author
Sterling A. Brown
1901–1989
A major voice of the Harlem Renaissance, this poet and critic brought Black folk speech, music, and Southern life into American literature with unusual care and power. He also spent decades teaching at Howard University, shaping generations of readers and writers.
1 Audiobook
The Negro in American fiction
by Sterling A. Brown
About the author
Born in Washington, D.C., on May 1, 1901, he grew into one of the most respected interpreters of Black life and culture in the United States. He studied at Williams College and Harvard University, then taught for most of his career at Howard University, where he became known as an influential teacher as well as a poet, critic, and folklorist.
His writing drew deeply from blues, spirituals, work songs, and everyday speech, especially the traditions of the American South. That grounding gave his poetry a strong musical quality and helped make Southern Road (1932) his best-known book. Beyond his own poems, he wrote criticism and edited important collections that argued for the seriousness and richness of Black literature and folklore.
He remained an important literary presence for decades and was widely honored later in life, including service as the first Poet Laureate of the District of Columbia. He died on January 13, 1989, leaving behind work that still feels vivid, humane, and closely connected to lived experience.