With a Crooked Stick--The Films of Oscar Micheaux

Nonfiction, Entertainment, Film, History & Criticism, Performing Arts
Cover of the book With a Crooked Stick--The Films of Oscar Micheaux by J. Ronald Green, Indiana University Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: J. Ronald Green ISBN: 9780253027702
Publisher: Indiana University Press Publication: March 18, 2004
Imprint: Indiana University Press Language: English
Author: J. Ronald Green
ISBN: 9780253027702
Publisher: Indiana University Press
Publication: March 18, 2004
Imprint: Indiana University Press
Language: English

With a "crooked stick," filmmaker Oscar Micheaux (1884–1951) sought to hit a "straight lick" by stressing the strategic importance of class mobility, or "uplift," for African Americans. A theme in all of his more than 40 feature-length, black-produced, black-directed, black-cast, and black-audience films, uplift would allow for the better things in life: fast cars and fancy clothes, freedom of belief, financial security, and an unencumbered intellectual life. Although racism was an impediment to uplift for Micheaux and other African Americans, race as a category was of a secondary order for him in the larger game of class. In With a Crooked Stick, J. Ronald Green pursues this seeming contradiction in a detailed analysis of each of Micheaux’s 15 surviving films. He presents critical commentary on each film’s plot and action and its contribution to the overall theme of uplift. Readers will also find this an invaluable guide to the preoccupations and features of Micheaux’s remarkable career and the insight it provides into the African American experience of the 1920s and 30s.

View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart

With a "crooked stick," filmmaker Oscar Micheaux (1884–1951) sought to hit a "straight lick" by stressing the strategic importance of class mobility, or "uplift," for African Americans. A theme in all of his more than 40 feature-length, black-produced, black-directed, black-cast, and black-audience films, uplift would allow for the better things in life: fast cars and fancy clothes, freedom of belief, financial security, and an unencumbered intellectual life. Although racism was an impediment to uplift for Micheaux and other African Americans, race as a category was of a secondary order for him in the larger game of class. In With a Crooked Stick, J. Ronald Green pursues this seeming contradiction in a detailed analysis of each of Micheaux’s 15 surviving films. He presents critical commentary on each film’s plot and action and its contribution to the overall theme of uplift. Readers will also find this an invaluable guide to the preoccupations and features of Micheaux’s remarkable career and the insight it provides into the African American experience of the 1920s and 30s.

More books from Indiana University Press

Cover of the book Economic and Political Reform in Africa by J. Ronald Green
Cover of the book Mass Culture in Soviet Russia by J. Ronald Green
Cover of the book Popobawa by J. Ronald Green
Cover of the book The Muslim Question and Russian Imperial Governance by J. Ronald Green
Cover of the book Megafauna by J. Ronald Green
Cover of the book The Evil That Surrounds Us by J. Ronald Green
Cover of the book Ghana on the Go by J. Ronald Green
Cover of the book Daimon Life by J. Ronald Green
Cover of the book Good Girls & Wicked Witches by J. Ronald Green
Cover of the book A Lancastrian Mirror for Princes by J. Ronald Green
Cover of the book Cinematic Flashes by J. Ronald Green
Cover of the book Islamic Education in Africa by J. Ronald Green
Cover of the book The World on Edge by J. Ronald Green
Cover of the book Histories of Health in Southeast Asia by J. Ronald Green
Cover of the book Radical Theology by J. Ronald Green
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy