Document Type
Book Chapter
Publication Date
2014
Department 1
English
Abstract
Book Summary: The recognition and study of African American (AA) artists and public intellectuals often include Martin Luther King, Jr., and occasionally Booker T. Washington, W.E.B.DuBois, and Malcolm X. The literary canon also adds Ralph Ellison, Richard White, Langston Hughes, and others such as female writers Zora Neale Hurston, MayaAngelou, and Alice Walker.
Yet, the acknowledgement of AA artists and public intellectuals tends to skew the voices and works of those included toward normalized portrayals that fit well within foundational aspects of the American myths reflected in and perpetuated by traditional schooling. Further, while many AA artists and public intellectuals are distorted by mainstream media, public and political characterizations, and the curriculum, several powerful AA voices are simply omitted, ignored, including James Baldwin.
This edited volume gathers a collection of essays from a wide range of perspectives that confront Baldwin’s impressive and challenging canon as well as his role as a public intellectual. Contributors also explore Baldwin as a confrontational voice during his life and as an enduring call for justice. [From the Publisher]
Chapter Summary: This discussion examines Baldwin's novel, Go Tell It on the Mountain (1953), and his essay collection, No Name in the Street (1972). Baldwin revisits the traditional biblical conversion narrative by challenging how "the converted" must learn to reconcile with their past, rather than simply turning away from it.
Copyright Note
This is the publisher's version of the work. This publication appears in Gettysburg College's institutional repository by permission of the copyright owner for personal use, not for redistribution.
Recommended Citation
Melton, McKinley E. "Conversion Calls for Confrontation: Facing the Old to Become New in the Work of James Baldwin." James Baldwin: Challenging Authors. Eds. A. Scott Henderson and P.L. Thomas. Boston, MA: Sense Publishers, 2014. 9-28.
Required Publisher's Statement
Original version is available from the publisher at: https://www.sensepublishers.com/catalogs/bookseries/critical-literacy-teaching-series-challenging-authors-and-genres/james-baldwin/
Included in
English Language and Literature Commons, Ethics in Religion Commons, Missions and World Christianity Commons