Civil Rights & Jim Crow

The Civil Rights & Jim Crow Collection features selections focused on the fight for civil rights and racial equality in the United States. The voices represented in this Collection highlight the historical struggles of racial discrimination and segregation in the 20th century and ongoing movements to continue dismantling systems of oppression.

Publication year 2006Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Society: Politics & Government, Society: Nation, Society: CommunityTags History: U.S., Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Military / War, Politics / Government

Publication year 2021Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Society: Politics & Government, Society: CommunityTags History: U.S., Politics / Government, Race / Racism, Social Justice, Civil Rights / Jim Crow

Publication year 2018Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Society: Politics & Government, Society: Nation, Values/Ideas: EqualityTags History: U.S., Race / Racism, Politics / Government, Social Justice, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Gender / Feminism, Black Lives Matter

Publication year 1974Genre Autobiography / Memoir, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Society: Community, Values/Ideas: EqualityTags Gender / Feminism, Social Justice, Race / Racism, Politics / Government, Civil Rights / Jim Crow

Angela Davis: An Autobiography, originally published in 1974, is a political autobiography focused on the imprisonment and trial of activist and scholar Angela Davis in the early 1970s. In 1970, after guns belonging to Davis were used in an uprising at the Marin County Courthouse in California, Davis was accused and convicted of conspiracy, kidnapping, and murder. A jury acquitted Davis of all charges in 1972. She published her autobiography two years later to center... Read Angela Davis Summary


Publication year 2004Genre Book, NonfictionTags History: U.S., Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Crime / Legal, Jazz Age

Kevin Boyle's Arc of Justice depicts the racial turmoil in Detroit in 1925 through the story of Dr. Ossian Sweet, an African-American physician who faces murder charges after trying to defend his home in an all-white neighborhood from mob violence. The grandson of a slave, Ossian moves northward during the Great Migration to get his education at Wilberforce and Howard Universities. After graduating Howard's medical school, Ossian sets up practice and residence in Black Bottom... Read Arc of Justice Summary


Publication year 1965Genre Poem, FictionThemes Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Identity: Race, Emotions/Behavior: GriefTags Narrative / Epic Poem, Race / Racism, Grief / Death, Social Justice, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, African American Literature

Publication year 2018Genre Biography, NonfictionThemes Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Identity: Language, Identity: Race, Society: CommunityTags Historical Fiction, Harlem Renaissance, History: U.S., Race / Racism, African American Literature, Anthropology, Black Lives Matter, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Grief / Death, History: African , Social Justice, Trauma / Abuse / Violence

Originally written in the late 1920s and early 1930s, Barracoon: The Story of the Last “Black Cargo” (2018) is the transcribed posthumous autobiography of the life of Oluale “Cudjo Lewis” Kossola (1841-1935), written by Zora Neale Hurston (1891-1960). Known for her involvement in the Harlem Renaissance, Hurston was a writer, anthropologist, folklorist, and filmmaker. In all her work, she held a special appreciation for Black life and Black culture of the US South. Her works... Read Barracoon: The Story of the Last "Black Cargo" Summary


Publication year 1936Genre Short Story, FictionThemes Society: Community, Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Justice & InjusticeTags African American Literature, Race / Racism, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Civil Rights / Jim Crow

The short story “Big Boy Leaves Home” (1936) is the first published work of Richard Wright (1908-1960), a celebrated African American author who is best known for his 1940 protest novel Native Son. Most of Wright’s poetry, fiction, and nonfiction deal with the experiences of working-class Black people (especially men) in the United States. His protagonists, like “Big Boy,” struggle against overt racism and racist violence in their communities, ultimately facing crises that force them... Read Big Boy Leaves Home Summary


Publication year 1945Genre Autobiography / Memoir, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Justice & InjusticeTags Race / Racism, Civil Rights / Jim Crow

Black Boy (American Hunger): A Record of Childhood and Youth is American writer Richard Wright’s classic memoir about coming of age as a Black man in the Jim Crow South and his migration to Chicago. Harper published Part 1 in 1945 as Black Boy and Part 2, which focuses on Wright’s experiences in the Communist Party in Chicago, in 1977 as American Hunger; Library of America published the combined memoir in 1991. The 1945 edition... Read Black Boy Summary


