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= **The Role of History in Fiction in African-American Literature, Music, Film, and Art**   =

 There is a propensity for African American fiction writers to incorporate historical events regarding slavery, segregation, and institutionalized racism within their literature. Fiction is a tool that informs the reader of the real truths of the people who experienced these historical events. We have expanded this contention to include music, films and art, along with literature, to manifest the importance of history to fiction and narrative. Historically, the experiences and perspectives of African Americans have largely been ignored or composited into a singular narrative. Fiction is a way to convey perspectives on an individual and personal level, and thus makes history more tangible to the reader, viewer, and/or listener through empathy. Fiction also serves to advance a more critical narrative that has greater probability to be accepted, funded, and published than non-fiction. Narrative can be a political act, because it challenges the systematic racism that attempts to deny agency, perspective, and history to oppressed minorities like African Americans and gives them a voice. Writers and artists employ history to explore the complexities of racism in present society, because it permits them a less complex environment where racism was more visible. Illustrating historical racism is less confrontational, which allows readers, viewers, and/or listeners to absorb and question the work without being as bombarded with personal guilt.

Our group explored the questions:

1. How is history revised and/or rewritten in African American literature? 2. How do historical events work within the fictional narratives of African American authors?

We combined both questions to look at how history functions in African-American narratives and how narratives function to dismantle historical metanarratives and construct historical narratives that illuminate these repressed histories. We expanded our analysis to include narratives in art, music, and film along with narratives in literature. We prove our thesis by arguing that:

· History functions within African American narratives to aid the audience in understanding and relating to historical events in a tangible and visceral way. · Narratives function to manifest African American histories and perspectives that have long been ignored and minimized by society. · Narratives contribute to our understanding of history by portraying history as multi-faceted and encompassing of many diverse perspectives. · Narratives of historical events are a political act, because they expose suppressed perspectives. But they are also more likely to be accepted, funded, and supported by society, because they are presented as one history not a metanarrative of History.

Table of Contents:

The Role of History in Music by Shauntia The Role of History in Art by Christine The Role of History in Film by Charles The Role of History in Literature by Mary and Theresa Critical Race Theory and Understanding History in Fiction and Narrative by Patricia

For more information on the authors, please visit the Biography section.