Turn the World Upside Down: Empire and Unruly Forms of Black Folk Culture in the U.S. and Caribbean

Imani D. Owens' book "Turn the World Upside Down" explores how Black writers and performers reimagined folk forms through the lens of the unruly, depicting folk culture as a site of disruption, ambiguity, and flux. It provides new forms of radical world-making that do not seek to render folk culture more knowable or worthy of assimilation.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 280 pages
Publication date: 04 July 2023
Publisher: Columbia University Press

In the vibrant tapestry of Black hemispheric culture, the first half of the twentieth century witnessed a profound grappling with the enduring legacies of colonialism, the mighty U.S. empire, and the insidious system of Jim Crow. As writers and performers sought to capture the essence of Black life amidst oppressive conditions, they ventured into the realm of everyday "folk," harnessing its labor, movement, speech, sound, and ritual as powerful tools for expression. These representations of folk culture, often perceived as efforts to reclaim an authentic past, have sparked critical discourse. In her groundbreaking work, Imani D. Owens reimagines the intricate relationship between Black creators and folk culture, highlighting their formal and stylistic innovations, as well as their audacious experiments in self-invention that transcend local boundaries and reach global horizons.

Turn the World Upside Down delves into the captivating realm of Black writers and performers who reimagined folk forms through the lens of the unruly, that which defies easy governance, discipline, or management. Drawing upon a rich transnational and multilingual archive, spanning from the vibrant streets of Harlem to the historic cities of Havana, from the Panama Canal Zone to the vibrant streets of Port-au-Prince, Owens explores a tapestry of literary, ethnographic, and artistic works. From the short stories of Eric Walrond and Jean Toomer to the ethnographies of Zora Neale Hurston and Jean Price-Mars, from the recited poetry of Langston Hughes, Nicolás Guillén, and Eusebia Cosme to the essays, dance works, and radio plays of Sylvia Wynter, Owens uncovers the rich tapestry of Blackness and folk culture as sites of disruption, ambiguity, and constant flux.

Through their profound works, these figures illuminate how Black people contribute to the stirrings of modernity while often being excluded from its promised rewards. Rather than seeking to render folk culture more knowable or worthy of assimilation, these works offer new forms of radical world-making, challenging the very foundations of established narratives and paving the way for a more inclusive and equitable future.

Dimension: 229 x 152 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9780231208895