Slave Culture : Nationalist Theory and the Foundations of Black America

Twenty-five years after its original publication, Oxford has released a new edition of Sterling Stuckey's ground-breaking study, Slave Culture. A leading cultural historian and authority on slavery, Stuckey explains how different African peoples interacted on the plantations of the South to achieve a common culture. He argues that at the time of emancipation, slaves still remained essentially African in culture, a conclusion that has had profound implications for theories of black liberation and race relations in America. Drawing evidence from the anthropology and art history of Central and West African cultural traditions and exploring the folklore of the American slave, Stuckey reveals an intrinsic Pan-African impulse that contributed to the formation of the black ethos in slavery. He presents fascinating profiles of such nineteenth-century figures as David Walker, Henry Highland Garnet, and Frederick Douglass, as well as detailed examinations into the lives and careers of W.E.B. Du Bois and Paul Robeson in this century. The second edition, which includes a Foreword by historian John Stauffer, will reintroduce Stuckey's masterpiece to a wider audience. Stuckey provides a new introduction that looks at the life of the book and the impact it has had on the field of African-American scholarship, as well as how the field has changed in the 25 years since its original publication. (Publisher) Twenty-five years after its original publication, remains the seminal text on African cultural influences in slavery in multiple forms, including the music of the spirituals and the blues. Sterling Stuckey's brilliant examination of the interactions of African peoples on the plantations of the South to achieve a common culture is a work of profound scholarly .and cultural significance, and its conclusions have had major implications for theories of black liberation and race relations in America over the last two decades. Drawing evidence from the anthropology and art history of Central and West African cultural traditions and exploring the folklore of the American slave, Stuckey reveals an intrinsic Pan-African impulse that contributed to the formation of the black ethos in slavery. He presents fascinating profiles of such nineteenth century figures as David Walker, Henry Highland Garnet, and Frederick Douglass, as well as extensive probes into the lives of W. E. B. Du Bois and Paul Robeson in the twentieth century, all against the backdrop of the most sophisticated exploration yet of African-ancestral values. Eloquent, powerful, and deeply important, Slave Culture is an enduring work from one of the leading cultural historians of our time. Book jacket In this ground-breaking study, Sterling Stuckey, a leading cultural historian and authority on slavery, explains how different African peoples interacted on the plantations of the South to achieve a common culture. He argues that, at the time of emancipation, slaves still remainedessentially African in culture, a conclusion with profound implications for theories of black liberation and for the future of race relations in America. Drawing evidence from the anthropology and art history of Central and West African cultural traditions and exploring the folklore of the American slave, Stuckey reveals an intrinsic Pan-African impulse that contributed to the formation of the black ethos in slavery. He presents fascinatingprofiles of such nineteenth-century figures as David Walker, Henry Highland Garnet, and Frederick Douglass, as well as detailed examinations into the lives and careers of W.E.B. Du Bois and Paul Robeson in this century. An Updated Edition Of The Highly Acclaimed Contribution To African-american Scholarship, 'slave Culture' Considers How Various African Peoples Interacted On The Plantations Of The South To Achieve A Common Culture, Tracing Of The Roots Of Black Nationalist Feelings In America Over Several Centuries. Introduction: Slavery And The Circle Of Culture -- David Walker : In Defense Of African Rights And Liberty -- Henry Highland Garnet : Nationalism, Class Analysis, And Revolution -- Identity And Ideology : The Names Controversy -- W.e.b. Du Bois: Black Cultural Reality And The Meaning Of Freedom -- On Being African : Paul Robeson And The Ends Of Nationalist Theory And Practice. Sterling Stuckey. Includes Bibliographical References And Index. Cover 1 Contents 8 Foreword 10 Preface to the Twenty-Fifth Anniversary Edition 16 1. Introduction: Slavery and the Circle of Culture 28 2. David Walker: In Defense of African Rights and Liberty 137 3. Henry Highland Garnet: Nationalism, Class Analysis, and Revolution 183 4. Identity and Ideology: The Names Controversy 244 5. W. E. B. Du Bois: Black Cultural Reality and the Meaning of Freedom 302 6. On Being African: Paul Robeson and the Ends of Nationalist Theory and Practice 367 Notes 430 Bibliography 496 Index 498 A 498 B 499 C 500 D 501 E 502 F 503 G 504 H 504 I 505 J 505 K 506 L 506 M 506 N 507 O 508 P 508 Q 508 R 508 S 509 T 511 U 511 V 511 W 511 X 512 Y 512 Z 512