The crime of innocence in the fiction of Toni Morrison
By: Terry Otten.
Series: A Literary frontiers edition, 33
Publisher: University of Missouri Press
Published: 1989
Place of publication: Columbia
Language: eng
Number of pages: 101
Subjects: Morrison, Toni -- Criticism and interpretation.; Women and literature -- United States -- History -- 20th century.; Psychological fiction, American -- History and criticism.; Innocence (Psychology) in literature.; African Americans in literature.
Description: "In this ground-breaking study of Morrison's five novels, Terry Otten explores the mythic substructure of her fictions by tracing the pervasive motif of the biblical fall. The crime of innocence describes how Morrison recasts the fall from innocence as a necessary gesture of freedom, a felix culpa adapted to the demands of contemporary America. Employing biblical and theological elements, these novels suggest that no greater sin exists than innocence. In a fictional world where 'good' and 'evil' constantly shift, a fall is essential to an authentic life, however frightening the risks, however ironic the end."--Cover.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references.