On Racial Icons: Blackness And The Public Imagination (Pinpoints) Download Free (EPUB, PDF)
What meaning does the American public attach to images of key black political, social, and cultural figures? Considering photography’s role as a means of documenting historical progress, what is the representational currency of these images? How do racial icons “signify”? Nicole R. Fleetwood’s answers to these questions will change the way you think about the next photograph that you see depicting a racial event, black celebrity, or public figure. In On Racial Icons, Fleetwood focuses a sustained look on photography in documenting black public life, exploring the ways in which iconic images function as celebrations of national and racial progress at times or as a gauge of collective racial wounds in moments of crisis. Offering an overview of photography’s ability to capture shifting race relations, Fleetwood spotlights in each chapter a different set of iconic images in key sectors of public life. She considers flash points of racialized violence in photographs of Trayvon Martin and Emmett Till; the political, aesthetic, and cultural shifts marked by the rise of pop stars such as Diana Ross; and the power and precarity of such black sports icons as Serena Williams and LeBron James; and she does not miss Barack Obama and his family along the way. On Racial Icons is an eye-opener in every sense of the phrase. Images from the book. (http://rutgerspress.rutgers.edu/pages/Fleetwood.aspx)
Series: Pinpoints
Paperback: 144 pages
Publisher: Rutgers University Press (July 15, 2015)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 0813565154
ISBN-13: 978-0813565156
Product Dimensions: 5.4 x 0.4 x 8.6 inches
Shipping Weight: 12.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
Best Sellers Rank: #153,375 in Books (See Top 100 in Books) #45 in Books > Arts & Photography > Photography & Video > Criticism & Essays #380 in Books > Politics & Social Sciences > Social Sciences > Specific Demographics > Ethnic Studies #399 in Books > Humor & Entertainment > Pop Culture > Art
I loved this book-so precise and clear. Whether you are an expert on this topic or a novice, Fleetwood describes complex ideas in an interesting and easy to follow fashion. Usually, I really struggle to read books that offer such depth on the go as I usually get distracted. However, as I read this book on the subway, it enhanced my experience of reading as I saw a young black boy in a hooded sweatshirt and was contemplating the Trayvon Martin chapter, for example. Even as I write this in a local Brooklyn coffee shop, I can't help but listen to "Stop In the Name of Love" and think that the song has so much more meaning to me as I remember the chapter on Diana Ross and think of her as an icon and again as an natural woman - without the songs, photographs, wigs and costumes.
Yet again Nicole Fleetwood offers a compelling and undoubtedly adroit analysis of the junctures of U.S. visual culture and discourses of Blackness. Though the book is compact, it is packed with depth and complexity. For example, Fleetwood lingers in the more difficult moments--those rife with affective energies--when she discusses the complex ways in which Trayvon Martin's death (at the hands of George Zimmerman) has become iconic in U.S. visual culture. Moreover, the book asks us to think systematically and critically about visual culture, blackness, and American public culture vis-a-vis a host of figures (i.e., Diana Ross, Serena Williams, Lebron James, etc). Throughout the text, Fleetwood is interested in the question of: "how do racial iconic images become part of the story that Americans tell each other and the world about the unfolding of nation and the possibility of democracy"? This question is key, especially in our current public milieu, because it calls into question the very complicated notion of "democracy" and, in so doing, asks us to consider those bodies living in a state of vulnerable democracy. Ultimately, the book is very thought-provoking and written with clarity so that various audiences could read and understand some of the ideas and issues Fleetwood is grappling with it. Read it!
My niece wrote this. Intellignet Professor, smart Lady.
Such incredible depth in analyzing the concept. I've recommended the book to several people for a perceptive view.
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