Writing African American Women: An Encyclopedia of Literature by and about Women of Color [2 volumes]

by Elizabeth A. Beaulieu

Overview

Women have had a complex experience in African American culture. The first work of its kind, this encyclopedia approaches African American literature from a Women's Studies perspective. While Yolanda Williams Page's Encyclopedia of African American Women Writers provides biographical entries on more than 150 literary figures, this book is much broader in scope. Included are several hundred alphabetically arranged entries on African American women writers, as well as on male writers who have treated women in their works. Entries on genres, periods, themes, characters, historical events, texts, places, and other topics are included as well. Each entry is written by an expert contributor and relates its subject to the overall experience of women in African American literature. Entries cite works for further reading, and the encyclopedia closes with a selected, general bibliography.

African American culture is enormously diverse, and the experience of women in African American society is especially complex. Women were among the first African American writers, and works by black women writers are popular among students and general readers alike. At the same time, African American women have been oppressed, and texts by black male authors represent women in a variety of ways. The first of its kind, this encyclopedia approaches African American literature from a Women's Studies perspective, and thus significantly illuminates the African American cultural experience through literary works.

Included are several hundred alphabetically arranged entries, written by numerous expert contributors. In addition to covering male and female African American authors, the encyclopedia also discusses themes, major works and characters, genres, periods, historical events, places, and other topics.

Included are entries on such authors as:

; Maya Angelou

; James Baldwin

; Frederick Douglass

; Nikki Giovanni

; June Jordan

; Claude McKay

; Ishmael Reed

; Sojourner Truth

; Phillis Wheatley

; And many others.

In addition, the many works discussed include:

; Beloved

; Blanche on the Lam

; Iknow Why the Caged Bird Sings

; The Men of Brewster Place

; Quicksand

; The Street

; Waiting to Exhale

; And many more.

The many topical entries cover:

; Black Feminism

; Black Nationalism

; Conjuring

; Children's and Young Adult Literature

; Detective Fiction

; Epistolary Novel

; Motherhood

; Sexuality

; Spirituality

; Stereotypes

; And many others.

Entries relate their topics to the experience of African American women and cite works for further reading.

Features and Benefits:

; Includes hundreds of alphabetically arranged entries.

; Draws on the work of numerous expert contributors.

; Includes a selected, general bibliography.

; Offers a range of finding aids, such as a list of entries, a guide to related topics, and an extensive index.

; Supports the literature curriculum by helping students analyze major writers and works.

; Supports the social studies curriculum by helping students use literature to understand the experience of African American women.

; Covers the full chronological range of African American literature.

; Fosters a respect for cultural diversity.

; Develops research skills by directing students to additional sources of information.

; Builds bridges between African American history, literature, and Women's Studies.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9780313331961
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Academic
Publication date:	04/30/2006
Edition description:	Two Volumes
Pages:	1040
Product dimensions:	7.50(w) x 10.60(h) x 2.85(d)

About the Author

Elizabeth Ann Beaulieu is an Assistant Professor in the Department of Interdisciplinary Studies, Appalachian State University, and has served as Director of Women's Studies there. Her previous books include The Toni Morrison Encyclopedia (2003), and Black Women Writers and the American Neo-Slave Narrative: Femininity Unfettered (1999), both available from Greenwood Press.

Table of Contents

Introduction

Alphabetical Table of Contents

Thematic Table of Contents

The Encyclopedia

Timeline

Selected Bibliography

Index

What People are Saying About This

Trudier Harris

"Cruical and indispensable. These two words best describe Writing African American Women: An Encyclopedia of Literature by and about Women of Color. Professor Beaulieu has managed, yet again, to enlist the aid of her colleagues in compiling an invaluable tool that makes clear the richness and continually evolving diversity of African American women's literary traditions. From focus on the most famous black women writers to those so little known that their inclusion here might serve as their introduction to a larger reading public, this volume offers material that any reader, teacher, or scholar of African American literature will find essential."

R. Baxter Miller

"The Feminist Encyclopedia of African American Literature is the perfect complement to the forthcoming Encyclopedia of African American Literature co-edited by Hans Ostrom. What works especially well in the Beaulieu design is enabling a reader to triangulate important information quickly as author, theme, or text. The entries, extending across spirituals, slave narratives, and children's literature, as well as polemics and even journalism, provide nicely detailed and reliable information. In addition to a treatment of genre, contexts such as Great Migration, Black Nationalism, and African American Feminism are instructive. In many instances, the thematic reading of texts and critical reception span dozens of authors before and beyond the modern canon. Every major research and public library should own the invaluable resource."

