The Birth of African-American Culture : An Anthropological Perspective

This compelling look at the wellsprings of cultural vitality during one of the most dehumanizing experiences in history provides a fresh perspective on the African-American past. Publishers Weekly This long essay, written in 1972 by two anthropologists in an attempt to prevent ideology from diverting the course of African American studies, posits that the Africans who were enslaved and shipped to the New World cannot ``be said to have shared a culture ,'' having been ``drawn from different parts of the . . . continent, from numerous ethnic and linguistic groups, and from different societies in any region.'' On the contrary, the authors conclude that the roots of African American culture lie in the cooperative efforts of the enslaved to create a new society here. Drawing heavily on examples from the Caribbean experience, Mintz and Price believe that so-called African retentions in the cultural realm must be examined in light of social structures and relationships established in the Americas. They examine, for instance, the development of unilineal vs. aggregate family groups in different contexts and the apparent reversion to African gender roles in the economic autonomy of women in Jamaica. This provocative book is bound, even now, to raise the ire of supporters of narrow Afrocentrism, while the general reader may find its arguments too technical. (July) This Compelling Look At The Wellsprings Of Cultural Vitality During One Of The Most Dehumanizing Experiences In History Provides A Fresh Perspective On The African-american Past. Http://www.loc.gov/catdir/description/hm031/91041020.html. Sidney W. Mintz And Richard Price. Originally Published: An Anthropological Approach To The Afro-american Past. Philadelphia : Institute For The Study Of Human Issues, C1976. (ishi Occasional Papers In Social Change ; No. 2). With New Pref. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 105-116) And Index. This compelling look at the wellsprings of cultural vitality during one of the most dehumanizing experiences in history provides a fresh perspective on the African-American past. From the Trade Paperback edition Examines the emergence of a distinct African-American culture among the different African ethnic groups enslaved in the Americas