''The Word in Black and White'' - Reading 'Race'' in American Literature, 1638-1867

Zusatztext Timely...An exemplary work of cultural history and literary criticism....A sophisticated authoritative book valuable to specialists and advanced students. Klappentext Nelson provides a study of the ways in which Anglo-American authors constructed "race" in their works from the time of the first British colonists through the period of the Civil War. She focuses on some eleven texts! ranging from widely-known to little-considered! that deal with therelations among Native! African! and Anglo-Americans! and places her readings in the historical! social! and material contexts of an evolving U.S. colonialism and internal imperialism. Nelson shows how a novel such as The Last of the Mohicans sought to reify the Anglo historical past andsimultaneously suggested strategies that would serve Anglo-Americans against Native Americans as the frontier pushed further west. Concluding her work with a reading of Harriet Jacobs's Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl Nelson shows how that text undercuts the racist structures of the pre-CivilWar period by positing a revised model of sympathy that authorizes alternative cultural perspectives and requires Anglo-Americans to question their own involvement with racism. Zusammenfassung Nelson provides a study of the ways in which white American authors constructed `race' in their works from the time of the first colonists up to the period of the Civil War. She focuses on some eleven texts, including The Last of the Mohicans, Melville's Benito Cereno, and Harriet Jacobs's Incident in the Life of a Slave Girl.

Product details

• Authors: Dana Nelson, Dana D. Nelson, Dana D. (Assistant Professor of English Nelson, Stephanie Nelson, Nelson Dana D.
• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Languages: English
• Product format: Hardback
• Released: 02.01.1992
• EAN: 9780195065923
• ISBN: 978-0-19-506592-3
• No. of pages: 206
• Subjects: Humanities, art, music > Linguistics and literary studies > General and comparative literary studies; Social sciences, law, business > Sociology > Social structure research; USA, Ethnic Studies, English, LITERARY CRITICISM / American / General, LITERARY CRITICISM / Modern / 19th Century, LITERARY CRITICISM / Modern / General, c 1800 to c 1900, 19th century, c 1800 to c 1899, 18th century, c 1700 to c 1799, Literary studies: c 1800 to c 1900, 17th century, c 1600 to c 1699, United States of America, USA, Literary studies: c 1500 to c 1800, Literary studies: c 1600 to c 1800, C 1600 To C 1700, C 1700 To C 1800, SOCIAL SCIENCE / Cultural & Ethnic Studies / General