Introduction: passages to (be)longing -- An African American journey to black diasporic consciousness: Charles Johnson's middle passage -- Early black Atlantic crossing: Lawrence Hill's the book of negroes -- War, trauma, displacement, diaspora: Toni Morrison's and Caryl Phillips's African American soldiers -- Journeys to the heart of empire after World War II: George Lamming's, Caryl Phillips's, and Andrea Levy's Caribbean migrants -- Roots, routes, and returns: Caryl Phillips's, Cecil Foster's, and Edwidge Danticat's Caribbean returnees.
Summary:
Drawing from Caribbean, U.S., Canadian, and British novels, Tuire Valkeakari examines how fiction written in English contributes to and comments upon the continuing transnational constructions of black diasporic identity. Valkeakari argues for the critical role that secular culture in general and fiction in particular play in creating symbolic connections to sustain the idea of a black diasporic community.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.