Of One Blood, or The Hidden Self

by Pauline Elizabeth Hopkins

Of One Blood is the last of four novels written by Pauline Hopkins. She is considered by some to be "the most prolific African-American woman writer and the most influential literary editor of the first decade of the twentieth century, though she is one of the lesser known literary figures of the much lauded Harlem Renaissance. Of One Blood first appeared in serial form in Colored American Magazine in the November and December 1902 and the January 1903 issues of the publication, during the four-year period that Hopkins served as its editor.

Hopkins tells the story of Reuel Briggs, a medical student who

couldn't care less about being black and appreciating African history, but finds himself in Ethiopia on an archeological trip. His motive is to raid the country of lost treasures -- which he does find in the ancient land. However, he discovers much more than he bargained for: the painful truth about blood, race, and the half of his history that was never told. Hopkins wrote the novel intending, in her own words, to "raise the stigma of degradation from [the Black] race." The title, Of One Blood, refers to the biological kinship of all human beings.

Genres: Fiction, Classics, Horror, Science Fiction, Fantasy, African American, School

Kindle Edition

First published January 1, 1902

About the author

Pauline Elizabeth Hopkins (1859 – August 13, 1930) was a prominent African-American novelist, journalist, playwright, historian, and editor. She is considered a pioneer in her use of the romantic novel to explore social and racial themes. Her work reflects the influence of W. E. B. Du Bois.

She also wrote under the pseudonym Sarah A. Allen.

Reviews

[Jennifer ~ TarHeelReader · Rating 4 out of 5]

Have you heard of Pauline Hopkins? She is considered by many to be “the most prolific African-American writer and the most influential literary editor” of her time. I’m grateful to know her name and work now.

Of One Blood is the last novel she wrote, penned during the early 20th century. It’s a gothic sci fi horror novel, slim on pages, but high on message and content. The main character is a medical student in Ethiopia on an archaeological trip. In this horror novel, perhaps where you’d find it unexpected, there are powerful messages about race and untold history.

Of One Blood is a little offbeat and quirky in its writing, and originally published in serial form, it’s a reading experience with beautiful imagery, important history, and a powerful, timeless message.

I received a gifted copy.

Many of my reviews can also be found on my blog: www.jennifertarheelreader.com and instagram: www.instagram.com/tarheelreader

[Nancy Oakes · Rating 4 out of 5]

I'm going 3.5 rounded up to 4. To be very honest, I didn't love this story per se, but the ideas transcend plot turning it into something visionary. And that I did enjoy.

full post here:
http://www.oddlyweirdfiction.com/2021...

About the author, writer Nisi Shawl says that Hopkins

"is in some ways the foremother of Octavia E. Butler, and Tanarive Due, and many of today's leading science fiction, fantasy, and horror authors -- primarily because she's another African-descended woman using a popular genre to write speculatively about hard philosophical questions, surprising truths, and the wonders of the occult."

At the beginning of this novel Reuel Briggs is contemplating "the riddle of whence and whither," which not too much later he will say the solving of which is his life; it is "that alone" that he lives for. I marked this passage and after finishing this book, came back to it, finding it beyond appropriate given what happens in this story.

I don't think this is a novel that you read so much for plot -- keeping in mind that this story was written in 1902, it must have been positively mind-boggling at the time, perhaps holding out some measure of hope and redemption to its readers. It is a visionary novel that in the long run transcends plot, and in that sense it remains an important work still relevant today. Of One Blood moves well beyond the combination (as Shawl notes in the introduction) of Victorian society novel and lost-world narrative to explore "contemporary racial issues" through a variety of lenses, ultimately positing a hidden truth or two that upends everything and has, as she says "cosmologically expansive implications." I don't wish to divulge how this comes about, but if you really want to know, you can go to Tor's website where she has written pretty much the same material that appears in her introduction to this book. I will caution that it gives away the show so that reader awe may be diminished, and the same goes if you have this particular edition of the novel and you read the introduction before launching into the story.

