The Fire Next Time (Masterplots, Revised Second Edition)

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Critical Evaluation:

James Baldwin’s The Fire Next Time, according to writer William Styron, is “one of the great documents of the twentieth century.” It articulates the anger, frustration, and hope felt by African Americans during the 1960’s. The two essays composing this work were published in 1963, selling over one million copies, making Baldwin—according to The New York Times—the widest read African American writer of his time. The book is Baldwin’s response to the social and racial injustice he witnessed in America. Having lived in Europe for...

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