Publication year 2004Genre Autobiography / Memoir, NonfictionTags Race / Racism, History: U.S., Crime / Legal, Civil Rights / Jim Crow

Blood Done Sign My Name (2004), by Timothy B. Tyson, is a nonfiction work of history centered on the racially motivated 1970 murder of Henry Marrow Jr. in Oxford, North Carolina. The killing occurred after Marrow, a 23-year-old Black Army veteran, husband, and father of two, allegedly made a flirtatious remark in the direction of a 19-year-old married white woman. The woman’s husband, brother-in-law, and father-in-law chased Marrow down the street, shot him from behind... Read Blood Done Sign My Name Summary


Publication year 1962Genre Poem, FictionTags Lyric Poem, Free verse, Social Justice, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Cold War, American Literature

Publication year 1989Genre Poem, FictionThemes Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Identity: RaceTags Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Race / Racism, Poverty

Publication year 2009Genre Biography, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Emotions/Behavior: courageTags History: U.S., Race / Racism, Social Justice, Civil Rights / Jim Crow

Publication year 2020Genre Novel, FictionThemes Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: Forgiveness, Emotions/Behavior: courage, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Guilt, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Identity: Race, Life/Time: Aging, Life/Time: Mortality & Death, Relationships: Grandparents, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Life/Time: The Past, Relationships: Fathers, Values/Ideas: Equality, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Safety & DangerTags African American Literature, Children's Literature, Realistic Fiction, Action / Adventure, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, History: U.S., Black Lives Matter, Grief / Death

Publication year 2000Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: EqualityTags History: U.S., Race / Racism, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Cold War, Politics / Government

Publication year 2003Genre Book, NonfictionTags Civil Rights / Jim Crow

Ella Baker and the Black Freedom Movement was written by Barbara Ransby and published by the University of North Carolina Press in 2003. The book is a biography of Ella Baker, the mother of the civil rights movement, whose work ushered in a new pro-democracy era that saw the importance of fighting for one’s civil rights as important to the survival of the democratic project. Ransby follows the winding tale of Baker’s life, chronicling her... Read Ella Baker and the Black Freedom Movement Summary


Publication year 1913Genre Poem, FictionThemes Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Power & GreedTags Lyric Poem, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, African American Literature

Publication year 2018Genre Biography, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Society: War, Values/Ideas: Religion & SpiritualityTags Race / Racism, History: U.S., Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Politics / Government, American Civil War, Reconstruction Era

Publication year 2016Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Identity: Race, Society: Class, Society: Colonialism, Society: Politics & Government, Society: Community, Society: Economics, Society: Education, Society: Nation, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Truth & Lies, Values/Ideas: Trust & DoubtTags Black Lives Matter, Race / Racism, Social Justice, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, History: U.S., Business / Economics, Diversity, Class, Education, Finance / Money / Wealth, Poverty, Politics / Government, Trauma / Abuse / Violence

Publication year 2011Genre Autobiography / Memoir, NonfictionThemes Values/Ideas: Trust & DoubtTags Civil Rights / Jim Crow

Girls Like Us: Fighting For a World Where Girls Are Not For Sale, is a memoir by Rachel Lloyd that challenges how sexually exploited girls are treated and perceived in society. The book was originally published by Harper Perennial in February 2012 to positive reviews from various sources and figures such as Elle, Marie Claire, Demi Moore, Harlem Children’s Zone, and Tony Award-winning playwright and UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador Sarah Jones. Rachel Lloyd, a survivor of... Read Girls Like Us Summary


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Langston Hughes
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Publication year 1951Genre Poem, FictionThemes Life/Time: The Future, Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Equality, Society: NationTags Lyric Poem, Harlem Renaissance, African American Literature, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Race / Racism, History: U.S., Urban Development

Publication year 2000Genre Poem, FictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Nostalgia, Identity: Race, Life/Time: The PastTags Lyric Poem, Race / Racism, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, History: U.S.