I'll also note that my edition is part of the Horror Writers Association series of Haunted Library of Horror Classics and that across the top of the front cover it says that the book is from "the first great female horror writer of color." I'd call it more speculative fiction myself, but the recognition of Pauline Hopkins and her work is well deserved and very long overdue.

[Warren Fournier · Rating 5 out of 5]

I don't even know where to begin unraveling this book for those of you who haven't read this yet. There is so much going on that you'd think it would be hard to spoil, but there's so many twists and turns that I can hardly talk about it at all without spoilers! Similarly, I like to think about the messages and themes of books and work them out for both you and me on this platform, but that would make this review more ridiculously long than they usually are! Which is even more amazing considering how short this novel is!

All I can say is you've got to read this one for yourself. The summaries I've seen and the little marketing blurbs don't really give you the whole picture. I've also heard it referred to as pulp fiction. I can sort of see why one might say that, because it does get a little over-the-top and corny, especially toward the end when everyone is talking like they are from the King James Bible. But to call it pulp fiction also gives people the wrong impression. This is deeply thoughtful, elegant, and mystical weird fiction with supernatural elements, animal magnetism, hidden cities, lost civilizations, reincarnation, romantic intrigue, American race relations, inner space, psychiatry, philosophy of mind, and so much more! Expect a more dream-like quality to the narrative, almost like a Lucio Fulci film. Be prepared for quite a bit of academia too, because there's a whole chapter devoted to explaining the history of the Kingdom of Cush and how Ethiopian civilization was antecedent to the Egyptian. I found it very interesting and bold, since this was written during a time of Egypt-mania in a predominantly Anglo-centric world that tried to justify colonialism and imperialism. So don't let your eyes cross during this part, even if you are not interested in history or Biblical legend, because it is kind of the key to the whole narrative.

But I've already said too much. If you don't know anything about this story already, the best thing you can do is go in blind and experience this roller coaster fresh like I did. Then do yourself a favor and read a little about the life and work of the author, Pauline Hopkins. I think you'll come away wondering why the hell you never heard of this book before.

It's available for free because it's in the public domain, but there are several nicely done recent publications with some academic discussion and analysis that I highly recommend you support. The copy I read was from the Radium-Age science fiction series by MIT Press.

This is another great example of why I read and study this period of science fiction and fantasy as a passion. The newly developing genres were brimming with such creative and brave people like Pauline Hopkins that literally shaped our world today, yet for the most part, we've forgotten them. I'm thrilled to do my very small part in contributing to the memory of these great masters.

Curious? Then give it a try tonight and see what you think.

[Yair · Rating 3 out of 5]

While not the greatest of novels Hopkins' "Of One Blood" does just enough (I won't say right, but I'll at least say well) that it warrants itself a read. The prose is gorgeous (though given the pulp-y kind of story Hopkins decides to tell it almost comes off as funny in some respects) and story itself, while definitely overwrought, is not without importance given the zeitgeist out of which Hopkins was writing. I won't go to far with this review simply because I don't have much else to say about the novel. I won't call it a trifle or a bauble of American literary history as it is far more important than that. But I will say that this is an unexpectedly engaging (if at times soap opera dramatic) telling of something that, in a lot of ways, really feels like it prefigures the likes of Flash Gordon, Tarzan, and much else of the pulp genre. Worth a look for its history and its prescience (though more as regards literary genre conventions than its own troubled history, just my two cents).

[Ronald Morton · Rating 4 out of 5]

The slogan of the hour is “Keep the Negro down!” but who is clear enough in vision to decide who hath black blood and who hath it not? Can any one tell? No, not one; for in His own mysterious way He has united the white race and the black race in this new continent. By the transgression of the law He proves His own infallibility: “Of one blood have I made all nations of men to dwell upon the whole face of the earth,” is as true today as when given to the inspired writers to be recorded. No man can draw the dividing line between the two races, for they are both of one blood!

I love lists, especially lists of books. Book Riot had an irresistible list earlier this year: 5 Bizarre 19th Century American Novels - of which this was one of them (but of course I just had to track them all down).

