The Blackademic life : academic fiction, higher education, and the Black intellectual / Lavelle Porter.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Porter, Lavelle, author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

American fiction--African American authors--History and criticism.

American fiction.

American fiction--20th century--History and criticism.

American fiction--21st century--History and criticism.

African American college teachers in literature.

College stories, American--History and criticism.

College stories, American.

Universities and colleges in literature.

Education, Higher, in literature.

Physical Description:

1 online resource (212 pages)

Place of Publication:

Evanston, Illinois : Northwestern University Press, [2020]

Summary:

"This book critically examines academic fictions produced by black writers. Porter evaluates academic literature as a space for black writers to produce counternarratives that celebrate the potentials of black intelligence and argue for the importance of black higher education, particularly in the humanistic tradition. Beginning from an examination of W. E. B. Dubois's creative writing as the source of the first black academic novels, Porter looks at the fictional representations of black intellectual life and the expectations that are placed on them to be racial representatives and spokespersons, wether or not they ever intended to be. The final chapter examines blackademics on stage and screen, including the 2014 academic film "Dear White People" and the law professor Viola Davis on the TV show "How to Get Away with Murder"."--Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Introduction: Blackademic lives matter

The overeducation of the Negro: on reading black academic fiction

Educating and uplifting the race, 1876-1919

The new Negro, 1919-1954

Integration and nationalism, 1954-1980

Culture wars and capitalism, 1980-present

Conclusion: Blackademics on-screen.

Notes:

Description based on print version record.

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

0-8101-4101-9