Editorial Reviews

"This encyclopedia presents 400 articles that treat African American women writers from the 18th century forward, their works and themes, and a handful of male authors as well. Contributors look at the writers and their works from a feminist-womanist perspective, and address issues relating to race, class, and gender. Topical entries, e.g., Work, Protest Tradition, Religion, The Use of Myth, and Memory, provide a rich context for the literature. Most entries include a brief bibliography of primary and secondary sources. The encyclopedia is thoroughly cross-referenced, and includes an alphabetical and thematic list of entries, a literary time line, and a selected bibliography of book-length studies on African American literature from a feminist perspective....[t]his encyclopedia provides interested browsers with discoveries and new ideas, and scholars with details that might otherwise be difficult to track down. Recommended. Large public libraries, schools, and all academic libraries supporting lower-division undergraduates through faculty/researchers; general readers." - Choice

"The work of over 100 academic contributors, this A-to-Z encyclopedia, in the words of editor Beaulieu, is the first to focus specifically on feminist and womanist approaches to African American literature. The approximately 400 entries cover writers (e.g., Octavia Butler, Angela Jackson, Pauli Murray), written works (e.g., Beloved, Kindred, Mama Day), and themes addressed in writings of interest to an understanding of African American women and their depiction in literature (e.g., beauty, film, slavery)....A time line, bibliography, and comprehensive index, as well as contributor bios, all help make this encyclopedia accessible to students at high school level and above. Generous cross-referencing further enhances its usefulness as a research tool. Recommended for all public and university libraries." - Library Journal

"This two-volume set consists of entries related to literature by and about African American women, with a focus on feminist and womanist approaches by writers of fiction, nonfiction, drama, and poetry. Meant to contribute to the ongoing transformation of the American literary canon, the encyclopedia includes 400 entries appropriate for scholars, high school and college students, and general readers. A sampling of writers: Phyllis Wheatley, Zora Neale Hurston, Suzan Lori Parks, Toni Morrison, Alice Walker, Mae Cowdery, and Kate Drumgoold. Children's authors, political pamphleteers, and journalists are included, as well as some male writers who address themes from feminist or womanist perspectives, like Ralph Ellison and Frederick Douglass. Biographical entries encompass analyses and a selective works list, and works and thematic articles are included, covering topics such as race, stereotypes, motherhood, sexuality, slavery, violence, masculinity, black feminist criticism, and the South." - Reference & Research Book News

"This two-volume A-to-Z encyclopedia, the first of its kind, embraces the writings of African American women through the benefaction of over 100 academic contributors, bringing to light the rich textures and vibrant motifs that have come to define the work of African American women writers....This two-volume set is a valuable, if not indispensable, addition to any research institution or public library. It may well find its home in academic departments interested in women's or cultural studies, anthropology, history, and of course African American studies. Like its contributors, this work is representative of a nation of women writers and their legacy to American literature. Writing African American Women should be considered a foundational source for the study of writings by and about women of color, as well as a starting point for further academic pursuits in the study of African American culture." - Feminist Collections

"[T]his work is an important contribution to the study of African American literature by and about women. Its well-written articles are appropriate for students, scholars, and general readers, and it will be especially valuable in larger public libraries and in academic libraries that support programs in Women's Studies and African American Studies." - Booklist/Reference Books Bulletin

"The scope of this two-volume encyclopedia makes it a welcome addition to scholarship about African-American women writers....Of the approximately 400 entries, 225 examine the lives and work of individual African-American women writers, ranging in time from the colonial period to contemporary emerging authors....The work ends with time line listing major literary achievements of African-American women, followed by a selected bibliography of secondary sources....The length and introductory lists of topics make this work usable as a very browsable reader's guide. This encyclopedia is essential for college libraries, and recommended for high school and public libraries." - MultiCultural Review

"A collection consisting of essays with an acknowledged feminist/womanist perspective. It also contains biographies of those male writers who have dealt with themes from feminist perspectives, as well as important works, movements, periods, genres, and events relevant to the literature. Each author profile is followed by a list of selected works by and about the subject....A clearly written, accessible resource." - School Library Journal

"The 378 essays of this encyclopedia explore the portrayal of African American women in American literature....The result is a guide that opens the mosaic of African American literature for students and the general reader. This set will serve a wide audience in both public and academic libraries." - Lawrence Looks At Books

From the Publisher

The work of over 100 academic contributors, this A-to-Z encyclopedia, in the words of editor Beaulieu (The Toni Morrison Encyclopedia), is the first to focus specifically on feminist and womanist approaches to African American literature. The approximately 400 entries cover writers (e.g., Octavia Butler, Angela Jackson, Pauli Murray), written works (e.g., Beloved, Kindred, Mama Day), and themes addressed in writings of interest to an understanding of African American women and their depiction in literature (e.g., beauty, film, slavery). While each entry has some relevance to writing and the experience of African American women, not all entries are about writers or even about women. There are, for instance, entries about Josephine Baker (who did write a book and about whom much has been written, but who is known primarily as a dancer and entertainer) and James Baldwin (who was indeed an African American male writer but is included for the purpose of discussing the African American women depicted in his writing). Although there are entries that stretch over several pages, most are about a page long. Bottom Line A time line, bibliography, and comprehensive index, as well as contributor bios, all help make this encyclopedia accessible to students at high school level and above. Generous cross-referencing further enhances its usefulness as a research tool. Recommended for all public and university libraries. Denise Johnson, Bradley Univ., Peoria, IL Copyright 2006 Reed Business Information.

Library Journal