Shadow and Act
Encyclopedia
Shadow and Act is a collection of essays by Ralph Ellison
, published in 1964. The writings encompass the two decades which began with Ellison's involvement with African American political activism and print media in Harlem, Ellison's emergence as a highly acclaimed writer with the publication of Invisible Man
, and culminating with his 1964 challenge of Irving Howe's characterization of African American life, "Black Boys and Native Sons," with his now famous essay, "The World and the Jug." Ellison described it as exemplary of his "attempt to transform some of the themes, the problems, the enigmas, the contradictions of character and culture native to my predicament, into what Andre Malraux has described as ‘conscious thought.'" The title originated from his 1948 review of the film version of William Faulkner's Intruder in the Dust
, entitled, "The Shadow and the Act," which expanded upon his critique in "Twentieth Century Fiction and the Black Mask of Humanity" of the vicious and detrimental stereotypes rampant in mainstream American culture.
Ralph Ellison
Ralph Waldo Ellison was an American novelist, literary critic, scholar and writer. He was born in Oklahoma City, Oklahoma. Ellison is best known for his novel Invisible Man, which won the National Book Award in 1953...
, published in 1964. The writings encompass the two decades which began with Ellison's involvement with African American political activism and print media in Harlem, Ellison's emergence as a highly acclaimed writer with the publication of Invisible Man
Invisible Man
Invisible Man is a novel written by Ralph Ellison, and the only one that he published during his lifetime . It won him the National Book Award in 1953...
, and culminating with his 1964 challenge of Irving Howe's characterization of African American life, "Black Boys and Native Sons," with his now famous essay, "The World and the Jug." Ellison described it as exemplary of his "attempt to transform some of the themes, the problems, the enigmas, the contradictions of character and culture native to my predicament, into what Andre Malraux has described as ‘conscious thought.'" The title originated from his 1948 review of the film version of William Faulkner's Intruder in the Dust
Intruder in the Dust
Intruder in the Dust is a novel by the Nobel Prize-winning American author William Faulkner publishedin 1948.The novel focuses on Lucas Beauchamp, a black farmer accused of murdering a white man. He is exonerated through the efforts of black and white teenagers and a spinster from a...
, entitled, "The Shadow and the Act," which expanded upon his critique in "Twentieth Century Fiction and the Black Mask of Humanity" of the vicious and detrimental stereotypes rampant in mainstream American culture.