This actually operates pretty squarely within the realm of adventure lit (though showing glimpses of pulp/weird fiction) - so it straddles the line between Poe/Doyle and, say, Robert E Howard. It has a strong thread of the supernatural (and some eye rolling mysticism) along with an archeological expedition, murderous plots, hidden tribes, and ancient royal bloodlines. It also has a solid dose of social/racial commentary - fairly light today, but it would have been considerably more contentious in 1902-1903 when this was published.

I enjoyed this a great deal, it wasn't quite as bizarre as I'd hoped, and it wasn't quite as pointedly social-commentary either, but it is a great piece of adventure lit, and well worth checking out.

[Jada · Rating 3 out of 5]

When I closed this book this afternoon, I cannot describe how genuinely perplexed I was. Probably the most confusing book I've ever read. Not bad per say. It has plenty of interesting plot points. It just makes little sense. I am looking forward to discussing this book in my group research meeting (aka us shit talking with our professor).

[Cliff's Dark Gems · Rating 4 out of 5]

Wow, I am pleasantly surprised by how much I enjoyed this strange story. At once an unusual ghost story, adventure yarn, also exploring the "racial" origin of mankind in Ethiopia, it is a little all over the place.
Fortunately, for me, I found her prose mesmerizing and engaging for the most part, which held the strange "plot" twists and tuns together. However, I did find some of her ramblings on Ethiopian history, religion and the origin of mankind overly descriptive... fascinating but a bit long-winded.
Still, well worth a read!

[Brian M · Rating 4 out of 5]

As the first novel by an African-American writer to feature both the setting of Africa and African characters, Pauline Hopkins’ Of One Blood is of immense historical value. Of One Blood is also considered to be among the earliest African-American speculative or science-fiction. It features a technologically and culturally superior Ethopia as its main character’s ancestral home, revealed in prophetic mysticism and gothic occurrences while commenting on issues of ancestry and race in early 19th Century America. The novel can be described as domestic romance, mystic adventure, and racial discovery tale.

As many have stated, and as can be expected with the genre, this book has serious issues when pressed under modern conventions of plot, most of which stem from its purpose as an “Afrocentric Fantasy for a Black Middle Class Audience.” The novel certainly succeeds in offering its readership ownership of a historical past that equaled western myth, and a cathartic vindication for the dystopian remnants of slavery through Reconstruction. For more on this, I would recommend John Gruesser’s critical article: “Of One Blood: Creating an Afrocentric Fantasy for a Black Middle Class Audience.”

I would recommend this to anyone interested in early 19th century African American authors, domestic fiction, adventure novels, early speculative fiction, and early American science fiction.

[Villa Park Public Library · Rating 5 out of 5]

This story was originally published by chapter in a literary magazine, Colored American Magazine, in 1902. The author uniquely blends the typically opposing styles of realism and romanticism with her experiences as a Black woman growing up in America in the 19th century. This intricately plotted narrative is issue-oriented and moves at an intensifying pace that keeps the reader intrigued with each new chapter. The twists, themes, and richly detailed prose make for an engaging read.

Check this book out at the Villa Park Public Library!

[Dominique Dyitt · Rating 5 out of 5]

Early works of a generous Sci fi author among many things. You will have to read it to understand the imagination and depth of the author. Keep the period in which it was written in mind.

[Amy H. Sturgis · Rating 5 out of 5]

This is a remarkable novel. I will be posting a more in-depth review soon and also dedicating an upcoming "Looking Back on Genre History" segment on the StarShipSofa podcast to this work.

[David Agranoff · Rating 4 out of 5]

Pauline Hopkins is someone who more people should know. She was a historical figure in African American literature. I only heard of her because of the Martian Trilogy book recently released by Amazing Selects, which included a history of the fiction inserts in the Black newspapers, Hopkins edited those over the years, and this novel appeared in them. She was a journalist, Playwright, historian, and novelist.

She wrote plays and novels about race issues, the underground railroad and of course this novel with Sci-fi elements 24 years before the term was coined. first appeared in serial form in The Colored American Magazine from November 1902 to November 1903, during the four-year period in which Hopkins served as its editor. It has vibes that will remind readers of Frankenstein, Faust, and adventure pulps.

