Ulysses in Black: Ralph Ellison, Classicism, and African American Literature (Wisconsin Studies in Classics) - Softcover

Rankine, Patrice D.

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0299220044 ISBN 13: 9780299220044

Publisher: University of Wisconsin Press, 2008

Synopsis

In this groundbreaking work, Patrice D. Rankine asserts that the classics need not be a mark of Eurocentrism, as they have long been considered. Instead, the classical tradition can be part of a self-conscious, prideful approach to African American culture, esthetics, and identity. Ulysses in Black demonstrates that, similar to their white counterparts, African American authors have been students of classical languages, literature, and mythologies by such writers as Homer, Euripides, and Seneca.

Ulysses in Black closely analyzes classical themes (the nature of love and its relationship to the social, Dionysus in myth as a parallel to the black protagonist in the American scene, misplaced Ulyssean manhood) as seen in the works of such African American writers as Ralph Ellison, Toni Morrison, and Countee Cullen. Rankine finds that the merging of a black esthetic with the classics—contrary to expectations throughout American culture—has often been a radical addressing of concerns including violence against blacks, racism, and oppression. Ultimately, this unique study of black classicism becomes an exploration of America’s broader cultural integrity, one that is inclusive and historic.

Outstanding Academic Title, Choice Magazine

About this title

About the Author

Patrice D. Rankine is associate professor of classics and director of the Interdisciplinary Program in Classics at Purdue University.

Edition details

• Publisher: University of Wisconsin Press
• Publication date: 2008
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0299220044
• ISBN 13: 9780299220044
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 272