American Book Awards
1 appearances
-
Edition 4 (1983) Winner
Barbara T. Christian
バーバラ・T・クリスチャン
Barbara T. Christian
Profile
- Gender
- Female
- Born
- 1943-12-12 （St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands）
- Died
- 2000-06-25 （Berkeley, California (Alameda County)） age 56
- Nationality
- United States
- Languages
- English
- Residence History
- St. Thomas, U.S. Virgin Islands → Milwaukee, Wisconsin → New York City (Columbia University / Harlem) → Berkeley, California
Career
- Occupations
- educator, feminist, writer, literary scholar
- Active Years
- 1963-2000
- Affiliations
- City College of the City University of New York (CCNY), Hunter College (briefly), University of California, Berkeley (Department of African American Studies), University Without Walls (founding instructor)
- Influenced By
- Zora Neale Hurston, Langston Hughes, Toni Morrison, Alice Walker
Education
| Institution | Faculty | Department | Degree | Period | Country |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Marquette University | Undergraduate | Arts and Letters | BA (cum laude) | 1959–1963 | United States |
| Columbia University | Graduate School (Literature) | American and British Literature | PhD | 1964–1970 | United States |
Marquette University
Undergraduate
/ Arts and Letters
Degree:
BA (cum laude)
Period:
1959–1963
Year of Graduation:
1963
Country:
United States
Graduated cum laude
Columbia University
Graduate School (Literature)
/ American and British Literature
Degree:
PhD
Period:
1964–1970
Year of Graduation:
1970
Country:
United States
Earned PhD; dissertation on Harlem Renaissance poets
Awards
| Year | Award | Work | Category | Organization | Result |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1991 | UC Berkeley Distinguished Teaching Award | — | — | University of California, Berkeley | 受賞 |
| 1994 | MELUS Distinguished Contribution to Ethnic Studies Award | — | — | The Society for the Study of the Multi-Ethnic Literature of the United States (MELUS) | 受賞 |
| 2000 | Berkeley Citation | — | — | University of California, Berkeley | 受賞 |
UC Berkeley Distinguished Teaching Award
1991
Organization:
University of California, Berkeley
Result:
受賞
MELUS Distinguished Contribution to Ethnic Studies Award
1994
Organization:
The Society for the Study of the Multi-Ethnic Literature of the United States (MELUS)
Result:
受賞
Berkeley Citation
2000
Organization:
University of California, Berkeley
Result:
受賞
Awards & Nominations
Works
Major Works
Black Women Novelists: The Development of a Tradition, 1892–1976
1980 literary criticism / scholarshipA pioneering study surveying black women writers from the late 19th century through the mid-1970s; became a foundational reference in black feminist literary studies.
representation of Black womenfeminismrecovery and reassessment of literary history
Black Feminist Criticism: Perspectives on Black Women Writers
1985 literary criticismA collection arguing against an overemphasis on abstract theory and for context-specific criticism attentive to black women writers and their literary traditions.
critical methodologycontextual interpretationBlack women's literature
From the Inside Out: Afro-American Women's Literary Tradition and the State
1987 scholarly essaysEssays examining how Afro-American women's literary traditions engage with the state and social contexts.
state and literaturefeminismpolitics of representation
Alice Walker's 'The Color Purple' and Other Works: A Critical Commentary
1987 critical commentaryA critical commentary focusing on Alice Walker's major works, including an analysis of themes and stylistic choices.
Black women's experiencevoice and narrativefeminism
The Race for Theory
1987 academic essayAn essay criticizing the increasing abstraction of literary theory and how it contributed to the exclusion of people of color, especially Black women, from theoretical discourse.
critique of critical theoryexclusion and inclusionmethodology
Bibliography
- Black Women Novelists: The Development of a Tradition, 1892–1976
- Teaching Guide to Accompany 'Black Foremothers, Three Lives' (with Dorothy Sterling)
- Black Feminist Criticism: Perspectives on Black Women Writers
- From the Inside Out: Afro-American Women's Literary Tradition and the State
- Alice Walker's 'The Color Purple' and Other Works: A Critical Commentary
- Essay 'The Race for Theory' (Cultural Critique, 1987)
Style & Themes
- Literary Style
- rigorous feminist-critical analysiscontext-sensitive, historically informed approachbridging colloquial and academic discourse
- Recurring Motifs
- voice and agency of Black womenrecovery of memory and traditionlanguage and power
Health
-
lung cancer1999–2000Died in 2000 from complications of lung cancer. Likely impacted her ability to continue academic work in the final period.
Legacy
Barbara T. Christian made foundational contributions to black women's literary studies and feminist criticism. Through her teaching at UC Berkeley and her scholarly recovery of Black women writers, she significantly influenced subsequent scholarship. A literary award bears her name.
Academic Societies
- The Society for the Study of the Multi-Ethnic Literature of the United States (MELUS)
- Caribbean Studies Association
Archives
- The Bancroft Library (Barbara Christian Papers)
Quotes
-
“So my 'method,' to use a new 'lit. crit' word, is not fixed but relates to what I read and to the historical context of the writers I read and to the many critical activities in which I am engaged, which may or may not involve writing.”
Source: "The Race for Theory", Cultural Critique (1987) (1987)
Trivia
- One of the first African-American women to receive tenure at UC Berkeley.
- The 'Barbara T. Christian Literary Award' exists named in her honor (associated with the Caribbean Studies Association).
- Influenced by Harlem intellectual circles and writers such as Zora Neale Hurston and Langston Hughes.