170-192.
• Rayson, Ann. "George Schuyler: Paradox among 'Assimilationist' Writers." Black American Literature Forum, Vol. 12, No. 3. (Autumn 1978), 102-106.
• Schuyler, George S. "The Negro-Art Hokum." In Double-Take: A Revisionist Harlem Renaissance Anthology, edited by Ventria Patton and Maureen Honey. New Brunswick: Rutgers University Press, 2001.

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