recitatif-Tony-Morrison

Recitatif--TonyMorrison李玉桃邢飞Outline•ToniMorrison,worksandmajorthemes•Introductionof“Recitatif”•Postcolonialanalysisof“Recitatif”ToniMorrison•Winnerof1993NobelPrizeforliterature,firstAfricanAmericantoreceivethisprize•BorninLorain,Ohio,basisforsomeofherfictionalsettings•Criticism:PlayingintheDark:WhitenessandtheAmericanLiteraryImagination(1992)（NobelLecture,1993）•Telluswhatitistobeawomansothatwemayknowwhatitistobeaman.Whatmovesatthemargin.Whatitistohavenohomeinthisplace.Tobesetadrift（漂浮）fromtheoneyouknew.Whatitistoliveattheedgeoftownsthatcannotbearyourcompany.NovelsMajorthemesA.Strongfeelingoffeministconsciousness.Thedescriptionoftheconditionofblackwomenwhoareoppressedbyraceandgender.eg.ThebluesteyeSulaBelovedB.TheintegrationofAfricanAmericans’pastandpresentlifetoshowthedistortionofcolonialsystemandracialdiscrimination.eg.SongofSolomanRecitatif•“Recitatif”(1983)isMorrison’sonlypublishedshortstory•Thetitlealludesto“astyleofmusicaldeclamationthathoversbetweensongandordinaryspeech”•thestory’sepisodic（插叙式）nature,thestorybringstogetherfive,shortencountersofRobertaandTwylafrom8tomid-agecrossingmorethan20.•ThestoryisTwyla’srecitatif.Postcolonialinterpretation•TheuncertaintyoftheracialidentityofRobertandTwyla•“whatthehellhappenedtoMaggie”?Roberta’sracialidentity•“itissomethingelsetobestuckinastrangeplacewithagirlfromawholeotherrace”•“theyneverwashedtheirhairandtheysmelledfunny.Robertasuredid”(P1)•“shoes,dress,everythinglovely…andrich,Iwasdyingtoknowwhathappenedtoher…easy,everythingissoeasyforthem.Theythinktheyowntheworld”.(P8-9)blackwhite•“race”“identity”:keypostcolonialconcept•“racialdifferencesoftenleadto‘structuredinequality’tovalidateoppression,andtheprejudicedvaluesandattitudetowardscolonizedpeoples”—Baldwin.•“theyneverwashedtheirhairandtheysmelledfunny”StereotypeTwyla’s“everythingissoeasyforthem.Theythinktheyowntheworld”.•shecanbeanAfricanAmericanwhocomplainstheinjusticeandinequalityshereceivesfromthewhite-dominantsociety.•ShemayalsobeawhitewomanwhoisjealousofthenewlyemergingAfricanupper-middleclassaftertheCivilRightsMovement.•Twyla’sandRoberta’sidentitiesaredefinedinrelationtooneanother:“Actuallymysigndidn’tmakesensewithoutRoberta’s”(P16)•selfanotherareinterdependent,Twyla’sracedoesnotmakesensewithoutRoberta’s.•Byblurringtheracialidentitiesofthetwocharacters•thestorychallengesreaders’mindandtheirpreconceptionsaboutrace.•ItdeconstructstheblackandwhitebinarytorevealthelimitationsofAmerican’sracialdiscourse.•HomiBhabha’stheoryof“hybridity”•“thevoiceofthecolonizedcanonlybeinterpretedintermsof‘fixity’,its‘discursivestrategy’isambivalenceintheformofstereotype”“whatthehellhappenedtoMaggie”?•Maggie•“Thekitchenwomanwithlegslikeparenthethese”•Maggierepresentsthesharedpastofthetwo;sheisalsotheconflictsofRobertaandTwyla’sconversation•“rememberMaggie?Thedayshefelldown…”•“Maggiedidn’tfall”(P11)•“youkickedapooroldblacklady…”(P15)•“Ireallydidthinkshewasblack…butnowIcan’tbesure”(P18)“Maggiecouldn’ttalk…shewasmute”(P2)•Thevoiceofthesubaltern/colonizedisanothermajorattackatpostcolonialstudies•Spivak“Canthesubalternspeak?”•“subalterncouldhaveavoicewhentheirvoiceisheardthroughtheacademicdiscoursesofwesternmetropolitanculture”--Ashcroft•Inthestory,theraced,gendered,disabledwomanrepresentsthe“other”.Becausesheismuteandpresumablydeaf,shecannotparticipateinthedialogue.•“parentheses”indicatessomethingofsecondaryimportance.Thebowlegsconjuretheimageofzeroitself,reducedtonothing,Maggieisdeprivedofactivityandagency.•Therefore,Maggielossesthepowerofdiscourse,herstoryandhistorybecomesmarginalized.•Thankyou