Publication year 1973Genre Essay / Speech, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Life/Time: The FutureTags Race / Racism, Civil Rights / Jim Crow

Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s “I Have a Dream'' speech is one of the most celebrated oratory pieces in American history. King delivered the speech from the steps of the Lincoln Memorial in Washington, D.C., on August 28, 1963 as the final speech of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom. A. Philip Randolph and Bayard Ruston organized the march to advocate for civil and economic rights for Black Americans, which was among the... Read I Have A Dream Speech Summary


Publication year 1965Genre Novel, FictionThemes Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Society: CommunityTags Mystery / Crime Fiction, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Race / Racism, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Diversity, Class, American Literature

Published in 1965, John Ball’s In the Heat of the Night is a crime novel set in Wells, South Carolina. The story focuses on the police department’s numerous struggles to solve a recent murder. Virgil Tibbs, a Black detective from Pasadena, California, lends a helping hand, but his interactions with the locals reveal the deep-seated racism of Wells. Through this murder mystery, the novel addresses issues of systemic racism and offers hope for a better... Read In the Heat of the Night Summary


Publication year 2019Genre Novel, FictionThemes Relationships: Mothers, Identity: Race, Identity: Mental HealthTags Historical Fiction, Realistic Fiction, Addiction / Substance Abuse, Race / Racism, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Gender / Feminism, African American Literature, Post-War Era

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Langston Hughes
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Publication year 1926Genre Poem, FictionThemes Values/Ideas: Equality, Identity: RaceTags Lyric Poem, Race / Racism, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, African American Literature, Harlem Renaissance, Black Arts Movement

Publication year 1949Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Emotions/Behavior: FearTags Religion / Spirituality, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, African American Literature

Publication year 2012Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Society: War, Society: NationTags History: U.S., Politics / Government, Crime / Legal, Leadership/Organization/Management, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Grief / Death, Vietnam War

Publication year 2004Genre Novel, FictionThemes Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Race, Life/Time: Childhood & Youth, Life/Time: Coming of Age, Relationships: Siblings, Society: Class, Society: Economics, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Power & GreedTags Historical Fiction, Grief / Death, Asian Literature, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Realistic Fiction, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, History: U.S., Parenting, Race / Racism, American Literature

Cynthia Kadohata’s first novel, Kira-Kira (2004), is a historical coming-of-age novel for middle-grade readers. The novel tells the story of the Japanese American Takeshima family, who live in the Chesterfield, Georgia, in the 1950s. The protagonist and first-person narrator is the younger daughter, Katie. The narrative spans seven years, involving the family’s move from Iowa to the South, where Katie’s parents become workers in the poultry industry. The narrative follows Katie as she awakens to... Read Kira-Kira Summary


Genre Autobiography / Memoir, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Values/Ideas: Fame, Relationships: FamilyTags Race / Racism, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Addiction / Substance Abuse, Relationships

Life on the Color Line: The True Story of a White Boy Who Discovered He Was Black, published in 1995, is an autobiographical account of the childhood and adolescence of the American lawyer and educator Gregory Howard Williams. An exceptional achiever throughout his life, Williams devoted 10 years to penning this memoir that centers around his being raised to believe he’s white, only to be told as a 10-year-old boy that he’s of African American... Read Life on the Color Line Summary


Publication year 1900Genre Poem, FictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Values/Ideas: Equality, Emotions/Behavior: Joy, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Society: Nation, Life/Time: The Past, Life/Time: The Future, Identity: Race, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / PerseveranceTags Lyric Poem, Inspirational, African American Literature, American Literature, Race / Racism, Religion / Spirituality, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, History: U.S.

