eBook

Ulysses in Black

Patrice D. Rankine

2008,2006

Overview

In this groundbreaking work, Patrice D. Rankine asserts that the classics need not be a mark of Eurocentrism, as they have long been considered. Instead, the classical tradition can be part of a self-conscious, prideful approach to African American culture, esthetics, and identity. Ulysses in Black demonstrates that, similar to their white counterparts, African American authors have been students of classical languages, literature, and mythologies by such writers as Homer, Euripides, and Seneca. Ulysses in Black closely analyzes classical themes (the nature of love and its relationship to the social, Dionysus in myth as a parallel to the black protagonist in the American scene, misplaced Ulyssean manhood) as seen in the works of such African American writers as Ralph Ellison, Toni Morrison, and Countee Cullen. Rankine finds that the merging of a black esthetic with the classics—contrary to expectations throughout American culture—has often been a radical addressing of concerns including violence against blacks, racism, and oppression. Ultimately, this unique study of black classicism becomes an exploration of America’s broader cultural integrity, one that is inclusive and historic. Outstanding Academic Title, Choice Magazine

• Publisher: University of Wisconsin Press
• Subject: African American / African American authors / African American Studies / American / American literature / American literature -- African American authors -- Classical influences / American literature -- African American authors -- Greek influences / American literature -- African American authors -- History and criticism / American Studies / Classical influences / Classicism in literature / Comparative literature-Modern and classical / Criticism and interpretation / Ellison, Ralph / Ellison, Ralph -- Criticism and interpretation / Greek influences / History and criticism / Language & Literature / LITERARY CRITICISM / Literature, Comparative / Literature, Comparative -- Modern and classical / Modern and classical / Mythology, Classical, in literature / Odysseus (Greek mythology) in literature
• ISBN: 0299220001, 9780299220006, 0299220044, 9780299220044, 9780299220037, 0299220036