The Quest for Identity in African American Women’s Drama from Harlem Renaissance to the Present An Overview

Abstract

The concept of identity is regarded as one of the most important
concepts in contemporary literature. Individuals and societies always
search for an identity that gives meaning to their existence. The same is
also true of African American drama. This subject occupies a central place
in modern African- American drama, a hotly debated subject not only by
male playwrights but also by female playwrights. Female playwrights
attempt to show the importance of returning to roots as an outlet for the
identity crisis they experience.
Therefore, the present paper aims at giving an overall view of the
subject of identity in African-American culture with particular focus on
African American women playwrights. It examines the quest for identity
from the Harlem Renaissance to contemporary drama along with different
examples to explore how the question of identity is tackled.
It has become quite oblivious that the women playwrights aim at
pushing the blacks, especially the women, to feel proud of their black
identity.