Numerous and diverse agendas have competed for consideration in attempts to establish and set the parameters of the black aesthetic tradition. W.E.B. DuBois and James Weldon Johnson are only two of several prominent Americans who have participated in this continuing and frequently intense dialogue. Yet perhaps no voice has been more consistently consulted and valued than that of Sterling A. Brown, distinguished teacher, scholar, poet, and critic. Despite the general acknowledgement of Brown\u27s contributions to American literature in general and black American literature in particular, comprehensive scholarly analyses of his unique contributions have been limited. Joanne V. Gabbin addresses this void in the scholarship in Sterling A. Brown: Building the Black Aesthetic Tradition, a work that includes an analysis of Brown\u27s own creative efforts as well as an outline and discussion of his critical views
