Literary Blackface.

Ana the Ist

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But look at a realist novel like "Emma" set in 18th c England and all about marriage, social status, etc set in an English village. Do you really think you could interchangeably plug in a black main character without all those themes having played out radically different?

You realize you already asked that and I already answered, right?
 
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durangodawood

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What answer were you hoping for? I haven't read Emma.

Explain yourself. You're the one making the claim here.
If I have to explain how a black family experience re social status and marriage in an 18th c English village will be really different from a white one.... well, as interesting as this case might be, I can see this will be too much work to be worth it.
 
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Ophiolite

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Well what is the problem then?
You don't understand, or pretend not to understand, the difference between fantasy novels and characters (e.g. James Bond) and novels portraying real world situations and characters (e.g. Emma). Now, that is either surprising ignorance on the part of an educated individual, or cynical rhetoric on the part of someone abusing their education. (Have you stopped beating your wife?)
 
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Ana the Ist

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If I have to explain how a black family experience re social status and marriage in an 18th c English village will be really different from a white one.... well, as interesting as this case might be, I can see this will be too much work to be worth it.

I see....your claim remains unsubstantiated and therefore dismissed.
 
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Chesterton

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I'm not sure what you're saying here...

There's been plenty of suggestions about making this or that fictional white character "black" without meaningfully changing the narrative at all. From James Bond to....well here's a list...

Black Actors Who Played White Characters

So it's been done....with praise.
Yeah, I don't understand how this is different.
 
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Rubiks

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Changing someone's skin color isn't the same as blackface. Blackface has pitch black skin tone, big, vibrant red lips, and white gloves. Now, Blackface doesn't have to have all of these features, but it's clear those book covers have none of the distinctive features.

Either way, it's a lazy way to promote racial equality.
 
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keith99

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That would make it something other than Roots then wouldn't it. The story you propose could definitely be done as long as no one tried to pawn it off on someone as Roots.

It has been done and it resulted in lots of people deciding the author was racist despite several other novels that made that charge a bit absurd.
 
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Ignatius the Kiwi

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I don't know what to think about it. It feels like a cynical attempt to get black people interested in these works, but once they discover the characters within the stories are actually white, won't they feel cheated?

Reminds me of JK Rowling artificially making Hermoine a black character retroactively. Doesn't work and comes off as progressive pandering.
 
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grasping the after wind

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It has been done and it resulted in lots of people deciding the author was racist despite several other novels that made that charge a bit absurd.

Well calling people racist without any actual verifiable evidence has become quite popular. In some cases one need only quote a fact and one will be labelled a racist.
 
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grasping the after wind

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I noticed with Moby Dick they made Ahab black.... but they kept the white whale!

That seems racist to me. Between the two Ahab is the less sympathetic character.
 
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