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Dismantling Otherness or Empowering Racism: William Blake’s Little Black Boy Reconsidered

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Last updated: 04 Jan 2025

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العلوم اللغوية

Abstract

This paper examines William Blake's poem "Little Black Boy" through the lens of deconstruction theory. It aims to uncover the underlying contradictions and power dynamics within the poem and the socio-cultural context of 18th-century British society. While the poem ostensibly challenges racial hierarchies and advocates against the oppression of marginalized communities, this study argues that it inadvertently reinforces systemic prejudice. Through a comprehensive text analysis, including linguistic choices, metaphoric expressions, and paradoxical elements, the paper reveals Blake's deep-rooted racism and prejudice. The literature review explores various scholarly perspectives on the poem's treatment of racial otherness, highlighting the debate between challenging stereotypes and unintentionally perpetuating them. By engaging with differing viewpoints, this paper encourages a nuanced understanding of Blake's work within the broader discourse on race and representation in literature. Ultimately, it seeks to shed light on the complexities of Blake's poem, emphasizing its potential for resistance and transformative possibilities while questioning the extent to which it successfully dismantles prevailing notions of racism and otherness.

DOI

10.21608/qarts.2024.254862.1832

Keywords

otherness, deconstruction, racism, Binary Opposition, Reading Strategy

Authors

First Name

Abdelnaeim Ibrahim Awad

Last Name

Elaref

MiddleName

-

Affiliation

Lecturer at Department of English Faculty of Arts, South Valley university

Email

abdelnaeim79@gmail.com

City

قنا

Orcid

0000-0002-6069-2534

Volume

33

Article Issue

62

Related Issue

45088

Issue Date

2024-01-01

Receive Date

2023-12-11

Publish Date

2024-01-01

Page Start

35

Page End

64

Print ISSN

1110-614X

Online ISSN

1110-709X

Link

https://qarts.journals.ekb.eg/article_335574.html

Detail API

https://qarts.journals.ekb.eg/service?article_code=335574

Order

12

Type

المقالة الأصلية

Type Code

1,495

Publication Type

Journal

Publication Title

مجلة کلية الآداب بقنا

Publication Link

https://qarts.journals.ekb.eg/

MainTitle

Dismantling Otherness or Empowering Racism: William Blake’s Little Black Boy Reconsidered

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Article

Created At

27 Dec 2024