It is essential that students grasp the obstacles facing an African-American woman of Hopkins's day. Her ability to surmount cultural, racial, and gender barriers in order to write and publish fiction is extraordinary. I recommend journal writing to give students an opportunity to consider how Hopkins does or does not seem relevant to our times or to their lives.
Journals can also lead to fruitful comparisons with other works read so far in the course.
Students might work in small groups or pairs to raise questions about any barriers to understanding these stories. I emphasize lynching and Klan activities and stress that the Klan is still active all over the United States. I discuss the convergence of racism and sexism, interracial blood lines, voting disenfranchisement, job discrimination against blacks, and color prejudice. I also stress Hopkins's emphasis on feminist issues such as the rape of African-American women during slavery by their masters and the ongoing attitudes toward black women as sexually available. Positive feminist themes such as female bonding and empowerment and women's collective political action also emerge from Contending Forces .