Of One Blood is the story of a black medical student who is not exactly interested in his roots until he is given a chance to join an expedition to Ethiopia. He intends to steal treasures but ends up getting a better understanding of the human race in general.

It is spoiler, but he ends up the king of an African Utopia. It is a fascinating novel highlighting the thoughts and feelings of educated African Americans in an era just after slavery. There are ghosts, hidden kingdoms, and more. This storytelling is dated, but the book is important. I am more excited about learning about the author than the story, but really excited I read about it.

[Totahly · Rating 3 out of 5]

“Arabs were everywhere; veiled omen looked at the Christians with melting eyes above their wrappings.”

“The astonishing nature of the startling problems he had unearthed, the agitation and indignation aroused in him by the heartless usage to which his patient must have been exposed…”

“Westward the vessel sped-westward while the sun showed only as a crimson ball in its Arabian setting. . .ending in the grey, angry, white-capped waves of the Atlantic in winter.”

Of One Blood: Or, the Hidden Self: The Givens Collection was a sci-fi historical novel about medical student Reuel Briggs who didn’t appreciate his black cultural roots or that of African history for that matter. He then travels to Ethiopia to be rudely awakened by painful reality of the historical black race. While this was the only one in the collection that I read, I can’t help but wonder if the first 3 would help give me a better foundation. Either way, it was written in prose and was beautiful-surprisingly loved it. It was one of the first novels I read in prose. Of One Blood is metaphorical because it refers to all as one human race, with one blood. It was mystical, adventurers and romantical in its’ own right. A good read.

[Will · Rating 2 out of 5]

*1.75

I have a LOT of respect for this book. Black female author writing a book in 1902 about flipping the script of white superiority to black superiority by means of black origins of all our society and the cradle of humanity and all that stuff with the overall message being that race is a construct and treating people differently by it makes literally no sense. Like the fact that this was originally published just 40 years after the civil war is actually crazy to me. And for the audacity and the bravery to write this is stunning.

However, I don't think the writing holds up at all. The characters are one dimensional, the plot is all over the place, things come out of nowhere, and I was struggling to tie all the threads together. Additionally, the writing itself is much too archaic for me in a way that is not true of other writing around this time period.

I'm glad I have an awareness of this work and the author, but it fell extremely flat for me beyond just the general ideas and themes behind it

[Haley Shannon · Rating 5 out of 5]

Such an incredible book. The writing style is a little unusual, but the story is so incredible and serves as a beautifully poignant commentary on black lives in America after the abolitionist movement. Magic, ghosts, visions, hidden cities, and twists that you'll never see coming make this story both a fascinating adventure as well as an insight into a deeply important perspective.

[Nina The Wandering Reader · Rating 3 out of 5]

“…for in His own mysterious way He has united the white race and the black race in this new continent. By the transgression of the law He proves His own infallibility: ‘Of one blood have I made all nations of men to dwell upon the whole face of the earth,’ is as true today as when given to the inspired writers to be recorded. No man can draw the dividing line between the two races, for they are both of one blood!”

I brought this book home from the library based on the cover and premise, and boy was it an experience!

Published in 1902 by Pauline Elizabeth Hopkins–believed to be America’s “first great female horror writer of color”—OF ONE BLOOD is a blend of genres. It’s fantasy, a murder mystery, and a romance. It’s a ghost story, a tale of rags to riches, and a hotpot of family drama. There’s a journey across the sea, tomb raids, and betrayals.

The story follows a talented Black medical student passing for white in Boston, Massachusetts. He is given an archeological opportunity by a friend to travel to Ethiopia in search of wealth. What he learns when he arrives on the African continent opens his eyes to a rich heritage and history he’s long avoided.

I found this to be an absolutely fascinating look into themes of racial identity, spirituality, science, and history. But good god was there DRAMA!!!!! Some of the twists and scandals had me clutching my pearls, y’all!!! I can only imagine what the readers of the early 20th century thought!

While some readers of today might find this book to be slow with flowery writing (it was published in 1902 after all) I’m personally glad to have read it as a person who loves classic literature and is surprised to have never heard of author Pauline Hopkins (I went down a rabbit hole learning more about this incredible woman)! It’s now a treasured reading experience for my Black History Month!

