There are a number of conversations in the novel about whether books or plays portraying Black characters in a positive light are of value if they are not written by Black authors. What do you think?
I agree to an extent. I think that in order to get an understanding of the Black experience it would surely have to come from a Black voice but whether written by a Black person or someone else it at the very least amplified their voices.
I found these conversations particularly interesting and appreciated the different viewpoints and opinions of the Black characters in the book. It was and is still a controversial topic. Because I’m Caucasian, I don’t feel I am qualified to answer or meaningfully participate in those discussions but I really enjoyed reading and thinking about this.
I was very interested in this and on one hand I absolutely get it, but then what do we do, never have a man write a woman character or a POC? It becomes a slippery slope. I think for a white person to write a book about being a slave maybe odd, but then Huckleberry Finn and Uncle Tom’s Cabin. This is a great, but tough question.
I agree that books/plays about Black characters should be written by Black authors. I’m White and while I think I can understand/empathize others I know I really cannot fully appreciate what I would do, say, think, or feel as a person of any other culture/race.
This is truly a difficult question and a relevant one. There are recent books that have evoked criticism for this very reason. Ultimately, I think authors are generally going to be most adept at writing experiences to which they relate. Does that mean they can’t write about a character from a different background or culture? I don’t know.
Do you remember a few years ago there was quite an uproar because an author without much of an immigrant experience wrote about a woman and her son crossing illegally from Mexico to the US (American Dirt). It was an Oprah Book Club selection, but there was a lot of criticism from the Latin American/Mexican American communities because of inaccuracies and stereotypes. So yeah, it’s a conversation we’re still having.
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