I absolutely love Barbara Christen’s essay The Race for Theory. One thing that I really agree with was the idea that critics too often rush to put a label on things. One thing that has always bothered me was that it always seems as though critics are—in a way—the one’s with no literary talent (at least not anymore), yet they critique and criticize those who actually put themselves out there with their literature. Critics also seem obsessed with putting a label or a name on everything. I think it may be the need to understand that which is “foreign” to them. But in doing this, many critics seem to translate others ideas into a language that few can understand. Thus, critics theorize about African American literature, put a label on their literature, than translate that label into something that few can understand. Thus the original purpose of the literature is nearly washed out, and something that was meant to set others free, critics seem to turn into something that only suppresses.
One other thing that I enjoyed about Christen’s essay was what she had to say on pg. 353, “I was supposed to know them, while they had no interest in knowing me.” Here, Christen seems to have pin pointed one of the ways that whites seem to suppress others the most. White’s (at least in a historical context) expect people to focus on them, serve them… while not really having any concern for anyone else. This idea is important to realize because it is an ideology that still seems to be present today—America is the best, American ideas are the best, America can solve other people’s problems—we are still an individualist society. Americans still expect others to know them, and they still have very little concern with knowing others.
Tuesday, February 26, 2008
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Truth
I found last Tuesday's discussion on Structuralism and Post-Structuralism incredibly interesting. I do understand the idea that there is no absolute truth, just the name we put on something. But when the Post-Structuralist moved this idea to social and racial concepts, my mind is truly boggled.
I understand the idea that beautiful is what we say it is. And that if we, as a society decide that something should be in style, than it is in style. The problem (for me) with race falling into Post-Structuralism, is that then as a collective society, at one point or another, we would have to had decided that white is better. Now, the thing that I have a hard time understanding here, is that that means that other races, other than white, would have had to concede to this idea at one point or another. TO be continued…
I understand the idea that beautiful is what we say it is. And that if we, as a society decide that something should be in style, than it is in style. The problem (for me) with race falling into Post-Structuralism, is that then as a collective society, at one point or another, we would have to had decided that white is better. Now, the thing that I have a hard time understanding here, is that that means that other races, other than white, would have had to concede to this idea at one point or another. TO be continued…
Tuesday, February 12, 2008
Violence
Question: Using the first two novels of the course as examples, how do you see suffering and/or violence operating in African American literature?
Thus far suffering and/or violence seems to play an essential part in African American literature. Larsen's novella seems to portray suffering and Baldwin's collection of short stories seems to mostly portray violence.
In Quicksand, Helga Crane suffers immensely from lack of contentment and struggle to find an identity. She suffers because of the battle that she has within herself, and also because of the difficulty that society places of her because she is mixed. Larsen makes it apparent that, at least for the time being, writing about the African American experience includes writing about suffering.
However, where Larsen seems to mostly delve into human suffering, Baldwin explores both suffering and violence. Baldwin writes about what is real to the African American experience as far as he knows it. And what Baldwin knows (or seems to know) is a life intertwined with suffering and violence. It is important to note, however, that Baldwin does not simply explore violence within (or toward) the African American culture, but violence as a human culture. His short stories are careful to not neglect those outside his own race and the horror that can come from the human spirit. It is also important to note that suffering and violence are nearly essential to African American literature because it is what they, as a race, were forced to endure for so long. At least as far as one can tell from Baldwin the difference in the suffering of a grown white man and a grown black man is that the suffering of a grown white man seems self-inflicted (I am thinking of the white man in “Going to Meet the Man” here), whereas the suffering that a grown black man experiences seems to be because of what the white man has forced upon him. The same goes for violence, the white man is committing the violent acts and the black man is the one whom the violent acts are being carried out on.