[Abby]

first book i read in a while where i actually read it but could not tell you what happened

[Delaney · Rating 1 out of 5]

Confused.

[Matt Hickey · Rating 5 out of 5]

What a fascinating book. I'll get it out of the way: it's the first horror novel by a woman of color originally published in 1903. There are parts I loved and parts I was confounded by, but I'll be describing this book for the rest of my life. I'm a sucker for atmosphere and the autumnal university setting and wistful students practicing contact with the afterlife hooked me. And the protagonist, a white passing medical student with DaNgErOuS ideas about the occult, beats racist ol' Lovecraft's "Herbert West Reanimator" by a good 20 years. The gothic romance and betrayal between the three main characters was the core of the story for me, so when it drifts to the proto-Wakanda hidden Ethiopian kingdom I have to admit I was a little disappointed. Which feels crazy to say! Arguably that's the hook of the story, the "fireworks factory" the audience can't wait to get to. But even with my frustrations I found this a fascinating book to talk about and I was glad to see that this edition includes a discussion guide since this is a book that supports so many different readings and conversations. I really hope it continues to be discovered.

[Jade · Rating 4 out of 5]

Published in serial form in 1902 and 1903, this book used the science of it’s time, similar to Mary Shelley, to begin a tale of Reuel Briggs, a medical student attuned to the art of ‘mesmerism.’ He brings back a young woman, Dianthe, from ‘death’ by applying his research to an actual person and of course falls in love. His best friend also falls in love and under the guise of being helpful, sends Briggs off on a quest to Africa, with nefarious schemes to allow his path to Dianthe to become wide open. Briggs discovers a hidden city and more than he bargained for with his lineage on his trip and his powers prove useful in uncovering his friend’s deception.
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Pauline Hopkins tells a journeying to Africa tale with a twist and includes arguments for Africans being the first people to roam the earth and shows how arbitrary race divides actually are. It’s interesting to read a book written in the 1900s that has a Wakanda vibe, while feeling in the same vein as a gothic Victorian tale with mesmerism and ghost stories playing a role.

[Karen Kohoutek · Rating 4 out of 5]

This is a really interesting novel (originally serialized in 1902-1903), which ends up fusing the complications of American race relations with an African-based mysticism. Oddly, its mystical premise is not unlike that of the Moorish Science Temple, founded a decade later and finding its biggest success in the '20s, but there's no clear relationship. I imagine a lot of these ideas were just int he air. Anyway, modern readers will note that the early section, about an eccentric medical student, whose experiments on reviving the dead have led to a successful formula for doing so, has strong similarities with Lovecraft's "Herbert West--Reanimator." Lovecraft almost certainly wouldn't have known about this earlier story, and they were probably both taking the idea of Frankenstein and applying it to a contemporary milieu. It's interesting to see, though, how a superficially similar premises can lead to dramatically different works, since this ends up not being at all the focus of Hopkins' novel, which is more about relationships between individuals, and between the present and the past.

[rachel · Rating 3 out of 5]

As a novel of ideas and of excellent scenes of description, this is great and deserves to be labeled a classic. As one unified story, however, it's a wild mishmash of plot that if you have the patience, will mostly come together at the end (albeit with 120% maximum drama that as a modern reader you must either have a taste for, or a familiarity with 19th/20th century serialized potboilers and adventure stories to tolerate). A little Reanimator, a little H. Rider Haggard's She, a little Black Panther. I wish my hopes had not been raised so high for the horror elements in the beginning of the book - the haunted house, the reanimation - because I did feel let down when it became clear this would be more adventure story with spiritual, "beyond the veil of reality" fantastical elements added in.

[Jonathan Stewart · Rating 5 out of 5]

I read the newest SOURCEBOOKS (Poisoned Pen Press) Edition of this book, and know there are lots of different releases, but this one I’m reviewing was part of a release from a series developed to understand general horror and influence throughout history, the HAUNTED LIBRARY OF HORROR CLASSICS. First of all, these books are beautiful. Consistent appeal across volumes with annotations, reading list, notes, introduction, reading club discussion questions, and lots more. The story itself is less of horror, but with ghosts, eerie hypnotism, haunted houses, murder, etc. A classic of Afrofuturism, adventure, romance, mystery, too.

