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Appropriate: A Provocation
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About This Book
A timely, nuanced work that dissects the thorny debate around cultural appropriation and the literary imagination. How do we properly define cultural appropriation, and is it always wrong? If we can write in the voice of another, should we? And if so, what questions do we need to consider first? In Appropriate , creative writing professor Paisley Rekdal addresses a young writer to delineate how the idea of cultural appropriation has evolved―and perhaps calcified―in our political climate. What follows is a penetrating exploration of fluctuating literary power and authorial privilege, about whiteness and what we really mean by the term empathy , that examines writers from William Styron to Peter Ho Davies to Jeanine Cummins. Lucid, reflective, and astute, Appropriate presents a generous new framework for one of the most controversial subjects in contemporary literature.
Reviews
"The book's power comes from its slow progress and occasional reversals, so a summary feels unfair, but her basic thesis is that culture is situated in its moment; careful consideration of where each of us is in that moment informs what we create, how we read, what literature is lifted up and what is left out."
"This passionate, nuanced take will raise sharp questions for literary-minded readers."
"Highly recommended for creative writing students or readers interested in this extremely relevant topic."
"Rekdal's sophisticated analysis reveals a generous respect for the creative process ..."
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