Publication year 1946Genre Short Story, FictionThemes Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Society: CommunityTags Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Race / Racism

“Like A Winding Sheet” is a short story by African American writer Ann Petry, originally published in 1945 and included in the 1946 collection of Best American Short Stories. Like many of Petry’s novels and short stories, “Like A Winding Sheet” examines how racism within American society impacts the personal lives of working-class African American people. In the story, Petry is especially interested in how racism is an inescapable part of life in New York... Read Like a Winding Sheet Summary


Publication year 2019Genre Novel, FictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Race, Identity: Mental Health, Society: War, Values/Ideas: Beauty, Values/Ideas: MusicTags Historical Fiction, Romance, Mythology, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Grief / Death, History: World, Love / Sexuality, Military / War, Music, Race / Racism, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, WWI / World War I, WWII / World War II

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John Lewis, Andrew Aydin
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Publication year 2013Genre Graphic Novel/Book, NonfictionThemes Society: Education, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Equality, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / PerseveranceTags History: U.S., Politics / Government, Race / Racism, Social Justice, Auto/Biographical Fiction, Inspirational, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Black Lives Matter

Publication year 2016Genre Graphic Memoir , NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: EqualityTags Civil Rights / Jim Crow, History: U.S., Race / Racism, Social Justice

Publication year 1959Genre Poem, FictionThemes Identity: Race, Natural World: Animals, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Values/Ideas: Equality, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / PerseveranceTags Lyric Poem, Harlem Renaissance, American Literature, African American Literature, Race / Racism, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Social Justice, History: U.S.

Publication year 2017Genre Novel, FictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Conflict, Emotions/Behavior: courage, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Gratitude, Emotions/Behavior: Hate & Anger, Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Beauty, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Good & Evil, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt, Values/Ideas: Safety & Danger, Values/Ideas: Truth & LiesTags Historical Fiction, Race / Racism, Civil Rights / Jim Crow

Publication year 1972Genre Essay Collection, NonfictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Hope, Emotions/Behavior: Love, Identity: Masculinity, Identity: RaceTags Race / Racism, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Politics / Government, History: U.S.

Publication year 2021Genre Essay Collection, NonfictionThemes Values/Ideas: Loyalty & Betrayal, Values/Ideas: Trust & Doubt, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Emotions/Behavior: Fear, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Emotions/Behavior: Nostalgia, Emotions/Behavior: ConflictTags History: U.S., Race / Racism, Social Justice, Black Lives Matter, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Education, Politics / Government

Publication year 2022Genre Novel, FictionThemes Relationships: Family, Emotions/Behavior: Grief, Emotions/Behavior: Memory, Emotions/Behavior: Determination / Perseverance, Society: Nation, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Society: Politics & GovernmentTags Historical Fiction, WWII / World War II, Arts / Culture, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Food, Grief / Death, History: U.S., History: World, Immigration / Refugee, Incarceration, Military / War, Philosophy, Politics / Government, Love / Sexuality, Relationships, Social Justice

Publication year 2001Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Society: Politics & GovernmentTags History: U.S., American Civil War, Race / Racism, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, American Literature

Race and Reunion by David W. Blight was published in 2001. It is about the history of American Civil War memory, specifically focusing on the 50-year period (1865-1915) after the war’s conclusion. It centers the competing themes of racial equality and sectional reunion. The book won numerous awards, including the Frederick Douglass Prize, the Merle Curti Award, the Gilder Lehrman Lincoln Prize, the Bancroft Prize, and the James A. Rawley Prize.SummaryBlight uses a variety of... Read Race and Reunion Summary


Publication year 2017Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Society: Economics, Society: Class, Society: Politics & Government, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Power & Greed, Society: Education, Society: Colonialism, Society: NationTags Business / Economics, Politics / Government, Philosophy, Social Justice, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Finance / Money / Wealth, History: U.S.

Requiem for the American Dream: The 10 Principles of Concentration of Wealth & Power by linguist and political activist Noam Chomsky evaluates the rise of income inequality in the US over the last 40 years. It argues that the main consequence of neoliberalism, which has increased since the 1970s, is a dramatic concentration of wealth and power to the elite—at the expense of the lower and middle classes. Chomsky observes how rapid financialization since the... Read Requiem for the American Dream Summary


Publication year 1965Genre Poem, FictionTags Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Race / Racism

Publication year 1987Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Identity: RaceTags History: U.S., Civil Rights / Jim Crow

