Literary Adaptations in Black American Cinema: Expanded Edition

A comprehensive analysis of the ways in which the black American experience has been depicted in film adaptations of popular literature.

The cinematic representation of blacks, especially in silent and early film, was shaped not only by the sentimental racism of the culture but also by the popular literature that distorted black experience and restricted black characters to minor, stereotyped roles. By contrast, in the works of black writers from Oscar Micheaux to Toni Morrison, the black ex...