Elias AAL

    Their Eyes Were Watching God is a book telling the story of the life of Janie Mae Crawford. Janie lives what I would say is rather fulfilling life. She finds love, gets married, does it again, acquires wealth, happiness, and eventually peace as well. Her story is a captivating one, but in this post the focus shifts to her grandmother, Nanny Crawford. Nanny's life was considerably more disconsolate than Janie's, she was born into slavery and raped by her master. She managed to escape slavery with her daughter, though failed to protect Janie's mother from being raped by her schoolteacher. Nanny faced considerable horrific moments of pain and violence, experiences that shaped her into a very hardened old woman. Nanny's outlook of life is bleak, she prioritizes her granddaughter's safety over all else, and while her methods are disagreeable at times, her position is understandable. Considering the hardships that Nanny has faced, it's no surprise when she decides

    Sorry to Bother You is a film written and directed by Boots Riley, released in 2018. The movie deals with issues of class, employment, and depicts the way race ties into them. In this post, I will be discussing how Sorry to Bother You and Invisible Man relate to each other, and as a warning this post will contain minor spoilers for the movie.     Sorry to Bother You follows a young man named Cassius Green. Looking for work, and living in his uncle's garage, Cassius eventually lands himself a spot at a telemarketing company. At first, he fails to achieve any semblance of success. Unable to maintain a call with a customer for more than ten seconds, he receives some advice from a seasoned coworker. He is told by an older black man that in order to sell products to his customers, he needs to use his "white voice." The idea is that sounding like a person with their life in order will make people more likely to buy what you're selling. Similarly, the brotherhood in Invi

     After our most recent readings in class, something I've been thinking about recently is the perceived obligation of black writers/artists to make work centered around and exploring racial issues. In "The World and the Jug ,"  Ellison says that Howe thinks "unrelieved suffering is the only 'real' Negro experience, and that the true Negro writer must be ferocious." Ellison views this as ignorant and short-sighted, and says that the ability to "deflect racial provocation and to master and contain pain" is also part of being an African American. Howe is a white man, and speaks on the black experience like he has authority over what is and isn't adequately black. As critics ourselves, we immediately view this action as ignorant in the same way that Ellison does. At the same time, when similar arguments are provided by black writers/artists, they are given much more room for contemplative thought. For example, the poem "To the Pale Poet

      Dr. Bledsoe's character was really interesting to me, a black man who has climbed his way to the top by doing what needed to be done, even at the price of his own dignity. He plays the role of the concerned suck-up to important white people like Norton, and then turns around and acts as if he's above them, controlling them even, when talking to lower status black people like the Narrator. Bledsoe has achieved success, and while one may not respect the way he got it, view him as disingenuous or cowardly, at the end of the day Bledsoe has made a name for himself and constructed his ideal life in a world that should've sought nothing else but to make that impossible for a black man. Something we talked a good amount about in class was whether or not we respected Dr. Bledsoe for doing this. I neglected to say anything, due to the fact that I was currently behind in the reading. Now that I've gained a better understanding, both through reading and through hearing class

    Chapter One of Invisible Man left a strong initial impression on me. Reading through the elongated and elaborate torture process our main character (I'll be referring to him as Inm for the rest of this post for convenience) experienced in the chapter was at the very least mildly upsetting and at times difficult to read. The idea of being invited to a party and being promised a celebration of your worth, only to find out that you are in fact nothing more than entertainment is incredibly depressing. Inm fell victim to a brutal bait-and-switch, and the most painful part was the fact that he was too blind to realize even by the end of the chapter. Desperate for approval, Inm tolerates countless afflictions one after another, holding out for the reward he was promised. While his acceptance and ignorance of his situation anger me, I am aware that after he steps foot into the building, he has lost all say in what's to come of him over the course of the rest of the night. When he s