Week 11

I agree with Toni Morrison when it comes to the significance of African American literature. It is interesting that an entire culture’s art could be systematically denied a place in a country’s literary canon. I’m not sure if it happened for purely racist reasons, although there could very well be elements of racism intruding into the fray. More likely, the perception of African American literature is an extension of slave writings, or writings about slavery. This is perceived as not having the “universal” quality that so often gets applied to white writers. Critics claim that works concerned with slavery are too focused, and too few readers can relate. This is silly. How many inner-city black kids can relate to a stuffy Jane Austen novel or even James Joyce? They are just as excluded from white canon as a member of the high academic community might be from a gritty slave narrative.

The point is that writing is a form of expression, and as such should be judged on its own merits. I think the significance of African American literature is to give a voice to those who traditionally have struggled to find one. That’s what makes the study of African American literature particularly interesting. Not only have these authors had to struggle with the typical demands of writing, but they have also had to combat a system which works to keep them silenced. I hesitate to use the term “alternative” to describe a body of work like this (it’s an alternative to what, exactly?), but I have greatly enjoyed the discovery of authors who would rarely ever get mentioned in an ordinary “American” literature class, and hope to go on to read many more African American authors. The work can compare with any of the traditional canonical authors, in my opinion.