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9780820495309

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« How does Toni Morrison achieve the 'black' sound of her novels, even though she refuses to employ 'eye dialect, ' which is language that looks black as a result of nonstandard grammar, syntax, and spelling? In clear and accessible prose, Ritashona Simpson answers this question by analyzing what Morrison's language does - how it 'acts black.' Drawing on a range of structuralist and post-structuralist theories of language, this book argues persuasively that Morrison's language resolves what had been a dilemma for African American writers throughout the twentieth century as they struggled to render the oral culture literate. 'Black Looks and Black Acts' makes an important and distinctive contribution to Morrison studies.

How does Toni Morrison achieve the 'black' sound of her novels, even though she refuses to employ 'eye dialect,' which is language that looks black as a result of nonstandard grammar, syntax, and spelling? In clear and accessible prose, Ritashona Simpson answers this question by analyzing what Morrison's language does - how it 'acts black.' Drawing on a range of structuralist and post-structuralist theories of language, this book argues persuasively that Morrison's language resolves what had been a dilemma for African American writers throughout the twentieth century as they struggled to render the oral culture literate. 'Black Looks and Black Acts' makes an important and distinctive contribution to Morrison studies. (Professor Cheryl Wall, Rutgers University, New Brunswick)

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The Author: Ritashona Simpson earned a Ph.D. in English literature at Rutgers University. She is now completing a master's degree in literacy and childhood education at Bank Street College. She is also a head teacher at the Harlem International Community School in New York City.

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