| 'Til Death or Distance Do Us Part: Love and Marriage in African America Contributor(s): Foster, Frances Smith (Author) |
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ISBN: 0195328523 ISBN-13: 9780195328523 Publisher: Oxford University Press, USA OUR PRICE: $44.64 Product Type: Hardcover - Other Formats Published: January 2010 |
| Additional Information |
| BISAC Categories: - Social Science | Slavery - Social Science | Sociology - Marriage & Family - History | United States - 19th Century |
| Dewey: 305.896 |
| LCCN: 2009023899 |
| Physical Information: 0.9" H x 5.8" W x 8.3" (0.80 lbs) 224 pages |
| Themes: - Ethnic Orientation - African American - Topical - Black History - Topical - Family - Chronological Period - 19th Century |
| Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
| Publisher Description: Conventional wisdom tells us that marriage was illegal for African Americans during the antebellum era, and that if people married at all, their vows were tenuous ones: until death or distance do us part. It is an impression that imbues beliefs about black families to this day. But it's a perception primarily based on documents produced by abolitionists, the state, or other partisans. It doesn't tell the whole story. Drawing on a trove of less well-known sources including family histories, folk stories, memoirs, sermons, and especially the fascinating writings from the Afro-Protestant Press, 'Til Death or Distance Do Us Part offers a radically different perspective on antebellum love and family life. Frances Smith Foster applies the knowledge she's developed over a lifetime of reading and thinking. Advocating both the potency of skepticism and the importance of story-telling, her book shows the way toward a more genuine, more affirmative understanding of African American romance, both then and now. |