Dislocating race and nation

By Robert S. Levine

Subjects: Nationalism in literature, Black nationalism in literature, Race relations in literature, National characteristics, american, Nationalism and literature, Literature and history, National characteristics, American, in literature, National characteristics in literature, History and criticism, American literature, History, Literature and society, American literature, history and criticism, 19th century

Description: American literary nationalism is traditionally understood as a cohesive literary tradition developed in the newly independent United States that emphasized the unique features of America and consciously differentiated American literature from British literature. Robert S. Levine challenges this assessment by exploring the conflicted, multiracial, and contingent dimensions present in the works of late eighteenth- and nineteenth-century American and African American writers. Conflict and uncertainty, not consensus, Levine argues, helped define American literary nationalism during this period.