Teaching Jean Toomer’s 1923 Cane (Studies in African and Afro-American Culture)

Cane one of the major works of the Harlem Renaissance and Jean Toomer s imagist masterpiece, is now a part of the canon in Afro-American literature. Teaching Jean Toomer s 1923 Cane is a unique literary tool that explores the brilliance and far-sighted vision of Toomer, allowing Cane to be taught holistically as a discovery process, using the blues motif and the poetic essay. This book s text and figures ground a discussion of Cane s enigmatic and figurative language, connecting the Harlem Renaissance to the Negritude Movement and to later Afro-centric literary movements. This book also reviews P.B.S. Pinchback s legacy as a non-Negro, able to pass easily in white society, the influence of Ouspensky, H. L Mencken s critical work, The Paris Brotherhood, and Saccaharum officinarum-G. Like the lunar arcs dividing Cane, the book works as an instructional map. The pictures from the first complete production also tell a remarkable story.