1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910816491803321

Autore

Li Stephanie <1977->

Titolo

Signifying without specifying [[electronic resource] ] : racial discourse in the age of Obama / / Stephanie Li

Pubbl/distr/stampa

New Brunswick, N.J., : Rutgers University Press, c2012

ISBN

1-283-86456-8

0-8135-5210-9

Edizione

[1st ed.]

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (218 p.)

Disciplina

810.9/3552

Soggetti

American literature - 21st century - History and criticism

Race in literature

Post-racialism - United States

Politics and literature - United States - History - 21st century

United States Race relations

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

Bibliographic Level Mode of Issuance: Monograph

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references (p. 191-198) and index.

Nota di contenuto

Intro -- Contents -- Preface -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction -- 1 - Violence and Toni Morrison's Racist House -- 2 - Hiding the Invisible Hurt of Race -- 3 - The Unspeakable Language of Race and Fantasy in the Stories of Jhumpa Lahiri -- 4 - Performing Intimacy -- Conclusion - The Demands of Precious -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index -- About the Author.

Sommario/riassunto

Stephanie Li argues that American politicians and writers are using a new kind of language to speak about race. Challenging the notion that we have moved into a "post-racial" era, she suggests that we are in an uneasy moment where American public discourse demands that race be seen, but not heard. Analyzing contemporary political speech with nuanced readings of works by such authors as Toni Morrison, Jhumpa Lahiri, and Colson Whitehead, Li investigates how Americans of color have negotiated these tensions, inventing new ways to signal racial affiliations without violating taboos against open discussions of race.