The Power of the Written Word

This evening, like most, I drove home listening to The Marc Steiner Show on Morgan State University's WEAA (88.9FM). And like every show, Marc chose a thought-provoking topic and had two incredible guests to help him lead the discussion. The first hour (he usually has two topics within the 2-hour show) was a mind-tickling discussion entitled, "The Legacy of Uncle Tom's Cabin 100 years after its publication". Marc’s guests were David Reynolds, author of Mightier Than The Sword: Uncle Tom's Cabin and the Battle for America and Annette Gordon-Reed, Winner of the 2009 Pulitzer Prize in History for her book The Hemingses of Monticello: An American Family.

The discussion, which included listener participation, covered the book's legacy, from the controversial character of Uncle Tom to the abolitionist activism of Harriet Beecher Stowe. Many credit Stowe, a 19th Century white woman, with authoring a narrative that influenced the abolishment of slavery in America. Who would have ever imagined that an anti-slavery novel written by a White woman in 19^th Century America could have scholars suggesting it “helped lay the groundwork for the Civil War”?

Tonight as I listened intently to callers celebrate the novel and its influence on individuals (both Black and White), politics, and the literary community, I could not help but think about the many literary works I have read over the years and how so many of them influenced me and the world around me. From Lorraine Hansberry’s To Be Young Gift and Black, which told me I was someone whose talents and unique perspectives could change the world, to John Steinbeck’s The Grapes of Wrath, which told me that we all struggle, we all need our loved ones and at the end of the day…in America those with money (power) can run over those without it. Hmmm…while Steinbeck’s story is set in the 1930’s, it could have easily been written in the past few years –poor people driven out of their homes as part of “progress”. Sound familiar?

There are countless written works that have stay with me years after I read them. They haven’t all be “deep”. But after reading each one, I was in some way changed. Whether optimism, anger, warmth (I love a great romance!), or empowerment from new knowledge that influenced my personal and/or professional achievements, there was an impact. I read words and something magical happened! No wonder during my childhood I spent countless hours reading books (as my sisters watched TV and played games). Now that I think about it, written words and my imagination have always been a powerful combination! I have traveled to faraway places and “seen” what others only imagined.

And now I write for living! Though I spend most of my days writing grant proposals, I ultimately tell stories. I aim to have prospective funders read my words and have a magical experience. Whether down the road or hundreds of miles away, I aim to have the reader “see” the organization accomplishing what we propose and the people whose lives are changed because we could—with their support.

How has the written word affected you? Tell me about the written works that have had the greatest impact on you. Do you write? What do you write about? What is it that you are looking for your readers to “see”?

Michelle Nusum,

The Word Woman