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Passing in the Works of Charles W. Chesnutt

Online ISBN:
9781621036050
Print ISBN:
9781604734164
Publisher:
University Press of Mississippi
Book

Passing in the Works of Charles W. Chesnutt

Susan Prothro Wright (ed.),
Susan Prothro Wright
(ed.)
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Ernestine Pickens Glass (ed.)
Ernestine Pickens Glass
(ed.)
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Published:
5 February 2010
Online ISBN:
9781621036050
Print ISBN:
9781604734164
Publisher:
University Press of Mississippi

Abstract

This is a book that reevaluates Charles W. Chesnutt’s deft manipulation of the “passing” theme to expand understanding of the author’s fiction and nonfiction. Nine chapters apply a variety of theories—including intertextual, signifying/discourse analysis, narratological, formal, psychoanalytical, new historical, reader response, and performative frameworks—to add richness to readings of Chesnutt’s works. Together the chapters provide convincing evidence that “passing” is an intricate, essential part of Chesnutt’s writing, and that it appears in all the genres he wielded: journal entries, speeches, essays, and short and long fiction. The chapters engage with each other to display the continuum in Chesnutt’s thinking as he began his writing career and established his sense of social activism, as evidenced in his early journal entries. Collectively, the chapters follow Chesnutt’s works as he proceeded through the Jim Crow era, honing his ability to manipulate his mostly white audience through the astute, though apparently self-effacing, narrator, Uncle Julius, of his popular conjure tales. Chesnutt’s ability to subvert audience expectations is equally noticeable in the subtle irony of his short stories. Several of the book’s chapters address Chesnutt’s novels, including Paul Marchand, F.M.C.; Mandy Oxendine; The House Behind the Cedars; and Evelyn’s Husband. The volume opens up new paths of inquiry into a major African American writer’s oeuvre.

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