Essays and Research Papers on African-American Literature

A 7 page paper which considers three critics' assessments of four short stories written by Richard Wright ('The Man Who Was Almost a Man,' 'Big Boy Leaves Home,' 'Long Black Song,' and 'The Man Who Lived Underground'), and provides a detailed overview of each story. Bibliography lists 12 sources.

5 pages in length. T. Obinkaram Echewa is a man whose writings dig deep to reveal the truth of the human heart. His classic works reflect a writer concerned with the darker, more disturbing aspect of humanity, while at the same time they also represent the benevolent side of womankind. The writer ...

A 4 page book review of Claude Brown's Manchild in the Promised Land, which was originally published in 1965. This is a novel that is a thinly veiled autobiographical account of Brown's childhood and adolescence growing up in Harlem in the 1940s and 50s. In a clear, lucid writing style that brings alive the era ...

A 9 page paper. Topdog/Underdog is a play written by Suzan-Lori Parks who won a Pulitzer for it. The essay begins with a discussion of the phrase ‘post-racial,’ its origins, how it is used and what it is supposed to mean. The essay provides an overview of the play, the key events, and how ...

A 4 page essay that contrasts and compares ideas about love in Jeanette Winterson's novel Written on the Body and the film The Color Purple, which was adapted from the novel by Alice Walker. Bibliography lists 1 source.

5 pages. An introspective look at the author James Baldwin's work, Giovanni's Room. This paper will focus primarily on the self deception which is evident within the characters of this book. Because the book is written by an African American writer who is also gay, this book is a striking and, at the time, shocking, look at ...

A 7 page paper which discusses various aspects of the work on postmodern blackness, written by Bell Hooks. The work of Bell Hooks, especially in relationship to postmodern blackness which involves aesthetics and critical thought as attainable, if not possessed, by the black population, is considered incredibly controversial as well as contradictory. Bibliography lists 2 ...

This 5 page paper looks at this well written book that is spread over several generations and focuses on conflict, change and race, with an underlying theme of forgiveness and redemption. This paper summarizes the main story and themes. The bibliography cites 1 source.

This 10 page paper considers how the issues of race and gender are dealt with in this black feminist book in a manner that is not confrontational nor is it openly critical. The paper considers the subtleties of the narrative and the contrasts drawn the give the message of the importance of race and gender ...

This 6 page paper discusses the two novels of Nella Larsen: QuickSand and Passing for themes of race and gender. Quotes cited from both texts to support the thesis. Bibliography lists 2 sources.

A 5 page paper which examines education, as well as philanthropy and political activism in Ralph Ellison’s “The Invisible Man.” No additional sources cited.

A 5 page paper which examines Maya Angelou’s “Graduation” and Langston Hughes’ “Salvation” as they relate to the importance of education and finding one’s identity. Bibliography lists 6 sources.

A 6 page analysis of Virginia Woolf’s thematic presentation of women and their role society. Rather than resorting to the stereotypical images of women which so much predominated literature at this point in history, Woolf exposes us to a view of women which suggests independence and fortitude. Through this work we are presented ...

A 4 page consideration of how gender affects decision in this futuristic novel by Nalo Hopkinson. No additional sources are listed.

3 pages in length. While many may look upon Toni Morrison's female characterization as being both strong and defiant in the face of patriarchy, others consider stories like Sula and Song of Solomon to reflect much more submissive women whose struggles to seek out their own identity and overcome social judgment only serve to ...

A 5 page essay that examines Jacobs' slave narrative as it relates to gender and race in the nineteenth century. The writer argues that Jacobs has to not only balance her presentation of herself and her actions against the backdrop of slavery, but also in regards to the ways in which a "true woman" ...

In five pages this paper examines how in her famous 1850 literary Narrative and in her speeches, illiterate freed slave Sojourner Truth’s plain-speaking eloquence reminded readers and audiences that all people, regardless of color or gender, are created equal. Four sources are listed in the bibliography.

This 5 page report discusses Steven Barnes 2002 book, “Lion’s Blood” which deals with an alternate history universe in which Africa colonized the Americas, bringing European slaves with them. Bibliography lists 2 sources.

A 4 page paper which examines how the family in Lorraine Hansberry’s novel “A Raisin in the Sun” is very typical of many American families, and especially African American families in history. No additional sources cited.

In three pages, this paper that is subdivided into three essays considers how King distinguishes between just and unjust law, whether civil disobedience is morally wrong, and how a law can be just on its face and unjust in its application. There are no additional sources listed in the bibliography.

An 8 page paper which evaluates the male protagonists of Henry V and Captain Willmore by examining how the playwrights subject each to intense scrutiny throughout the course of the works. Bibliography lists 5 sources.

A 7 page paper comparing Alice Walker's The Color Purple to Linda Hogan's Mean Spirit. The paper focuses on the two protagonists, Walker's Celie and Hogan's Belle, and observes that Celie is the more fully realized character because the book is centered on her quest for selfhood; Belle is just a symbol for the Indian ...

A 6 page paper which examines the search for truth in Shakespeare’s Hamlet, Toni Morrison’s “The Bluest Eye,” and Willa Cather’s “The Professor’s House.” No additional sources cited.

A 6 page research paper that analyzes Toni Morrison's novel Tar Baby, and proposes that the characters in this work mirror those of Shakespeare in The Tempest. The writer argues that Morrison appropriates these characters, transforming Shakespeare's tale into an allegorical tale that illuminates the foibles of the white art aesthetic, as well as demonstrating ...

Community is a concept that is difficult to define and harder yet to maintain. This 6 page paper argues that Paule Marshall's book, The Chosen Place, The Timeless People, as the title indicates, incorporates two distinctive themes. The first is represented as The Chosen Place and refers to the political, economic and social schema of the West Indian ...