Jones, Edward P. (1950-…), an African American author, won the 2004 Pulitzer Prize for fiction for his first novel, The Known World (2003). The historical novel is a realistic exploration of slavery in the United States before the American Civil War (1861-1865).
The Known World centers on Henry Townsend, a former slave in Virginia who rises to become a landowner and a slaveowner himself with the assistance of William Robbins, an influential white man in Townsend’s community. Moving back and forth in time, the novel portrays how the institution of slavery damages an entire society, from the slaves to the people who own them. Jones narrates his story objectively, allowing the evils of slavery to reveal themselves realistically, without specially attacking the institution.
Jones has also written two collections of short stories, Lost in the City (1992) and All Aunt Hagar’s Children (2006). The stories in both collections are set in and around Washington, D.C. Most of the characters are black middle-class men and women. The characters try to preserve themselves and their families in a world of drugs, violence, racism, and family crises.
Edward Paul Jones was born on Oct. 5, 1950, in Washington, D.C., where he grew up. He earned a B.A. degree from the College of Holy Cross in Worcester, Massachusetts, in 1972 and an M.F.A. degree from the University of Virginia in 1981.
