Black Women's Self-redemption

Tony Morrison(1931-),the first African American woman writer who received the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993,has made an indelible contribution to the African American literature.The black women in her novels have distinct personal characteristics in which the protagonist Sula in Sula is one of the most impressive.The setting of Sula is in America from the end of World War I to the mid-1960 s with the Black Civil Rights Movement and Women's Liberation Movement as its main background.The novel depicts the survival situation of black women in a black community called “Bottom”.Based on Simone de Beauvoir's existentialist feminism,the thesis discusses black women's life condition and the path toward freedom under the oppression of patriarchy.Primarily,the thesis uncovers “the Other” position of black women,they are regarded as the accessories without consciousness and thoughts by the patriarchal society.Under the dual oppression of racism and sexism,black women have to seek self-redemption.The thesis expands the analysis on black women's different ways of pursuit for freedom.Most of the black women fall into the dilemma of “bad faith”,whereas the protagonist Sula searches for herself by her “good faith”,an authentic way.Besides,this thesis puts forward the importance of women going out of “the Other” position,and further explores the view of Beauvoir towards women's liberation.Most of the scholars analyze Sula's rebellious life from the perspective of feminism.This thesis,based on Beauvoir's existentialist feminism,discusses the survival dilemma of black female characters in Sula.The analysis of Sula from the perspective of existentialist feminism makes readers understand black women's survival dilemma as “the Other” more deeply.Furthermore,it also provides a new vision for black women's self-redemption.