Classic Novels Library

The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man

The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man

by Johnson, James Weldon, 1871-1938

BookID: 11012

Language:English

Reading Level:Reading ease score: 72.7 (7th grade). Fairly easy to read.

Copyright Status:Public domain in the USA.

African American men -- FictionRacially mixed people -- Fiction

Description

"The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man" by James Weldon Johnson is a novel published in 1912. It follows a biracial man navigating post-Reconstruction America who can pass as either Black or white. After witnessing a lynching and experiencing racial violence, he makes a fateful choice about his identity and future. The narrator abandons his dream of celebrating Black culture through ragtime music, choosing safety and advancement over authenticity. This groundbreaking work explores race, class, and the cost of denying one's heritage. (This is an automatically generated summary.)

Class:PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature

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