Carrie Coon Instagram – Repost from @theconsciouskid using @RepostRegramApp – The mainstream literary canon (aka white canon) reflects what forms of knowledge are valued, who is considered to hold that knowledge, and who has the power to institutionalize it. This canon holds power, history and cultural implications, but it is first and foremost a *reflection* of the power, history, and culture of our society (white supremacy). When books get canonized and become required reading in education curriculum, the ideology of the books (and authors) get institutionalized. When these ideologies are racist (as many “classic” canonical texts are) it becomes one more way that racism is institutionalized in education.
By creating space for works from different canons, we begin to include nuances into what American culture looks like and acknowledge that there are various canons that are important and worth studying. There are several types of canons. People of color have our own canon. There is a Black literary canon. A Black feminist canon. A critical canon, etc.
The debate around the white canon always seems to focus on what we are losing if we don’t include every white author and a series of rationalizations as to why we absolutely must teach them anyway. They don’t often question or take seriously the impact and loss we have already experienced and are continuing to experience when Black writers, writers of color, and other marginalized writers are left out of the mainstream canon. This implies and reinforces the idea that Black people and people of color have nothing of value to say. That their works aren’t as “well written” or as “worthy” of being read, celebrated, and discussed. That they are not, and cannot be “culturally significant.”
If a kid walks into his 11th grade AP Lit class without having read a single Black author their whole life, why is that not seen as a loss?
Tweet: @_morganjerkins [Image description: Tweet from @_MorganJerkins that reads: “You’re not well read if all you read is white authors” in plain black text on a white background.] #Whiteness #Canon #Literacy #Bookstagram #RaisingReaders #RaisingLeaders #BlackAuthors #BlackLivesMatter #DiverseBooks | Posted on 03/Jul/2020 22:51:46
