Reading Toni Morrison at Masterman
Ebun Adebonojo (12-1)
Photo courtesy of Nuwar Osman (12-3)
The death of Nobel Prize award winner Toni Morrison, a celebrated writer, editor, and professor this past August at the age of 88 was one that resonated heavily with both the literary and the African-American communities, as well as with more than a decade’s worth of Masterman students. Richelle Kota, Masterman Class of 2014, was especially passionate about Morrison’s work. “I woke up that morning and was on my phone when I saw a headline about Toni Morrison’s death,” Kota says, “and I immediately searched her name to find out what was happening. I was in shock; the first thing I did was post on Facebook and Instagram about the impact she and her work had on me.”
Chris Martin, who graduated from Masterman in 2010 and now works as a screenwriter, was also influenced by Morrison’s work. She spoke about how it affected the way she tells stories, too. “Morrison has always been candid about the fact that she's only interested in telling stories about what Black people do when white people aren't around. And not in some voyeuristic peek behind the curtain, or appeal to respectability politics. The literary canon had never really seen that before her.”
Morrison was best known for her novels Beloved, Song of Solomon, and The Bluest Eye, all of which tackled racial issues that African-Americans have faced in the country throughout history. In addition to her prolific work in the world of literature, Morrison worked at Princeton University as a Chair in the Humanities, frequently offering writing workshops to students. Morrison was also known to be outspoken on politics and race relations in America.
Students nationwide have read Morrison’s work as part of their English curriculum, and the impact of her work is widespread. Beloved, which won the Pulitzer Prize in 1988, is currently read and studied as part of Masterman’s AP Language and Composition (APLAC) course. Mr. Neale, who teaches APLAC, has been teaching Beloved to students for about ten years. He has also individually read Sula and A Mercy. “My old students who read her work in college always message me to let me know.” He says. “They always tell me that reading Beloved in my class makes it easier to read Morrison’s work in the future.”
Richelle, who was taught by Mr. Neale during her time at Masterman, was appreciative that she had the opportunity to read Beloved. “When I read it in Mr. Neale’s class, even though it was hard to read, I thought it was really beautiful. When I went to college, I read Beloved again in an English course. I was surprised to hear that a lot of my classmates hadn’t read it.”
While Morrison’s novels can be challenging to read for a number of reasons, her work is highly revered for both its portrayal of the many experiences that African-Americans, specifically women, have gone through in the country. “I felt so lucky to have my personal black woman experience represented through her work,” says Richelle. On her website, which showcases her art and creative works, Richelle lists Morrison as one of the most significant influences on her art and writing. “Her work emphasizes that blackness shouldn’t be censored. She’s writing as a black woman for black people, so it’s impossible for her to separate her blackness from her work.”
Morrison may have passed away, but her work continues to affect Masterman students. “Beloved is so good,” says former APLAC student Angel Cherian (12-1), “It was written in a style I had never seen before. I just remember loving everything about it.”