A Jean Toomer Reader (Paperback)

Jean Toomer

ISBN 10: 0195083296 / ISBN 13: 9780195083293

Verlag: Oxford University Press Inc, New York, 1995

Paperback. Jean Toomer achieved instant recognition as a critic and thinker in 1923 with the publication of his novel Cane, a harsh, eloquent vision of black American hardship and suffering. But because of his reclusive, introspective nature, Toomer's fame waned in later years, and today his other contributions to American thought and literature are all but forgotten. Now, this collection of unpublished writings restores a crucial dimension to our understanding ofthis important African American author. Thematically arranging letters, sketches, poems, autobiography, short stories, a play, and a children's story, Frederik Rusch offers insight into Toomer's mind andspirituality, his feelings on racial identity in America, and his attitudes toward and ideas about Cane. Rusch highlights Toomer's reflections on America, its people, landscape, and politics, reveals his significance for the problems and issues of today, and helps us understand Toomer not only as writer, but also as social critic, prophet, mystic, and idealist. Exploring Toomer's attempts to find self-realization and transcend social and cultural definitions of race, this book offers aunique view of the United States through the life of one of its most significant and fascinating intellectuals. This collection of writings by Jean Toomer offers insight into the thinking of the author of Cane. Often spiritual in tenor, the range of works reproduced here trace the evolution of a complex philosophy of kinship and self-determination through which Toomer hoped to transcend social and cultural definitions of race. This item is printed on demand. Shipping may be from multiple locations in the US or from the UK, depending on stock availability. Bestandsnummer des Verkäufers 9780195083293

Inhaltsangabe:

Includes correspondence, poetry, short fiction, and essays.

Über die Autorin bzw. den Autor: Jean Toomer was an American poet and novelist born on December 26, 1894, in Washington, D.C., to Nathan Toomer and Nina Pinchback. He is best known for his experimental and influential work Cane, a text considered central to both modernist literature and early 20th-century African American writing. Though often associated with the Harlem Renaissance, Toomer did not embrace that label, preferring to be seen as an artist whose vision transcended race. His mixed racial background shaped his complex views on identity and belonging, which deeply informed his writing. He briefly served as a school principal in Georgia, an experience that inspired much of the Southern imagery and material in Cane. Toomer studied at several institutions, including the University of Wisconsin Madison and the City College of New York, though he did not complete a degree. In his later years, he was drawn to philosophical and spiritual studies, particularly the teachings of George Gurdjieff. He married twice, first to Margery Latimer and later to Marjorie Content, with whom he had one child. Toomer died on March 30, 1967, in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. His work remains notable for its formal innovation and exploration of race, art, and identity.

Bibliografische Details

Titel: A Jean Toomer Reader (Paperback)
Verlag: Oxford University Press Inc, New York
Erscheinungsdatum: 1995
Einband: Paperback
Zustand: new