Of Dreams Deferred, Dead or Alive: African Perspectives on African-American Writers

by Femi Ojo Ade

Overview

This is the first collection of essays in which African critics present an in-depth study of African-American writers. These prominent critics from different African countries and backgrounds bring an important perspective to the complex relationship between African Americans and Africa. Through provocative readings of prominent African-American writers, the contributors provide insights into contemporary African-American issues. This collection offers a rare opportunity to view African opinions on what it means to be African American.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780313264757
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	06/30/1996
Series:	Contributions in Afro-American and African Studies: Contemporary Black Poets , #180
Pages:	208
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.62(d)
Lexile:	1390L (what's this?)

About the Author

FEMI OJO-ADE is Professor of French at St. Mary's College of Maryland. He is the author of René Maran, The Black Frenchman, Analytic Index of Présence Africaine, On Black Culture, as well as the novel, Home, Sweet, Sweet Home.

Table of Contents

Acknowledgments
Introduction by Femi Ojo-Ade
Africa and America: A Question of Continuities, Cleavage, and Dreams Deferred by Femi Ojo-Ade
W.E.B. Du Bois: The Man and His Vision of Africa for Africans by F. Ugboaja Ohaegbulam
Langston Hughes and Africa by Eddie Omotayo Asgill
Richard Wright: A Dubious Legacy by Chimalum Nwankwo
Claude McKay: The Tragic Solitude of an Exiled Son of Africa by Femi Ojo-Abe
Another African Artist's Wayward Thoughts on Eugene Redmond's Poetry by Tess Onwueme
Branches of the Same Tree: African and African-American Poetry by Tanure Ojaide
Notions and Nuances: Africa in the Works of James Baldwin by Ezenwa Ohaeto
Reviewing Gloria Naylor: Toward a Neo-African Critique by Vincent Odamtten
Creative African Memory: Some Oral Sources of Toni Morrison's Song of Solomon by Ousseynou Traore
The Circle of Meaning: Paule Marshall, Modernism and the Masks of History by Simon Gikandi
Homesick and Eurocentric? Alice Walker's Africa by Mwîkali Kîeti
"I is": Toni Morrison, the Past and Africa by Chimalum Nwankwo
Afterword: What's in a Name? by Femi Ojo-Ade

Editorial Reviews

Thirteen essays present analyses by African scholars on African American writings concerning Africa. Some themes include similarities and influences between African-American and African writers; the theme of women and their conditions in society; the problem of slavery, colonialism, and neocolonialism; writing as an act of atonement; and the rejection of and connection to Africa by African-American writers. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

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