Literary passion, ideological commitment : toward a legacy of Afro-Cuban and Afro-Brazilian women writers

This Study Takes A Chronological Approach That Traces The Transformation Of The Black Woman From Written Subject To Writing Subject, Within The Respective National Traditions. The Place Of Women Of African Descent In These Traditions, Generally Constructed Around A Number Of Negative Stereotypes, Is Thereby Seen As A Function Of Racialized Power In A Context In Which Literary Practice Is Over-determined By The Race, Class, And Gender Relations Produced By Colonialism And Slavery. Literary Passion, Ideological Commitment Questions The Ultimate Literary (canonical) Value Of Writing That Is So Heavily Impregnated By The Precepts Of Racial Hierarchy. The Book's Objective Is To Identify And Describe A Primarily Woman-centered Aesthetic That Is At Work In The Wide Thematic Spectrum Of The Writers Studied, As Well As To Examine The Complex Relationship With The Rest Of The Nation, The State, And The National Literary Canon, That Derives From There. As This Study Suggests, The Process Of Coming Into One's Own Is Initiated During Colonization, The Result Of Very Specific Personal Circumstances, And Driven By Public And Personal Issues That Continue To Have A Direct Impact On Literary Production. Literary Interests Are Strategic And Politicized. Themes Have To Do With Female Strength, The Inner Self, Africa And African Heritage, National And Community Concerns, And The Art Of Writing Poetry.--book Jacket. Introduction -- Complexities Of Gendered And Racialized Depictions In Novels By Male Writers -- Pioneers In A Tradition Of Afro-latin American Women's Writings -- Making Her Presence Felt : The Politics Of Poets -- Woman-centered Poetic Revisioning : Female Strength And Sexuality -- The Gaze Outward : Implications For Cultural Perception And Agency -- Conclusion: A Shared Legacy. Dawn Duke. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 249-268) And Index. Examines Afro-Cuban and Afro-Brazilian women writers. This book analyzes the roles of women of African descent in Cuban and Brazilian literature.