The Lion’s Presence in Arna Bontemps’s "Mr. Kelso’s Lion"

Category: american literature

At the beginning of Ralph Ellison’s Invisible Man (1952), the narrator relates the story of his grandfather’s death and the lesson that the old man wanted his son to know. He told him, “Live with your head in the lion’s mouth. I want you to overcome ’em with yeses, undermine ’em with grins, agree ’em to death and destruction, let ’em swollen you till … Read More The Lion’s Presence in Arna Bontemps’s "Mr. Kelso’s Lion"

February 23, 2016 + african american literature, american literature

"Benevolence" in James Wilcox’s "Modern Baptists"

by Matthew Teutsch

A couple of weeks ago, I noted some similarities between James Wilcox’s Modern Baptists (1983), Walker Percy’s The Moviegoer (1961), and John Kennedy Toole’s A Confederacy of Dunces (1980). Today, I want to look at the African American presence in two of Wilcox’s novels: Modern Baptists and Hunk City (2007). I have covered this topic in relation to Percy’s novel before, and you can … Read More "Benevolence" in James Wilcox’s "Modern Baptists"

February 2, 2016 + american literature, catharine maria sedgwick, http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post, jill lepore, lydia maria child, metamora, native american literature, philip gura, unc press, william apess

King Philip, William Apess, and the Emergence of a Distinct American Literature

by Matthew Teutsch

Paul Revere’s caricature of King Philip (1772) Last post, I wrote briefly about Philip F. Gura’s biography of William Apess, and I discussed some of the links between Apess and Hosea Easton. Along with the links between Apess and the abolitionist movement, I have been intrigued with the relationship between Apess and the literary production of the period. Gura speaks to this topic some; … Read More King Philip, William Apess, and the Emergence of a Distinct American Literature

January 26, 2016 + african american literature, american literature, black theatre USA, charles blow, charles chesnutt, http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post, keith byerman, kiese laymon, sickout, the black doctor

Ira Aldridge’s "The Black Doctor"

by Matthew Teutsch

James V. Hatch and Ted Shine’s two-volume Black Theatre USAhas graced my bookshelf for a few years. Occasionally, I pull one of the volumes down to read or reread a play. A couple of weeks ago, I pulled down volume one and read Ira Aldrige‘s translation of Auguste Anicet-Bourgeois’sLe Docteur Noir (1846). Aldridge’s The Black Doctor (1846) contains differences from Anciet-Bourgeois’s original play and other … Read More Ira Aldridge’s "The Black Doctor"

January 21, 2016 + african american literature, alice walker, american literature, everyday use, http://schemas.google.com/blogger/2008/kind#post, louisiana literature, lyle saxon, photographs, southern literature

Photography in Lyle Saxon’s "Children of Strangers" and Alice Walker’s "Everyday Use"

by Matthew Teutsch

As I reread Lyle Saxon’s Children of Strangers (1937) for the 2016 NEH Summer Institute “Ernest J. Gaines and the Southern Experience,” I couldn’t help but think about the idea of authenticity and reality when I came to the final section in the book. There, Flossie Smith, Adelaide Randolph’s friend, encounters the fallen Famie as she leaves Easter service with Henry Tyler. Upon first meeting … Read More Photography in Lyle Saxon’s "Children of Strangers" and Alice Walker’s "Everyday Use"

Interminable Rambling

The Lion’s Presence in Arna Bontemps’s "Mr. Kelso’s Lion"

Category: american literature