EBOOK
About
Tourgée was an astute and reliable observer of the Reconstruction scene. In Bricks Without Straw, he concentrated on the problems and the continuing dilemma of freed slaves. Led by Nimbus Ware, a "good enough nigger, but might aggravating to the white folk," and Eliab Hill, a crippled mulatto preacher, former slaves begin their postwar experience by availing themselves of the educational, economic, and political opportunities of freedom. But, as soon as federal protection is withdrawn, their existence becomes precarious in the face of the Ku Klux Klan and resentful southern whites.
The novel conveys a true sense of the trials and accomplishments of a severely handicapped black population caught in the oppressive racist environment of the postwar South. But, as Professor Olsen points out, the book's pioneering- and still pertinent- literary achievement is its repudiation of racist stereotypes and its effective portrayal of the essential humanity of the freed black slave
The novel conveys a true sense of the trials and accomplishments of a severely handicapped black population caught in the oppressive racist environment of the postwar South. But, as Professor Olsen points out, the book's pioneering- and still pertinent- literary achievement is its repudiation of racist stereotypes and its effective portrayal of the essential humanity of the freed black slave