Letting Go of Literary Whiteness

Carlin Borsheim-Black is associate professor of English Education at Central Michigan University. Sophia Tatiana Sarigianides is professor of English Education at Westfield State University.

“An important resource for White English teachers looking to racialize the canonical texts in majority White environments.”—Education Review

• Foreword Timothy J. LensmireAcknowledgments1. Teaching About Racism Through Literature in White SchoolsWhy Focus on White Educational Contexts?Why Teach About Racism Via Literary Study?What Is a Critical Race Approach and Why Take It Up?Notes on Authorial Decisions Throughout the Book2. Designing Racial Literacy Objectives and Assessments for Literature-Based UnitsCommon Challenge: Glossing Over Complex Race ConceptsWhy This Matters from a Critical Race PerspectiveWhat You Can Do: Use Backward Planning to Design Literature-Based Units for Racial LiteracyIn the Classroom: Articulating Racial Literacy Objectives for A Raisin in the SunConclusion3. Introducing a Racialized Reader ResponseCommon Challenge: White Readers' Misreadings of Blackness in LiteratureWhy This Matters from a Critical Race PerspectiveWhat You Can Do: Interrupt Whiteness Via Text Selection and Literary ResponseIn the Classroom: Racializing White Readers' Responses to The CrossoverConclusion4. Unearthing Whiteness in Canonical Texts about RacismCommon Challenge: White Investments in Canonic White Savior NarrativesWhy This Matters from a Critical Race PerspectiveWhat You Can Do: Expose Whiteness in Canonic, White-Authored TextsIn the Classroom: Exposing Whiteness in Adventures of Huckleberry FinnConclusion5. Applying a Critical Race Theory Lens for Literary AnalysisCommon Challenge: Reinforcing Racism via Traditional Literary AnalysisWhy This Matters from a Critical Race PerspectiveWhat You Can Do: Employ a CRT Lens for Literary Analysis In the Classroom: Applying a CRT Lens to To Kill a MockingbirdConclusion6. Planning for and Responding to Race TalkCommon Challenge: Managing Race TalkWhy It Matters from a Critical Race PerspectiveWhat You Can Do: Use Proactive and Reactive Strategies for Managing Race TalkConclusion7. Designing Assignments to Build Racial LiteracyCommon Challenge: Questioning White Racial AssumptionsWhy This Matters from a Critical Race Perspective What You Can Do: Design Assignments to Scaffold Racial LiteracyIn the Classroom: Using Collaborative Glossaries and Exploratory EssaysRacial Identity Work for White TeachersA Beginning, Not an EndReferencesIndexAbout the Author