非洲美国文学8、AfricanAmericanLiterature.pptVIP

African American Literature I. Background Black literature was once a neglected area of American literary scholarship. The rising interest in it has come about mainly for two reasons: Blacks have made significant contribution to all aspects of American life,and black writers have produced literature of impressive scope and quality; Black literature constitute a major force changing the earlier American literary monolith of the white middle class.It has become an indispensable part of American literature now. II. Literary Development Oral tradition The earliest black literature was oral in the form of songs, ballads, and spirituals. Literature in written form A. poetry It was not until the 1760s that Blacks began to produce literature in written form. Black poetry had its beginning in the late 18th century in “Bars Fight,August 28,1746” by Lucy Terry and in “An Evening though—salvation by Christ”(1761) by Jupiter Hammon. B. Slave narrative was an African American cultural movement of the 1920s and early 1930s centered around the Harlem neighborhood of New York City. A. Several factors laid the groundwork for the movement. B. African American literature and arts surged in the early 1900s. C. Features D. Comments: Jean Toomer poet and novelist Jean Toomer was born in 1894 in Washington, D.C, the son of a Georgian farmer. His experience inspired his book Cane, a book of prose poetry describing the Georgian people and landscape. He saw himself as an individual living above the boundaries of race. Cane James Mercer Langston Hughes poet, playwright, novelist, song writer, biographer, editor, news paper columnist, translator, and lecturer Poet Laureate of Harlem and O. Henry of Harlem Main Works Poetry collections The Weary Blues, 1926 Fine Clothes to the Jew, 1927 The Dream Keeper and Other Poems, 1932 Shakespeare in Harlem, 1942 Novels and short story collections Not Without Laughter, 1930 Non-fiction books I Wonder as I Wander, 1956 1.