http://worldcat.org/entity/work/id/12917198

"Yes, it'll be me" a comparative analysis of The Brownies' Book and contemporary African American children's literature written by Patricia McKissack

Abstract: The purpose of this study was to conduct a comparative analysis of The Brownies' Book, one of the first periodicals created primarily for black children during the Harlem renaissance, and contemporary African American children's literature written by Patricia McKissack. The major research questions guiding the study were: 1) What are the areas of continuity in terms of themes, underlying ideologies, goals and values within these two bodies of work and 2) What are the areas of divergence in terms of themes, underlying ideologies, goals and values within these two bodies of work? The theoretical framework undergirding this study was critical race theory (CRT), a multidisciplinary epistemology situated within the legal field, which places race at the center of critical analysis. The main sources of data included issues of The Brownies' Book, children's literature written by Patricia McKissack and the transcript of a telephone interview conducted with the author. The results of the study indicated that both bodies of work challenged dominant perspectives via storytelling, were committed to social protest and depicted literacy as important. Unlike The Brownies' Book children's literature by McKissack placed more of an emphasis on the working class and on the importance of community/family relationships. McKissack's work also contained strong feminist overtones.

Open All Close All