Female slave portrayals in child and young adult historical fiction by African American authors

This study explored several works of historical fiction focused on slavery in the United States written by African-Americans for middle-level children. This exploration juxtaposed portrayals of female slaves developed by African-American female authors with portrayals created by African-American male authors. Historical fiction for children and young adults was collected and analyzed using literary criticism and literary theory that is interpretive in nature. Several key themes of the literature were identified as critical to understanding the slave experiences of black women in the United States. A combination of critical race theory and critical black feminism served as the theoretical lenses from which the portrayals were critiqued. The research suggested the importance of understanding the historical contributions of black girls and women to our country during the ante- and post-bellum eras. The use of historical fiction to supplement the social studies and American history curricula for middle grade youth was recommended.

Name thesis:degree_name

Ed.D.

Level thesis:degree_level

Dissertation

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

Curriculum and Instruction

Grantor

University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign

Year dc:date

2014

Author dc:creator

• Onuora, Ngozi

Contributors dc:contributor

• Harris, Violet J.
• Willis, Arlette I.
• Moller, Karla J.
• Anderson, James D.

• Slavery
• chattel slavery
• U.S. slavery
• female slaves
• slave portrayals
• children’s literature
• young adult literature
• historical fiction
• African American authors
• critical race theory
• critical black feminism
• black feminist criticism
• middle-level students
• middle-grade students
• literary analysis
• literary criticism
• textual analysis

Statement dc:rights

• Copyright 2014 Ngozi Onuora

Language dc:language

en

Handle dc:identifier

http://hdl.handle.net/2142/49412

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:www.ideals.illinois.edu:2142/49412