Critical Perspectives on Afro-Latin American Literature

After generations of being rendered virtually invisible by the US academy in critical anthologies and literary histories, writing by Latin Americans of African ancestry has become represented by a booming corpus of intellectual and critical investigation. This volume aims to provide an introduction to the literary worlds and perceptions of national culture and identity of authors from Spanish-America, Brazil, and uniquely, Equatorial Guinea, thus contextually connecting Africa to the history of Spanish colonization. The importance of Latin America literature to the discipline of African Diaspora studies is immeasurable, and this edited collection provides a ripe cultural context for critical comparative analysis among the vast geographies that encompass African and African Diaspora studies. Scholars in the area of African Diaspora Studies, Black Studies, Latin American Studies, and American literature will be able to utilize the eleven essays in this edition to enhance classroom instruction and further academic research.

Antonio D. Tillis is an Associate Professor at Dartmouth College. A Fulbright Scholar at the Federal University of Minas Gerais, Brazil (2009-2010), he is the editor of PALARA (Publication of the Afro-Latin American Research Association) and author of Manuel Zapata Olivella and the "Darkening" of Latin American Literature (2005) and Caribbean-African…Upon Awakening: Poetry by Blas Jimenez (2010).