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OverviewIn If We Must Die: From Bigger Thomas to Biggie Smalls, author Aimé J. Ellis argues that throughout slavery, the Jim Crow era, and more recently in the proliferation of the prison industrial complex, the violent threat of death has functioned as a coercive disciplinary practice of social control over black men. In this provocative volume, Ellis delves into a variety of literary and cultural texts to consider unlawful and extralegal violence like lynching, mob violence, and “white riots,” in addition to state violence such as state-sanctioned execution, the unregulated use of force by police and prison guards, state neglect or inaction, and denial of human and civil rights. Focusing primarily on young black men who are depicted or see themselves as “bad niggers,” gangbangers, thugs, social outcasts, high school drop-outs, or prison inmates, Ellis looks at the self-affirming embrace of deathly violence and death-defiance—both imagined and lived—in a diverse body of cultural works. From Richard Wright’s literary classic Native Son, Eldridge Cleaver’s prison memoir Soul on Ice, and Nathan McCall’s autobiography Makes Me Wanna Holler to the hip hop music of Eazy-E, Tupac Shakur, Notorious B.I.G., and D’Angelo, Ellis investigates black men’s representational identifications with and attachments to death, violence, and death-defiance as a way of coping with and negotiating late-twentieth and early twenty-first century culture. Distinct from a sociological study of the material conditions that impact urban black life, If We Must Die investigates the many ways that those material conditions and lived experiences profoundly shape black male identity and self-image. African Amerian studies scholars and those interested in race in contemporary American culture will appreciate this thought-provoking volume. Full Product DetailsAuthor: Aime J. Ellis , Aim J EllisPublisher: Wayne State University Press Imprint: Wayne State University Press Dimensions: Width: 15.20cm , Height: 1.40cm , Length: 22.90cm Weight: 0.395kg ISBN: 9780814334133ISBN 10: 081433413 Pages: 240 Publication Date: 30 June 2011 Audience: Professional and scholarly , College/higher education , Professional & Vocational , Postgraduate, Research & Scholarly Format: Paperback Publisher's Status: Active Availability: Awaiting stock  The supplier is currently out of stock of this item. It will be ordered for you and placed on backorder. Once it does come back in stock, we will ship it out for you. Language: English Table of ContentsReviewsA monumental work on urban black masculinity, carefully engaging classic literature such as Richard Wright's Native Son and Eldridge Cleaver's Soul on Ice in dialectic with the phenomenal musical performances of Tupac Shakur, The Notorious B.I.G., and D'Angelo.--Kermit E. Campbell author of Gettin' Our Groove On (Wayne State University Press, 2005) One of the 25 overlooked political books of 2011.-- The Huffington Post If We Must Die offers engaging ideas and issues regarding the interplay among urban black men, racial terror, and death-oriented standpoints. If We Must Die is a dynamic contribution to the burgeoning field of black gender studies.--Treva B. Lindsey The Journal of Afriacn American History (4/1/2014 12:00:00 AM) If We Must Die is a superbly nuanced exploration into black popular culture's obsession with poor, urban-dwelling black men as simultaneously death-defiant and death-bound. Ellis presents an exciting new take on contemporary literary and mediated treatments of black masculinity and mortality, uncovering representations of agency, spectacle, and subversive opposition to dominant culture.-- Robin R. Means Coleman A monumental work on urban black masculinity, carefully engaging classic literature such as Richard Wright's Native Son and Eldridge Cleaver's Soul on Ice in dialectic with the phenomenal musical performances of Tupac Shakur, The Notorious B.I.G., and D'Angelo. --Kermit E. Campbell author of Gettin' Our Groove On (Wayne State University Press, 2005) One of the 25 overlooked political books of 2011.--The Huffington Post If We Must Die offers engaging ideas and issues regarding the interplay among urban black men, racial terror, and death-oriented standpoints. If We Must Die is a dynamic contribution to the burgeoning field of black gender studies.-- (04/01/2014) If We Must Die is a superbly nuanced exploration into black popular culture's obsession with poor, urban-dwelling black men as simultaneously death-defiant and death-bound. Ellis presents an exciting new take on contemporary literary and mediated treatments of black masculinity and mortality, uncovering representations of agency, spectacle, and subversive opposition to dominant culture.--Robin R. Means Coleman A monumental work on urban black masculinity, carefully engaging classic literature such as Richard Wright's Native Son and Eldridge Cleaver's Soul on Ice in dialectic with the phenomenal musical performances of Tupac Shakur, The Notorious B.I.G., and D'Angelo. --Kermit E. Campbell author of Gettin' Our Groove On (Wayne State University Press, 2005) One of the 25 overlooked political books of 2011.--The Huffington Post If We Must Die is a superbly nuanced exploration into black popular culture's obsession with poor, urban-dwelling black men as simultaneously death-defiant and death-bound. Ellis presents an exciting new take on contemporary literary and mediated treatments of black masculinity and mortality, uncovering representations of agency, spectacle, and subversive opposition to dominant culture.--Robin R. Means Coleman If We Must Die offers engaging ideas and issues regarding the interplay among urban black men, racial terror, and death-oriented standpoints. If We Must Die is a dynamic contribution to the burgeoning field of black gender studies.-- (04/01/2014) Author InformationAimé J. Ellis was an associate professor of English and core faculty in African and African American studies at Michigan State University until his death in 2009. Tab Content 6Author Website:Countries AvailableAll regions |
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