{"product_id":"after-mecca-women-poets-and-the-black-arts-movement-9780813534060","title":"After Mecca: Black Arts Movement Women Poets by Cheryl Clarke","description":"\u003ch2\u003eAfter Mecca: Women Poets and the Black Arts Movement\u003c\/h2\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThis scholarly work examines the relationship between the Black Arts Movement and Black women writers during the transformative period of the 1960s and early 1970s. Author Cheryl Clarke provides the only book-length treatment of Black women poets of this era, their contributions to feminism and lesbian-feminism, and their lasting impact on subsequent generations of poets.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eFeatured Poets and Their Contributions\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eThe book analyzes works by Gwendolyn Brooks, Ntozake Shange, Audre Lorde, Nikki Giovanni, Sonia Sanchez, Jayne Cortez, Alice Walker, and other influential voices who charted the emergence of a distinct Black poetry. These poems document the Black community's struggle for rights and liberation during the Civil Rights era, while simultaneously developing feminist and lesbian-feminist perspectives that would shape future literary movements.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eCritical Analysis and Literary Significance\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eClarke argues that whether Black women poets were writing from within the movement or against it, virtually all were responding to its powerful influence. Using the trope of \"Mecca,\" she explores how these writers turned away from white, western society to create a new literacy of Blackness. The book traces how these poets navigated the often male-dominated Black Arts Movement while asserting their own voices and perspectives.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eAcademic and Research Value\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003ePublished by Rutgers University Press, this provocatively written book serves as an important contribution to African American literary studies and feminist theory. Clarke, herself a poet with four published collections, brings an insider's perspective to her analysis, having witnessed part of the era she examines. The work is essential reading for graduate studies, cultural studies research, and anyone interested in the intersection of race, gender, and literary production during this revolutionary period in American literature.\u003c\/p\u003e\n\n\u003ch3\u003eAbout the Author\u003c\/h3\u003e\n\n\u003cp\u003eCheryl Clarke is the author of four books of poetry: Narratives: Poems in the Tradition of Black Women, Living as a Lesbian, Humid Pitch, and Experimental Love. In addition,\u003c\/p\u003e","brand":"Rutgers University Press","offers":[{"title":"Default Title","offer_id":50413277118738,"sku":"9780813534060","price":42.99,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0831\/4771\/8930\/files\/img_f7a3422f-a00f-43e2-8039-cd0b31c94974.jpg?v=1729351950","url":"https:\/\/surprise-castle.myshopify.com\/products\/after-mecca-women-poets-and-the-black-arts-movement-9780813534060","provider":"Surprise Castle","version":"1.0","type":"link"}