ABSTRACT
It is interesting to see how the older black woman forges through physical and behavioral stereotypical features to emerge as foremother in the slave narrative and early black female fiction. It is also interesting to observe under what constraints she operates to continue her role as counselor, healer, and keeper of the traditions of the culture. Of Pauline Hopkins's four novels Contending Forces (1900), Hagar's Daughter (1901-02), Winona (1902) and Of One Blood (1902-03), I will study the serialized novels of Hagar's Daughter and Of One Blood primarily because both contain interesting variations of the foremother figure and secondarily because both works contain elements of the mystery novel and thus differ from the domestic novels and slave narrative selected for this study. I choose not to include Hopkins's extensive work Contending Forces because the older black woman figure which is most closely portrayed as a foremother figure (Mrs. Willis) actually emerges as a race woman. Her prominence as a race women, and an advocate and spokesperson for the black race places her in the foreground and thus in a different function than the foremother. Regardless of the narrative structuring principles of slave narrative, domestic fiction or serialized mystery, the foremother figure resides in most works of early black women writers. She subverts the stereotypical mammy found in early white female works even though she is often draped with the embellished, superficial features of the stereotype. Because she is complex, however, the foremother figure transcends the superficial. For example, in Pauline Hopkins's Hagar's Daughter: A Story of Southern Caste the foremother, Aunt Henny, 92possesses a humorous yet serious nature, adheres to yet deviates from standards, teaches yet remains uneducated, expresses ignorance yet possesses knowledge. She deserves public praise yet receives public blame. She is constrained by stereotypical features, yet she is clothed in her right mind.
