The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man (Paperback)

James Weldon Johnson

ISBN 10: 0393972860 / ISBN 13: 9780393972863

Published by WW Norton & Co, New York, 2015

About this Item

Paperback. Known only as the "Ex-Colored Man," the protagonist in Johnson's novel is forced to choose between celebrating his African American heritage or "passing" as an average white man in a post-Reconstruction America that is rapidly changing. This Norton Critical Edition is based on the 1912 text. It is accompanied by a detailed introduction, explanatory footnotes, and a note on the text. The appendices that follow the novel include materials available in no other edition: manuscript drafts of the final chapters, including the original lynching scene (chapter 10, ca. 1910) and the original ending (chapter 11, ca. 1908). 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. The Norton Critical Edition of this influential Harlem Renaissance novel includes related materials available in no other edition. Shipping may be from our UK warehouse or from our Australian or US warehouses, depending on stock availability.

Seller Inventory # 9780393972863

Bibliographic Details

• Title: The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man (Paperback)
• Publisher: WW Norton & Co, New York
• Publication Date: 2015
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 0393972860
• ISBN 13: 9780393972863
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition: 1st Edition
• Condition: new

About this title

Synopsis

The Norton Critical Edition of this influential Harlem Renaissance novel includes related materials available in no other edition.

Known only as the “Ex-Colored Man,” the protagonist in Johnson’s novel is forced to choose between celebrating his African American heritage or “passing” as an average white man in a post-Reconstruction America that is rapidly changing. This Norton Critical Edition is based on the 1912 text. It is accompanied by a detailed introduction, explanatory footnotes, and a note on the text. The appendices that follow the novel include materials available in no other edition: manuscript drafts of the final chapters, including the original lynching scene (chapter 10, ca. 1910) and the original ending (chapter 11, ca. 1908).

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.
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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.