Amiri Baraka's Drama: The Poetics of Liberation and Black Becoming

Father of the Black Arts Movement, pioneer of the Black Theatre Movement, and figurehead of Black Cultural Nationalism, Amiri Baraka (formerly LeRoi Jones) remains one of the most influential and prolific figures in the world of American literature. This book like never before deals with Baraka's view of art, aesthetics, and propaganda. It delves into his poetics of self-assertion, national pride, and cultural rebirth. It traces his assault on the English language-the bedrock of the system of signification of American culture. It also draws the graph of violence and profanity translated as veering away from dominative frames and affirmation of subjectivity. The book ingeniously peers into notions operative in Baraka's playtexts such as myth, history, audience participation, ritual, and ceremony in the aim to discover the potential for resistance and empowerment. This study skilfully effects archaeological diggings to spotlight untapped concepts and shed light on the recesses of Baraka's groundbreaking theatrical works.