The Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man

&&LDIV&&R&&LDIV&&R&&LDIV&&R&&LI&&RThe Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man and Other Writings&&L/I&&R, by &&LB&&RJames Weldon Johnson&&L/B&&R, is part of the &&LI&&R&&LI&&RBarnes & Noble Classics&&L/I&&R &&L/I&&Rseries, which offers quality editions at affordable prices to the student and the general reader, including new scholarship, thoughtful design, and pages of carefully crafted extras. Here are some of the remarkable features of &&LI&&RBarnes & Noble Classics&&L/I&&R: &&LDIV&&R

• New introductions commissioned from todays top writers and scholars
• Biographies of the authors
• Chronologies of contemporary historical, biographical, and cultural events
• Footnotes and endnotes
• Selective discussions of imitations, parodies, poems, books, plays, paintings, operas, statuary, and films inspired by the work
• Comments by other famous authors
• Study questions to challenge the readers viewpoints and expectations
• Bibliographies for further reading
• Indices & Glossaries, when appropriate

All editions are beautifully designed and are printed to superior specifications; some include illustrations of historical interest. &&LI&&RBarnes & Noble Classics &&L/I&&Rpulls together a constellation of influences--biographical, historical, and literary--to enrich each readers understanding of these enduring works.&&L/DIV&&R&&L/DIV&&R&&L/DIV&&R&&LDIV&&R &&L/DIV&&R&&LDIV&&RIn his long career &&LSTRONG&&RJames Weldon Johnson&&L/B&&R established himself as a poet, composer, lawyer, diplomat, educator, and journalist. Yet he wrote only one novel: &&LI&&RThe Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man. &&L/I&&RPublished anonymously in 1912, it received scant notice until its reissue in 1927 at the height of the Harlem Renaissance. A landmark in African-American writing, &&LI&&RThe Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man&&L/I&&R was the first black novel written in the first person, and a trailblazer for writers exploring racial ambiguity. It served as an eloquent model for later writers ranging from Zora Neale Hurston to Richard Wright and Ralph Ellison. &&L/DIV&&R&&LDIV&&R&&LBR&&RA coming-of-age story about a man whose light skin enables him to "pass" for white, &&LI&&RThe Autobiography of an Ex-Colored Man&&L/I&&R describes a remarkable journey through the strata of black and white society at the turn of the twentieth century. From a cigar factory in Jacksonville to an elite gambling club in New York, from hobnobbing with European aristocrats to jamming with ragtime musicians, the unnamed narrator struggles to forge an identity in a culture that recognizes nothing but color. At the end, he discovers that the decision to pass brings its practitioners little more than a ruinous self-denial.&&LBR&&R &&LBR&&RThis edition also includes a selection of Johnson's poetry and newspaper writings.&&L/DIV&&R&&LDIV&&R &&L/DIV&&R&&LDIV&&R&&LDIV&&R&&LB&&RNoelle Morrissette&&L/B&&R is Lecturer of African-American Studies and English Literature at Yale University, where she received her Ph.D. in 2002.&&L/DIV&&R&&L/DIV&&R&&L/DIV&&R