Date of Award
Fall 12-2018
Degree Type
Thesis
Degree Name
M.A.
Degree Program
English
Department
English
Major Professor
Dr. Elizabeth Steeby
Second Advisor
Dr. Doreen Piano
Third Advisor
Dr. Earle Bryant
Abstract
In this paper, Kait Spong examines alternative practices of mothering that are strategic nature, heavily analyzing Patricia Hill Collins’ concepts of “othermothering” and “preservative love” as applied to Toni Morrison’s 1987 novel, Beloved and Harriet Jacob’s 1861 slave narrative, Incidents in the Life of a Slave Girl. Using literary analysis as a vehicle, Spong then applies these West African notions of motherhood to a modern context by evaluating contemporary social movements such as Black Lives Matter where black mothers have played a prominent role in making public statements against systemic issues such as police brutality, heightened surveillance, and the prison industrial complex.
Recommended Citation
Spong, Kaitlyn M., "“Your love is too thick”: An Analysis of Black Motherhood in Slave Narratives, Neo-Slave Narratives, and Our Contemporary Moment" (2018). University of New Orleans Theses and Dissertations. 2573.
https://scholarworks.uno.edu/td/2573
Included in
African American Studies Commons, American Literature Commons, United States History Commons, Women's Studies Commons
Rights
The University of New Orleans and its agents retain the non-exclusive license to archive and make accessible this dissertation or thesis in whole or in part in all forms of media, now or hereafter known. The author retains all other ownership rights to the copyright of the thesis or dissertation.