In the end, suffering and/or violence seems to play an essential role in African American literature for two reasons. First, suffering and/or violence is something that all experience, thus it is a part of the “human experience”. And so whether or not it is Larsen writing about Helga Crane’s self-inflicted problems or Baldwin writing about poor Sonny suffering seems to be the one thing that all can count on as being universal. Violence also seems to play an essential role in African American literature, then, because it is apart of African American history. As so brutally described by Baldwin, African American’s history is enveloped with violent acts being carried out on them. It is only “natural” then that violence would play an important part in African American literature.
Thus far suffering and/or violence seems to play an essential part in African American literature. Larsen's novella seems to portray suffering and Baldwin's collection of short stories seems to mostly portray violence.
In Quicksand, Helga Crane suffers immensely from lack of contentment and struggle to find an identity. She suffers because of the battle that she has within herself, and also because of the difficulty that society places of her because she is mixed. Larsen makes it apparent that, at least for the time being, writing about the African American experience includes writing about suffering.
However, where Larsen seems to mostly delve into human suffering, Baldwin explores both suffering and violence. Baldwin writes about what is real to the African American experience as far as he knows it. And what Baldwin knows (or seems to know) is a life intertwined with suffering and violence. It is important to note, however, that Baldwin does not simply explore violence within (or toward) the African American culture, but violence as a human culture. His short stories are careful to not neglect those outside his own race and the horror that can come from the human spirit. It is also important to note that suffering and violence are nearly essential to African American literature because it is what they, as a race, were forced to endure for so long. At least as far as one can tell from Baldwin the difference in the suffering of a grown white man and a grown black man is that the suffering of a grown white man seems self-inflicted (I am thinking of the white man in “Going to Meet the Man” here), whereas the suffering that a grown black man experiences seems to be because of what the white man has forced upon him. The same goes for violence, the white man is committing the violent acts and the black man is the one whom the violent acts are being carried out on.
In the end, suffering and/or violence seems to play an essential role in African American literature for two reasons. First, suffering and/or violence is something that all experience, thus it is a part of the “human experience”. And so whether or not it is Larsen writing about Helga Crane’s self-inflicted problems or Baldwin writing about poor Sonny suffering seems to be the one thing that all can count on as being universal. Violence also seems to play an essential role in African American literature, then, because it is apart of African American history. As so brutally described by Baldwin, African American’s history is enveloped with violent acts being carried out on them. It is only “natural” then that violence would play an important part in African American literature.
Thursday, February 7, 2008
Class discussion
The first time I ever read James Baldwin was in an introductory course here at WSU. I read "Sonny's Blues" for my class and was frankly bored. This time it was different. Perhaps there is something to having matured a bit, or maybe it was understanding Baldwin in a different way, but given the honesty that Baldwin brings to his work--I simply do not see how one could even begin to negatively criticize "Going to Meet the Man." I feel as though criticizing his work would be like criticizing the truth.
It was discussed in class that "Going to Meet the Man" was not an immediate success. But the power of Baldwin's work is in his ability to embody different people, different races, different point of views and exploit them for what they really are. He looks into the beauty as well as the ugliness of the human spirit. I believe that this is why he was not immediately accepted and liked. It is a difficult thing for one face the worst part of ourselves. Humans tend to look at other's flaws to escape facing their own flaws. Baldwin forces the reader to face the ugliness of their heart, and the reader is often embarrassed by the revelation. For an example, in the last short story when Baldwin discusses the family picnic and how the families would get together to watch a lynching I am both horrified and terribly afraid that I too could ever be part of such travesties. I would like to think that as even a young child I would be horrified to have grown up in such a setting, that I would be the one who would stand up and realize that what my parents, what those in my community were doing is wrong. But the truth be told, even if I thought it was wrong, I do not know whether or not I could be brave enough to face the giants.
I think this is something that the Baldwin forces us to confront. Who are we in the story? Are we the brave one, or the coward? What have we built are identity on? In my opinion it is quite clear why those who first read Baldwin didn’t like him (or at least his stories). It is most likely because they didn’t want to read the truth. It is ugly and it is embarrassing as to what humans in a “civilized world” act like. The tables are turned and the reader is forced to realize that most of us—when it comes to injustice—have blood on our hands.
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