Description
An unusually rich selection of "Backgrounds and Sources" focuses on Johnson's life; the autobiographical inspirations for The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man; the cultural history of the era in which Johnson lived and wrote; the noteworthy reception history for the 1912, 1927, and 1948 editions; and related writings by Johnson. In addition to Johnson, contributors include Eugene Levy, W. E. B. Du Bois, Carl Van Vechten, Blanche W. Knopf, and Victor Weybright among others.
The four critical essays and interpretations in this volume speak to The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man's major themes, among them irony, authorship, passing, and parody. Assessments are provided by Robert B. Stepto, M. Giulia Fabi, Siobhan B. Somerville, and Christina L. Ruotolo.
A chronology of Johnson's life and work and a selected bibliography are also included, as well as six images.
About the Author
Jacqueline Goldsby is Professor of English and African American Studies at Yale University. She is the author of A Spectacular Secret: Lynching in American Life and Literature, winner of the MLA's William S. Scarborough Prize, and of the forthcoming Birth of the Cool: African American Literary Culture of the 1940s and 1950s.
Book Information
ISBN 9780393972863
Author James Weldon Johnson
Format Paperback
Page Count 512
Imprint WW Norton & Co
Publisher WW Norton & Co
Weight(grams) 420g
Dimensions(mm) 216mm * 130mm * 28mm