Phillips Exeter Academy

Toni Morrison

ENG558

Toni Morrison

Throughout her decorated career, Toni Morrison celebrated the African American experience as a central and essential component of American history. At the time of her passing in 2019, she was recognized as one of the most important writers of the 20th century. When she published her first novel, The Bluest Eye, in 1970, she had already distinguished herself as a force to be reckoned with as an editor at Random House. Over the next half-century, Morrison published over a dozen novels (including Song of Solomon and Beloved), several influential collections of nonfiction, and award-winning children’s books. She was also awarded the Nobel Prize in literature. This course offers students the opportunity to explore the ways in which Morrison’s fiction and nonfiction reimagines American history through the lens of the African American experience. Throughout the term, students will write short pieces analyzing and perhaps imitating Morrison’s celebrated and unique style.