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Full text of this paper is not available in the ETD Center. Copies may be available for inter-library loan from University of Cincinnati or may be available for purchase from Proquest/UMI

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THE CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN-AMERICAN FEMALE BILDUNGSROMAN

Rountree, Wendy Alexia
http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin997212820

Abstract Details

2001, PhD, University of Cincinnati, Arts and Sciences : English and Comparative Literature.
This dissertation analyzes how contemporary African-American women writers transform the Euro-American Bildungsroman into a suitable vehicle to express the experiences and aspirations of Black girls. Writers such as Toni Morrison, Gwendolyn Brooks, Gayl Jones, Sapphire, Ntozake Shange, Thulani Davis, and Jacqueline Woodson use African-American cultural references, young women's issues, and orature to create contemporary African-American female Bildungsromane that accurately depict Black girls' lives. In the process, these writers reveal how "race," gender, and class as they exist in a racist society have complicated the maturation process of Black adolescents. Chapters One through Three explore specific issues that are important to the lives of young Black girls, silencing and sexual violence, western standards of beauty, and integration into an unwelcoming "white space" during the Civil Rights Era. Chapter Four compares and contrasts the depictions of young Black girls in novels written specifically for a young adult audience with those written for an adult audience. Ultimately, this literary study illustrates how young Black girls as depicted in the novels struggle to develop healthy cultural and individual identities despite the presence of racism and sexism in their lives.
Arlene Elder (Advisor)
Literature, American
AFRICAN-AMERICAN LITERATURE; WOMEN WRITERS; BILDINGSROMANE; AMERICAN LITERATURE; ETHNIC AMERICAN LITERATURE

Recommended Citations

Citations

  • Rountree, W. A. (2001). THE CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN-AMERICAN FEMALE BILDUNGSROMAN [Doctoral dissertation, University of Cincinnati]. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin997212820

    APA Style (7th edition)

  • Rountree, Wendy. THE CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN-AMERICAN FEMALE BILDUNGSROMAN. 2001. University of Cincinnati, Doctoral dissertation. OhioLINK Electronic Theses and Dissertations Center, http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin997212820.

    MLA Style (8th edition)

  • Rountree, Wendy. "THE CONTEMPORARY AFRICAN-AMERICAN FEMALE BILDUNGSROMAN." Doctoral dissertation, University of Cincinnati, 2001. http://rave.ohiolink.edu/etdc/view?acc_num=ucin997212820

    Chicago Manual of Style (17th edition)

ucin997212820
© 2001, all rights reserved.
This open access ETD is published by University of Cincinnati and OhioLINK.