William Waring Cuney (May 6, 1906 – June 30, 1976) was a

poet A poet is a person who studies and creates poetry. Poets may describe themselves as such or be described as such by others. A poet may simply be the creator (thought, thinker, songwriter, writer, or author) who creates (composes) poems (oral t ...

of the

Harlem Renaissance The Harlem Renaissance was an intellectual and cultural revival of African-American music, dance, art, fashion, literature, theater, politics, and scholarship centered in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, spanning the 1920s and 1930s. At the ti ...

. He is best known for his poem "No Images," which has been widely anthologized.

Biography

William Waring Cuney was one of a pair of twins born on May 6, 1906, in Washington D.C. His father, Norris Wright Cuney II, worked for the federal government. His mother, Madge Louise Baker, taught in the D.C. public school system. Cuney attended the D.C. public schools, graduating from Armstrong High School. He attended

Howard University Howard University is a private, historically black, federally chartered research university in Washington, D.C., United States. It is classified among "R1: Doctoral Universities – Very high research activity" and accredited by the Mid ...

for a time before earning his B.A. at Lincoln University in Pennsylvania. He also studied at the

New England Conservatory of Music The New England Conservatory of Music (NEC) is a Private college, private music school in Boston, Massachusetts. The conservatory is located on Huntington Avenue along Avenue of the Arts (Boston), the Avenue of the Arts near Boston Symphony Ha ...

in Boston and the Conservatory of Music in Rome.Scott (2004), p. 281.
/ref> In 1926, while Cuney was still a student at Lincoln University, his poem "No Images" won first prize in a competition sponsored by ''Opportunity'' magazine. The poem poignantly portrays a black woman's internalization of European beauty standards. It has been widely anthologized and is considered a minor classic of the

New Negro Movement The Harlem Renaissance was an intellectual and cultural revival of African Americans, African-American music, dance, art, fashion, literature, theater, politics, and scholarship centered in Harlem, Manhattan, New York City, spanning the 1920s a ...

. At Lincoln University, Cuney was a classmate and friend of

Langston Hughes James Mercer Langston Hughes (February 1, 1901 – May 22, 1967) was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin, Missouri. An early innovator of jazz poetry, Hughes is best known as a leader of the Harl ...

. Decades later he co-edited an anthology with Hughes, ''Lincoln University Poets: Centennial Anthology, 1854–1954'' (New York: Fine Editions, 1954).Scott (2004), p. 280.
/ref> After training for a career in music as a singer along with his brother who was a pianist, Cuney decided he had a poor singing voice and never performed professionally. His writing, however, was very much influenced by his love of music. His poems are strongly rhythmic, often written in ballad form or original forms reminiscent of

blues Blues is a music genre and musical form that originated among African Americans in the Deep South of the United States around the 1860s. Blues has incorporated spiritual (music), spirituals, work songs, field hollers, Ring shout, shouts, cha ...

songs. Many are character sketches of inner-city African Americans. A number of his poems have been set to music and recorded by

Josh White Joshua Daniel White (February 11, 1914 – September 5, 1969) was an American singer, guitarist, songwriter, actor and civil rights activist. He also recorded under the names Pinewood Tom and Tippy Barton in the 1930s. White grew up in the Sou ...

Al Haig Alan Warren Haig (July 19, 1922 – November 16, 1982) was an American jazz pianist, best known as one of the pioneers of bebop. Biography Haig was born in Newark, New Jersey, and raised in nearby Nutley. In 1940, he majored in piano at Ob ...

, and

Nina Simone Nina Simone ( ; born Eunice Kathleen Waymon; February 21, 1933 – April 21, 2003) was an American singer, pianist, songwriter, and civil rights activist. Her music spanned styles including classical, folk, gospel, blues, jazz, R&B, and po ...

. His poems were published in journals such as ''

The Crisis ''The Crisis'' is the official magazine of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People (NAACP). It was founded in 1910 by W. E. B. Du Bois (editor), Oswald Garrison Villard, J. Max Barber, Charles Edward Russell, Kelly M ...

'' and '' Black World'', and in anthologies edited by

Countee Cullen Countee Cullen (born Countee LeRoy Porter; May 30, 1903 – January 9, 1946) was an American poet, novelist, children's writer, and playwright, particularly well known during the Harlem Renaissance. Early life Childhood Countee LeRoy Porter ...

James Weldon Johnson James Weldon Johnson (June 17, 1871June 26, 1938) was an American writer and civil rights activist. He was married to civil rights activist Grace Nail Johnson. Johnson was a leader of the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People ...

, Sterling Brown, and

Arna Bontemps Arna Wendell Bontemps ( ) (October 13, 1902 – June 4, 1973) was an American poet, novelist and librarian, and a noted member of the Harlem Renaissance. Early life Bontemps was born in 1902 in Alexandria, Louisiana, into a Louisiana Creole peopl ...

. Although his work was largely forgotten in the United States by the 1950s, it was translated into German and Dutch and developed a following in Europe. He published only two volumes of poetry in his lifetime: ''Puzzles'', a limited edition published in the Netherlands in 1960, and ''Storefront Church'', published in London in 1973. He died in New York City on June 30, 1976.

Works

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References

Citations

Bibliography

External links