Separate Pasts: Growing Up White in the Segregated South (1998) is a memoir by the American author and historian Melton A. McLaurin, who describes coming of age as a white person in the segregated South. McLaurin was born in 1941 in Fayetteville, North Carolina, and grows up in the nearby town of Wade. The memoir takes place in the small town of Wade during the 1950s and focuses on the racism he witnessed at both individual... Read Separate Pasts Summary


Publication year 1933Genre Short Story, FictionThemes Emotions/Behavior: Shame & Pride, Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Justice & InjusticeTags Realistic Fiction, Historical Fiction, Psychological Fiction, Race / Racism, Black Lives Matter, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Social Justice, African American Literature

“Slave on the Block” is a short story by Langston Hughes that originally appeared in the September 1933 issue of Scribner's Magazine. The story was later published in The Ways of White Folks, a 1934 collection of Hughes’s short stories.This study guide, based on the 1990 Vintage Classics print edition, quotes and obscures the author’s use of the n-word.Anne and Michael Carraway are affluent white bohemians who live in Greenwich Village—and often visit Harlem—during the... Read Slave on the Block Summary


Publication year 2023Genre Novel, FictionThemes Relationships: Mothers, Emotions/Behavior: Revenge, Values/Ideas: Justice & InjusticeTags Mystery / Crime Fiction, Horror / Thriller / Suspense Fiction, Race / Racism, Trauma / Abuse / Violence, Civil Rights / Jim Crow

Publication year 2016Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Values/Ideas: MusicTags African American Literature, History: U.S., Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Black Lives Matter

Ibrahim Kendi’s comprehensive history of racial thought in the US, Stamped from the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America, was published in 2016. Organized around the lifespans of five of the most influential or representative individuals in racial thought across American history, the text spans centuries, offering an overview of the enduring and evolving forms of racist ideology in America.Kendi’s book incorporates conversations in science, literature, visual and musical arts, politics, and... Read Stamped From the Beginning Summary


Publication year 2020Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Identity: Race, Values/Ideas: Justice & InjusticeTags Black Lives Matter, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Race / Racism

Jason Reynolds’s Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You (2020) is a nonfiction book by the American authors Jason Reynolds and Dr. Ibram X. Kendi. It is a self-described “remix” of Kendi’s 2016 National Book Award winner Stamped From the Beginning: The Definitive History of Racist Ideas in America. An award-winning writer of young adult fiction and poetry, Reynolds frames America’s history of racist ideas for an audience of middle school and high school readers. Reynolds’s remix... Read Stamped: Racism, Antiracism, and You Summary


Publication year 2003Genre Book, NonfictionThemes Society: Nation, Society: Colonialism, Values/Ideas: Religion & Spirituality, Society: Class, Society: Immigration, Society: Community, Society: Economics, Values/Ideas: Equality, Values/Ideas: Justice & Injustice, Society: Politics & GovernmentTags History: U.S., Immigration / Refugee, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Black Lives Matter, Race / Racism, Social Justice, Politics / Government, American Revolution, American Civil War, Colonialism / Postcolonialism, Colonial America, Sociology

The American Dream: A Short History of an Idea that Shaped a Nation, originally published in 2003 by Oxford University Press, is a popular history book by American cultural historian Jim Cullen. As an overview and critical analysis of the American Dream, this book adds some meat to the bones of a traditionally ambiguous concept. Cullen maintains an optimistic outlook about the usefulness of the various American Dreams and about the promise of America, despite... Read The American Dream Summary


Publication year 1942Genre Short Story, FictionThemes Life/Time: Coming of Age, Natural World: Environment, Values/Ideas: Justice & InjusticeTags Historical Fiction, Coming of Age / Bildungsroman, Animals, Science / Nature, Civil Rights / Jim Crow, Southern Gothic, Reconstruction Era

“The Bear” is a work of short fiction by William Faulkner, first published in The Saturday Evening Post in May 1942. Faulkner subsequently expanded the story and included it in Go Down, Moses, a collection of related short stories sometimes considered a novel, published later that year. An abbreviated version also appears in his 1955 anthology, Big Woods. As historical fiction set in an imagined Mississippi county, “The Bear” traces a young man’s development in... Read The Bear Summary