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Colson Whitehead

コルソン・ホワイトヘッド

Colson Whitehead

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1969-11-06 （New York City, U.S.）
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
Manhattan, New York City → Sag Harbor, Long Island → Fort Greene, Brooklyn (former residence)

Career

Occupations
Novelist, Essayist, Nonfiction writer, Producer/Screenwriter (occasional)
Active Years
1991-
Affiliations
Princeton University (teaching/visiting), New York University (teaching), Columbia University (teaching), Wesleyan University (teaching), Vassar College (writer-in-residence)
Influenced By
Toni Morrison, James Baldwin, Ralph Ellison

Education

Trinity School (New York City)
Country: United States
Attended Trinity School (secondary education)
Harvard University
Degree: BA
Period: 1987–1991
Year of Graduation: 1991
Country: United States
Received BA

Awards

National Book Award (Fiction)
2016
Work: The Underground Railroad
Category: Fiction
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: Won
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
2017
Work: The Underground Railroad
Category: Fiction
Organization: The Pulitzer Prizes
Result: Won
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction
2020
Work: The Nickel Boys
Category: Fiction
Organization: The Pulitzer Prizes
Result: Won
MacArthur Fellowship
2002
Organization: MacArthur Foundation
Result: Won
Whiting Award
2000
Category: Fiction
Organization: Whiting Foundation
Result: Won
Harvard Arts Medal
2018
Organization: Harvard University
Result: Won
Library of Congress Prize for American Fiction
2020
Organization: Library of Congress
Result: Won
National Humanities Medal
2023
Organization: National Endowment for the Humanities / U.S. Government
Result: Won
Guggenheim Fellowship
2013
Organization: John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result: Won

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Intuitionist

1999 Fiction (literary / speculative elements)

A novel centered on an elevator inspector in a city, blending allegory and speculative elements to explore race, technology, and politics.

RaceTechnology and bureaucracyUrban life

John Henry Days

2001 Fiction (historical / social novel)

Interweaves episodes about the legendary John Henry with contemporary reportage, exploring American music and labor.

Legend and historyLaborAfrican-American culture

Apex Hides the Hurt

2006 Fiction (satire)

A satirical novel about branding and consumer culture that examines identity and appearances.

Consumer cultureIdentitySatire

Sag Harbor

2009 Fiction (coming-of-age)

A coming-of-age story set during summers in the 1980s that explores racial identity and friendships.

Coming-of-ageRace and communityNostalgia

Zone One

2011 Fiction (post-apocalyptic)

Set against a zombie apocalypse, it examines societal recovery and individual memory, notable for stylistic experimentation and dark humor.

Rebuilding civilizationMemoryIrony

The Underground Railroad

2016 Fiction (historical allegory)

A historical allegory following an escaped slave, imagining the Underground Railroad as an actual subterranean railway to confront the violence and memory of slavery in America.

SlaveryEscape and freedomHistorical memory
Adaptations
  • [TV miniseries] The Underground Railroad (TV miniseries) / Barry Jenkins (2021)

The Nickel Boys

2019 Fiction (historical/social novel)

Inspired by the real Dozier School for Boys in Florida, it depicts abuse at a reform school and examines dignity, resilience, and redemption.

Institutional violenceHuman rightsRedemption and memory
Adaptations
  • [Film (in development / production)] The Nickel Boys (film adaptation) / RaMell Ross

Harlem Shuffle

2021 Fiction (crime novel)

A crime novel set in 1960s Harlem that explores family, urban change, and moral ambiguity.

Urban crimeFamilyCorruption and morality

Crook Manifesto

2023 Fiction (crime/urban)

A follow-up to Harlem Shuffle, continuing to examine crime and social dynamics in Harlem.

CrimeCommunityUrban history

Bibliography

  • The Intuitionist (1999)
  • John Henry Days (2001)
  • The Colossus of New York (2003)
  • Apex Hides the Hurt (2006)
  • Sag Harbor (2009)
  • Zone One (2011)
  • The Underground Railroad (2016)
  • The Noble Hustle (2014)
  • The Nickel Boys (2019)
  • Harlem Shuffle (2021)
  • Crook Manifesto (2023)

Adaptations

  • The Underground Railroad (TV miniseries, dir. Barry Jenkins, 2021)
  • The Nickel Boys (film adaptation in development, dir. RaMell Ross; Whitehead as executive producer)

Translations of Works

  • The Underground Railroad (Japanese translation)
  • The Nickel Boys (Japanese translation)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
Blend of realism and allegory/speculative elementsConcise, rhythmic proseSharp engagement with social and historical themes
Recurring Motifs
American history and memoryRace and identityViolence and redemption

Legacy

Colson Whitehead is a leading contemporary American writer, winner of multiple major literary prizes including Pulitzer Prizes in 2017 and 2020. His work is acclaimed for combining history and allegory to illuminate race and national memory.

Trivia

  • One of the few writers to win the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction twice (2017, 2020).
  • The Underground Railroad was adapted into a TV miniseries directed by Barry Jenkins.
  • Married to literary agent Julie Barer.