A woman's place: The politics of sex, race, and class in female characters of black women writers (Alice Walker, Toni Morrison, Paule Marshall)

The restrictions of sex, confinement of race, and deprivation of class define the notions of self and the freedom achieved by many black women. The female characters in the novels of black women writers provide hope for achievement despite the odds and dread of failure that is at times preordained. The study makes use of primary and secondary sources to discuss the female characters of three authors who are women and black as well as two novels by each. The female characters are viewed in relation to their race, class, and sex and the effects these have on their identities. Results are presented in chapters on Alice Walker and her novels The Third Life of Grange Copeland and The Color Purple, Toni Morrison and her novels The Bluest Eye and Sula, and Paule Marshall and her novels Brown Girl, Brownstones and Praisesong for the Widow.