User:Rmpublshd3/Sandbox

This is where I will practice writing my article.

History
Fire!! was conceived with the notion of expressing the Black Experience during the Harlem Renaissance in a modern and realistic fashion, using literature as a vehicle of enlightenment. The authors of this magazine wanted an arena to express the changing attitudes of younger African Americans and used Fire!! to facilitate the exploration of issues in the Black community that were not in the forefront of mainstream African American society such as: homosexuality, bisexuality, interracial relationships, promiscuity, prostitution, and “color prejudice“ within the Black community itself.

The publication was so named, according to Langston Hughes, "to burn up a lot of the old, dead conventional Negro-white ideas of the past...into a realization of the existence of the younger Negro writers and artists, and provide us with an outlet for publication not available in the limited pages of the small Negro magazines then existing...." .

Public Criticism
Fire!! was plagued by debt and encountered poor sales. It was not well received by the Black public because it was felt that it did not exemplify the more sophisticated self-image that Blacks of that era were trying to portray. This magazine was found offensive for many reasons and was also denounced by Black leaders such as the “Talented Tenth who viewed the effort as decadent and vulgar" (“The Talented Tenth is the moniker that W.E.B. Du Bois bestowed on the cadre of college-educated African Americans whom he charged with guiding the masses of freedmen through the post-Reconstruction years." ).

These groups felt that the content relating to prostitution and homosexuality was degrading; they thought it was a throw back to old stereotypes in that it contained slang and language in the old southern vernacular; or cotton field / juke joint language; and they also felt its contents were undignified and reflected poorly on the Negro Race.

The magazine received many poor critical reviews. “The critic for the Baltimore Afro-American newspaper wrote, "I have just tossed the first issue of Fire!! into the fire." but Fire!! did receive one positive review from the Bookman, (November 1926), which applauded the uniqueness and personality shown in the artistic content of this issue.

Features
The magazine covers a variety of literary genres, and consists of a short novel, an essay, stories, plays, drawings and illustrations, and poetry:

Fire!! In the Media
The story of the rise and fall of the magazine Fire!! is showcased in the movie Brother to Brother, (2004), which focuses on the life of a young Gay African American college student, named Perry Williams. Perry experiences homophobia on many fronts, and, during this time in his life he meets an elderly homosexual named Richard ”Bruce” Nugent. During the time of their friendship, Perry comes to learn that “Bruce” Nugent was a writer who was affiliated with the aforementioned notable writers during the Harlem Renaissance.

The underlying plot of the movie relates to this group of writers and their efforts to write and publish this ahead of its time magazine.

Literary Contribution
Fire!! Magazine’s first issue was its last issue and was published in 1926. Although this magazine had only one issue, “this single issue of Fire!! is considered an event of historical importance."

A copy of the complete magazine can be found under the under the heading: Negro Periodicals in the United States, Series II 1826-1950: Library of Congress Classification number: PS508.N3F5x.v1.no.1, or under the Dewey Classification number: 700.8996 F523 1990 in a variety of libraries.