Black Romantic Revolution: Abolitionist Poets at the End of Slavery

During the US slavery debate, Black writers used their art to advocate for abolition and envision a world without slavery. They borrowed from European Romanticism to express their hopes and anxieties about freedom and the expansion of global capital and U.S. imperial power. The Black Romantic Revolution suggests that their cultural innovations have shaped Black radical culture today, echoing their expressions of love, rage, grief, and determination.

Format: Leather / fine binding
Length: 272 pages
Publication date: 28 September 2020
Publisher: Verso Books

During the intense and divisive debate surrounding slavery in the United States, Black writers, both enslaved and free, aligned themselves with the abolitionist cause, employing their artistic talents to advocate for emancipation and envision a future free from the institution. These writers drew inspiration from the European tradition of Romanticism, employing lyric poetry and prophetic visions to express their aspirations for freedom. Simultaneously, they voiced concerns about the expansion of global capital and U.S. imperial power in the aftermath of slavery. Additionally, they shed light on the devastating consequences of slavery's sexual violence. Authors such as Frances Ellen Watkins Harper, George Moses Horton, Albery Allson Whitman, and Joshua McCarter Simpson viewed the Civil War as a revolutionary upheaval akin to the turbulent Age of Revolutions in Europe.

The Black Romantic Revolution posits that the cultural innovations of the Black Romantics have profoundly impacted Black radical culture, spanning various forms of expression, including blues, hip-hop, Black nationalism, and Black feminism. Their profound expressions of love, rage, grief, determination, dreams, and nightmares continue to resonate in our present day.

Weight: 564g
Dimension: 160 x 240 x 24 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781788735438