A Treasury of Afro-American Folklore by Harold Courlander

A Treasury of Afro-American Folklore by Harold Courlander

Afro-American Folklore, as seen in this collection, includes a wide array of orally transmitted traditions of the numerous, sometimes disparate, Negro cultures of the New World. Among these traditions are tales of scoundrels, heroes, rollicking adventures, friendship, and much more: songs, myths, myth-legends, epic-like narrations, and recollections of historical happenings. There are descriptions of cult life, around which many traditions and beliefs flow; of music and dance, which have an integral connection with traditional ways; and of the social scene in places where African and European, or white and black ideas intermingled and became Afro-American. A Treasury of Afro-American Folklore perceives the interconnections of cultural inheritances throughout the Afro-American region and the local divergences as well. Early sections of the book survey the traditions and oral literature of Spanish, French, and English-speaking islands of the Caribbean, and of areas of Central and South America inhabited by people of African descent. There follows an extensive section devoted to the tales, beliefs, recollections, songs, religious epics, and a wide variety of oral creations of blacks in the United States. The Appendixes include a number of African stories and descriptions that point up the impact of African traditions on the cultures of Afro-America. A Treasury of Afro-American Folklore is a remarkable achievement, a major work in a field that has long needed in-depth exploration. It belongs on the shelf of every library, and in the homes of all who have an interest in this exciting aspect of America's cultural history.

Harold Courlander (1908-96) was a noted novelist, folklorist and journalist, specializing in African and African American cultures. He wrote more than 40 books, including studies of Hopi traditions, the Ashanti of Ghana, Yoruba gods, and Haitian voodoo. Courlander charged Alex Haley, the Pulitzer Prize-winning author of Roots, with plagiarism and was awarded an out-of-court settlement.

SKU	Unavailable
ISBN 13	9780765197337
ISBN 10	0765197332
Title	A Treasury of Afro-American Folklore
Author	Harold Courlander
Condition	Unavailable
Binding Type	Hardback
Publisher	Smithmark Publishers
Year published	1996-07-01
Number of pages	640
Cover note	Book picture is for illustrative purposes only, actual binding, cover or edition may vary.