[Mia · Rating 5 out of 5]

Absolutely insane, I love it. Want to read her other books and see if they’re similar. It’s so campy? And also probably inspired Star Wars and Black Panther. I love Hopkin’s mind because I came into this with no knowledge of what it was about and it’s like ghosts! Specters! Reanimation! Everyone’s dying! But no they aren’t! And I loved it. Although I’m still pretty mad about what happened to Dianthe.

[Sersmith · Rating 4 out of 5]

I purchased this book at the Nubia exhibit at Boston’s Museum of Fine Art. (Exhibit recommended if you are in Boston). It was originally published in a magazine and I can easily imagine it published in serial form. I enjoyed it and recommend as worth a read, as historic African American literature.

[Kenneth Sutherland · Rating 3 out of 5]

not to be reductive but its kind of like a victorian black panther with a little bit of incest thrown in at the end

i enjoyed the prose and the premise but the whole narrative is fairly telegraphed (besides the incest which idk why that was a part of the story)

a fairly radical central theme from a black female author especially considering it was published before airplanes were invented

[delmarché · Rating 3 out of 5]

i’m crying, pauline hopkins is fr the original hotep

[Nicolas Lontel · Rating 3 out of 5]

Of One Blood est un roman assez particulier et unique en son genre. À la fois un mélange de roman d'exploration de cités disparues, d'un peu de gothique et de miracles scientifiques, il est assez étonnant de voir que la parution du livre en feuilleton date de 1902 et fut écrit par une femme noire.

Ce qui est moins étonnant vu la teneure des propos et l'importance de souligner certaines réalités de son époque: l'horreur de l'esclavage, la violence de l'idée d'une supériorité d'une race sur une autre, on aborde aussi les questions de "passing" comme personne blanche (et ce qui arrive comme ressort narratif si jamais un autre personne "découvre" que les personnages ne le sont pas vraiment). Il y a aussi, cependant, une certaine idée de la supériorité de la chrétienté (et de mission de convertir des spiritualités païennes) qui passe assez mal aujourd'hui vu quelle semble être assez sérieuse dans le roman. On a toutefois aussi plusieurs des lieux communs des romans d'exploration: un animal sauvage qui s'élance sur le protagoniste et manque de le tuer, un serviteur d'une expédition qui a l'intention de trahir le reste, des passages secrets et des peuples millénaires qui sont cachés du reste du monde et possède des technologies quasi-inimaginable. On a aussi des éléments un peu plus étrange dans ces genres comme un médecin qui arrive à empêcher la mort d'une personnage grâce à une espèce de science magnétique, un vilain gothique qui fait tout pour détruire son entourage et les gens qui pensent être ses ami·es, un héros solitaire, mais pas vraiment, mais pas vraiment héros non plus, une fin qui se précipite un peu avec un peu comme seul résolution une espèce de vengeance.

Bref, c'est un roman qui défit les genres et lieux communs en offrant à des genres souvent pris dans des lieux communs racistes qui en a presque définit les thèmes des directions anti-raciste et une morale d'une seule race humaine. Quelques passages restent assez étranges et la multiplication des intrigues et actions desservent un peu sa lecture, mais c'est une lecture qui reste assez intéressante sur comment les ressorts narratifs et thématiques servent un tout autre objectif que les livres des mêmes genres de la même époques (et dont la production se poursuivra encore pendant une cinquantaine d'années).

[Alice Mander · Rating 4 out of 5]

Really interesting, with a great introduction by Minister Faust. Only reason it got a 4 was I felt it could have been longer but I wonder if the author’s intent was less world building and more manifesto

[tweeds · Rating 3 out of 5]

Gothic, philosophical, existentialist vs humanism, racial identity / all jam packed with words you could only find from miss hopkins herself. Truly an important book to have read & seamlessly ties into modernity