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1、Unit 5 The African Americans,Section C,Post-reading Questions: How much do you know about the African Americans in different fields of American society? e.g. political, sports, literature, entertainment, etc.,Toni Morrison (1931- ),an American novelist, editor, and professor. Her novels are known fo
2、r their epic themes, vivid dialogue, and richly detailed characters. Her themes: The terror and trauma of racial oppression The complex behavior of living under gender and racial conflicts The psychology of survival,Nobel Prize in Literature 1993 (the first black woman to win it),Magic Realism,Novel
3、s,The Bluest Eye (1970) Sula (1973) Song of Solomon (1977) National Book Critics Circle Award Tar Baby (1981) Beloved (1987) Pulitzer Prize the marigolds never bloom. The title The Bluest Eye is based on Pecolas fervent wishes for beautiful blue eyes. Her insanity at the end of the novel is her only
4、 way to escape the world where she cannot be beautiful and to get the blue eyes she desires from the beginning of the novel.,Song of Solomon (1977),This book won the National Books Critics Award, was chosen for Oprah Winfreys popular book club, and was cited by the Swedish Academy in awarding Morris
5、on the 1993 Nobel Prize in literature. In 1998, the Radcliffe Publishing Course named it the 25th best English-language novel of the 20th century.,It follows the life of Macon Milkman Dead III, an African-American male living in Michigan, from birth to adulthood. Born in Michigan in 1931 by miraculo
6、us means, Milkman is a gifted child until he learns at the age of four that humans cannot fly. Changed by this revelation, he grows up a spoiled, self-centered child. Torn between the magical, spiritual world of his fathers sister, Pilate, and that of his greedy property-owning father Macon Dead, Mi
7、lkman follows in the footsteps of his father and becomes Macons assistant. Burdened by his parents unspeakable confidences and troubled by his loveless household, he seeks solace at his Aunt Pilates and by spending time with his best friend, Guitar Bains.,Living a spoiled, infantile existence until
8、the age of 31, Milkmans sole reason for being is to seek pleasure. After a 14-year relationship with Pilates granddaughter, Hagar, Milkman decides to end it. Hagar repeatedly tries to kill him. Guitar further complicates Milkmans life when he confesses to Milkman that he is a member of a radical org
9、anization, the Seven Days, that avenges the deaths of innocent blacks by randomly killing whites. Lacking a social consciousness and fed up with the seriousness of life, Milkman decides he needs to separate himself from his oppressive world by traveling. When Macon suggests that Milkman steal a sack
10、 of gold from Pilates house, Milkman sees the gold as a way to finance his trip and finally be independent.,Macon tells Milkman that the gold is discovered from a cave where he and Pilate lived in the cave for several days after their father was murdered by a white family who wanted the Dead propert
11、y. Pilate argued it was morally wrong to keep it. But Macon believes Pilate went back to the cave to retrieve the gold. Without expressing any concern for the morality of his actions, Milkman agrees to steal the gold with the help of Guitar, who wants the money to finance his organization.,After ste
12、aling the sack, they discovered there is no gold, only the bones of the white man Macon killed in the cave, the bones that the ghost of Macon Dead I told Pilate to go back and retrieve because “You just cant fly on off and leave a body.” Macon suggests that the gold must still be in the cave and Mil
13、kman agrees to search the cave for the gold. Later he concludes that the bones in Pilates sack must be those of Pilates father.,Less interested in his family history then in finding the gold, Milkman proceeds to the birthplace of his paternal grandparents. In the all-black town, he finds the men hos
14、tile toward his urban manners Milkman reflects on his mistreatment of his family, and of Pilate and Hagar, and develops a social consciousness. While in the woods, Guitar, who believes Milkman has kept the gold for himself, unsuccessfully tries to kill Milkman.,No longer interested in gold, Milkman
15、resolves to search for his family name and history. Ultimately, Milkman realizes the Solomon that the children sing in their song is Milkmans paternal great-grandfather, he returns home to Michigan to share the information with his family. Upon Milkmans arrival, he discovers that Hagar has killed he
16、rself. Remorseful, and taking responsibility for something for the first time in his life, Milkman takes a grieving Pilate to bury her fathers bones at Solomons Leap, near his birthplace. After the burial, Guitar appears, and in the darkness accidently shoots Pilate dead. As Milkman makes out Guitars figure on a distant rock, he leaps from the cliff he is standing on and flies into the air toward Guitars arms.,Beloved (1987),Pulitzer Prize for Fiction 1988 National
