The Oxford Anthology of African-American Poetry.The Oxford Anthology of African-American Poetry Edited by Arnold Rampersad Arnold Rampersad (born 13 November 1941)is an acclaimed biographer and literary critic. The first volume his Life Of Langston Hughes was a Pulitzer Prize finalist. He was born in Trinidad. and Hilary Herbold Oxford University Press, October 2005 $32.50, ISBN ISBN abbr. International Standard Book Number ISBN International Standard Book Number ISBN n abbr (= International Standard Book Number) → ISBN m 0-195-12563-0 The business of canon building is serious. A kind of tightrope walk where the line between inclusion and exclusion can be tenuous. Arnold Rampersad, the senior editor of The Oxford Anthology of African American African American Multiculture A person having origins in any of the black racial groups of Africa. See Race. Poetry, writes that in compiling this collection, "We would not include a poem simply because it was thought to be of historical importance, or of some other significance, if we saw it as also technically flawed in some obvious way. One result of this decision is that many familiar poems will not be found in this collection." On one level, this collection, by a major canon builder, Oxford, is refreshing. Organized thematically rather than historically to reflect the life and culture of African Americans, the text includes poets who have not made appearances in other canon builders, like the Norton anthologies. Keorapetse Kgositsile Keorapetse William Kgositsile (b. September 19, 1938 in Johannesburg) is a South African poet and political activist, and was an influential member of the African National Congress in the 1960s and 1970s. , Naomi Long Cllr Naomi Rachel Long MLA (born December 12 1971) is a Northern Ireland politician. She is Member of the Legislative Assembly for Belfast East and Deputy Leader of the Alliance Party. Madgett, Pat Parker, Sterling Plumpp, Lamont Steptoe and Afaa Michael Weaver provide welcome and necessary entries. The text leaves out work from influential poets such as Haiti R. Madhubuti, Ishmael Reed, Ntozake Shange and Alice Walker. Were the poems of these writers technically flawed in some "obvious way?" Certainly, their work addresses the themes of African American literature African American literature is the body of literature produced in the United States by writers of African descent. The genre traces its origins to the works of such late 18th century writers as Phillis Wheatley and Olaudah Equiano, reached early high points with slave narratives , so why these omissions? Again, this is the flaw with most anthologies. Who gets to decide what's important and what's not? Overall, the collection is worth the investment. The thematic units reveal the nuances of the African American experience, and the Introduction by Professor Rampersad is lucid and offers a good overview of black poetry in the United States. |
|
||||||||||||||||
Printer friendly
Cite/link
Email
Feedback
Reader Opinion