Black Novelist as White Racist: The Myth of Black Inferiority in the Novels of Oscar Micheaux (Contributions in Afro-American and African Studies) [Hardcover]

Joseph A. Young (Author)

Book Description

ISBN-10: 0313257493 | ISBN-13: 978-0313257490 | Publication Date: August 7, 1989

In exceptionally close analyses of six novels by black writer Oscar Micheaux (1884-1948?) beginning with The Conquest, written in 1913, The Forged Note (1915), The Homesteader (1917), The Wind from Nowhere (1941), The Case of Mrs. Wingate (1945), and The Story of Dorothy Stanfield (1946), Young traces the development of Micheaux's racial theories and of his stance as apologist for American imperialism. Young argues that these novels are examples of the detrimental effect of oppressive myths on early twentieth-century black behavior and values. The characters in the novels tend to mirror the black stereotypes of the post-bellum confederate romanticists, both the "Cavalier racists" and the "Negrophobes." Adopting the world view of the oppressor required that Micheaux reject both his own blackness and that of his racial kinsmen. Along with many other black writers, Micheaux believed that to assimilate, blacks must learn to "pass for white" by adopting Anglo-Saxon values, myths, and philosophy. The novels make statements about life from a point of view that exaggerates the worst side of black character, perpetuating the myth of black inferiority that the black protagonists transcend. Young explores the influences of both Jack London and Friedrich Nietzsche on Micheaux's heroes. Micheaux's significance lies less as a figure of literary merit than as an especially graphic example of a black artist unwittingly espousing the beliefs of the oppressor rather than writing out of a truly black aesthetic philosophy. Ironically, Micheaux not only perpetuated racist myths in his novels, but was the victim of such myths as well. Between 1919 and 1948 Micheaux also wrote, directed, and produced over thirty films and was perhaps the most important Afro-American filmmaker before the Civil Rights Movement. The only in-depth study of Micheaux's novels, and one rich in period detail and insights into the evolution of black stereotypes as reflected in the novels of a black artist, Black Novelist as White Racist would be useful to students and teachers of Afro-American Literature and Plains and Western Literature, as well as to those interested in race theory, film history, and sociology.

Editorial Reviews

About the Author

JOSEPH A. YOUNG is Assistant Professor of English at the University of Wisconsin-La Crosse.

Product Details

• Hardcover: 193 pages
• Publisher: Greenwood Press (August 7, 1989)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0313257493
• ISBN-13: 978-0313257490
• Product Dimensions: 8.9 x 6.3 x 0.9 inches
• Shipping Weight: 1 pounds (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (2 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #6,416,228 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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5.0 out of 5 stars black novelist as white racist, July 9, 2009

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Bernard Haines "b. haines" (phila.,pa.) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Black Novelist as White Racist: The Myth of Black Inferiority in the Novels of Oscar Micheaux (Contributions in Afro-American and African Studies) (Hardcover)

Joseph Young has done a thorough study of extant writings of Oscar Micheau. His research goes to time of micheau's birth to his death. It is accurate in its depiction because it goes to what Mr. micheau has written down on paper-in the form of a number of Novels,what he did as a moviemaker has already been explored by others but this book should be read before a review of his films because they provide a context as to who the man micheau is and how he felt about black people as a whole. Apparently Mr. Micheau believed in the inferiority of Black people and the superiority of caucasions because his Novels stess the points over and over. Mr. Micheau was of limited understanding and his interpretation of black people would be detrimental to other black people of limited learning,if they read his literature. Mr. Young did his job in an unbiased manner

1 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

3.0 out of 5 stars The Myth of Black Inferiority in the Novels of Oscar Micheau, March 21, 2000

By A Customer

This review is from: Black Novelist as White Racist: The Myth of Black Inferiority in the Novels of Oscar Micheaux (Contributions in Afro-American and African Studies) (Hardcover)

How was the African American students affected by a "Myth of Inferiority? Did he agree or disagree? Why or why not?