Melville and the Idea of Blackness

Race and Imperialism in Nineteenth-Century America

By:

Christopher Freeburg

Format:

Paperback / softback

Series:

Cambridge Studies in American Literature and Culture

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Description

By examining the unique problems that 'blackness' signifies in Moby-Dick, Pierre, 'Benito Cereno' and 'The Encantadas', Christopher Freeburg analyzes how Herman Melville grapples with the social realities of racial difference in nineteenth-century America. Where Melville's critics typically read blackness as either a metaphor for the haunting power of slavery or an allegory of moral evil, Freeburg asserts that blackness functions as the site where Melville correlates the sociopolitical challenges of transatlantic slavery and US colonial expansion with philosophical concerns about mastery. By focusing on Melville's iconic interracial encounters, Freeburg reveals the important role blackness plays in Melville's portrayal of characters' arduous attempts to seize their own destiny, amass scientific knowledge and perfect themselves. A valuable resource for scholars and graduate students in American literature, this text will also appeal to those working in American, African American and postcolonial studies.

Author Biography:

Christopher Freeburg is Assistant Professor of English at the University of Illinois, Urbana. He received his PhD from the University of Chicago and his Master's from Stanford University. His work has appeared in journals such as American Literature and Modern Fiction Studies.

Release date NZ

January 29th, 2015

Author

Christopher Freeburg

Audience

Professional & Vocational

Pages

214

Series

Cambridge Studies in American Literature and Culture

Dimensions

151x228x14

ISBN-13

9781107477834

Product ID

22782945

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