African American Literature非裔美国文学.ppt

African American Literature I. Background II. Literary Development III. Representative Writers I. Background About the name “Colored”, “African”, “Afro-American”, “Negro”, “Black”, and “African American” among other labels, have all been favored (and condemned) at different times. 1. Slavery The first known Africans in the British colonies arrived at Jamestown, Virginia, in 1619. They worked as slaves, mainly in the southern plantations, for more than two hundred years. After the Emancipation Proclamation (《解放奴隶宣言》) in 1863, the negroes won freedom. 2. Reconstruction and Jim Crowe the Reconstruction Era (重建时期) — the years after the Civil War, from 1863 to 1877； — a time of progress, at first… Jim Crowe Laws — laws passed in the 1890’s, designed to segregate blacks form whites; — a terrible effect on blacks 3. Great Migration and Civil Rights movement Great Migration — The terrible conditions in the Southern US caused many blacks to immigrate to the North of the country. — This event was known as the “Great Migration”. Civil Rights Movement (民权运动) — Blacks, whites and people from all races and background united in an effort to end discrimination against African Americans and restore voting rights to them. — The Civil Rights movement lasted from 1954 to 1968. — The movement was characterized by major campaigns of civil resistance. The March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom at the National Mall. （August 28th, 1963） Noted legislative achievements: — Civil Rights Act of 1964 (民权法案); — the Voting Rights Act of 1965 (选举权法) 4. Post Civil Rights Era Problems remain: — low education, poverty, racism Today’s Famous African-Americans II. Literary Development Definition One created by African-American writers themselves and it is a literature concerned with the experience, life and struggle of African-American people. Uniqueness African American literature is patterned on a myth of deliverance (解救) from slavery, that of the Hebrew proph