What is the plot of Go Tell it on the mountain?
Go Tell It on the Mountain is a 1953 semi-autobiographical novel by James Baldwin. It tells the story of John Grimes, an intelligent teenager in 1930s Harlem, and his relationship with his family and his church.
Where does the title Go Tell it on the mountain come from?
The first section follows John's thoughts, the second mostly his aunt's, the third his father's, the fourth his mother's, and the fifth again mostly John's. The title Go Tell It on the Mountain comes from a Negro spiritual.
When was Go Tell it on the mountain published?
The work was translated into French in 1957 by Henri Hell and Maud Vidal under the title Les Élus du Seigneur . Go Tell It On the Mountain has frequently been the center of controversy. In 1988, a teacher in Prince William County, Virginia offered the book as a ninth-grade summer reading option.
What inspired James Baldwin to write Go Tell it on the mountain?
While the US was involving itself into three different wars, Korean, Cold, and Second Red Scare, The Dial Press was publishing "Go Tell It On The Mountain" in 1953. Baldwin decided to use art, literature, and the culture expansion of his hometown of Harlem for inspiration for the novel, despite all of the day to day war media.
What religion is in Go Tell It on the Mountain?
Go Tell It on the Mountain isn't sparing in its critique of that old-time religion. Young John, along with his preacher father and the rest of their family, is a member of the Temple of the Fire Baptized. The name says it all. Their belief is the scope and project of the characters' lives.
What inspired James Baldwin to write Go Tell It on the Mountain?
Initially titled “Crying Holy,” “Go Tell It on the Mountain” was written after Baldwin gave up being a youth preacher and left the church to become a writer.
What does the church symbolize in Go Tell It on the Mountain?
Critical Essays The Importance of the Church in Go Tell It on the Mountain. The importance of The Church of the Fire Baptized cannot be overstated. This church acts as an anchor for its members and promises them the riches of heaven when their poverty-filled lives end.
What is the conflict in Go Tell It on the Mountain?
At the heart of the story three main conflicts intertwine: a clash between father and son, a coming-of-age struggle, and a religious crisis.
Who is Florence in Go Tell It on the Mountain?
Florence, Gabriel's sister, is a real tough cookie. She doesn't put up with any nonsense and is open about her objections to her brother's authoritarian ways. Unfortunately, though, she is his main supplier of wives; both Deborah and Elizabeth were Florence's friends before they had the bad luck of marrying Gabriel.
How does Go Tell It on the Mountain end?
At last the ordeal ends when John catches what he believes to be the briefest glimpse of the Lord Himself. It is morning; he is saved. Brother Elisha and the saints, as well as his family, have been with him all through the night. The saints rejoice.
Who wrote Go Tell It On The Mountain lyrics?
John Wesley Work, Jr.Go Tell It on the Mountain / ComposerJohn Wesley Work Jr. was the first African-American collector of folk songs and spirituals, and also a choral director, educationalist and songwriter. He is now sometimes known as John Wesley Work II, to distinguish him from his son, John Wesley Work III. Wikipedia
Is Go tell it on the mountain a Bildungsroman?
Go Tell It on the Mountain was his first published novel, and many critics feel that it is has stood as his best. It is a traditional bildungsroman, a novel tracing the psychological and spiritual development of its central character, John Grimes.
What is the theme of Go Tell It on the Mountain?
On the simplest level, it is the story of a young boy coming of age. The boy's story gains complexity as it is interwoven with the stories of his mother, father, and aunt. Go Tell It on the Mountain is also the story of religion and racism and familial expectations and perceptions and how these forces impact people struggling to survive.
What does Baldwin believe about the book "Go Tell It on the Mountain"?
By reading through, though, the reader gains an understanding of the characters and the events that shaped their lives and, therefore, gains an understanding of why they behave as they do. Baldwin believed that the only way to happiness was to truly know the people in one's life. In Go Tell It on the Mountain, it is painfully obvious that none ...
How does Baldwin use the omniscient narrator?
By using the omniscient narrator, Baldwin is able to give an accurate and complete description of the lives of his characters. The reader is shown their emotions, actions, and reactions and is therefore able to understand their personalities. Although individual characters may interpret and react to the same situation in different ways according to their own preconceptions and prejudices, the reader is given the opportunity to see events as they actually happened.
How does Baldwin's style of narration help the reader?
By withholding key information and surprising the reader with it throughout the novel, Baldwin builds suspense and is better able to hold the interest of his audience. This style of narration also imitates the way people learn about each other in real life.
How does Baldwin tell the story?
By using the frame story, Baldwin is able to tell many stories in such a way that the readers essentially go on a voyage of discovery, learning about the characters as they are revealed by themselves and by the others. Had Baldwin told the story in traditional linear style, much of the impact would have been lost. By withholding key information and surprising the reader with it throughout the novel, Baldwin builds suspense and is better able to hold the interest of his audience.
Why was Baldwin's insight important?
He believed that to truly know a person and to understand why a person reacts or behaves in a certain way, you have to know the important events that shaped that person's life. By the end of the novel, the manner in which the characters react to any given situation can be extrapolated not only from their past actions but also by the understanding that the reader has gained of the character's motivating force.
Why did people leave the South?
Many people were ready to leave the South for a variety of reasons: a weak agricultural system that offered low wages and back-breaking work and little chance for advancement; repressive Jim Crow laws and a legal system that offered little outlet for social protest; and, in the years between 1900 to 1910, the highest number of lynchings in America's history. Those years experienced a record 846 reported lynchings. Of those, 754 were of blacks.
Overview
Setting
The novel takes place in New York City, primarily in Harlem in 1935. The flashbacks provide extended sequences in the American South, primarily in an unnamed town in the Deep South where Gabriel and Florence were born, and in Maryland where Elizabeth was raised. The flashbacks also recall earlier periods in Harlem and to a lesser extent other locations in New York.
In the novel, New York City at once represents freedom and opportunity - especially for Florence …
Background
James Baldwin was born in 1924 in Harlem to an unwed mother who had left Maryland for New York and never knew his biological father. Several years later, his mother married a much older laborer and Baptist preacher from Louisiana who had come north in 1919. James Baldwin took his step-father's surname and was raised as his son along with his many half-siblings. He later described his stepfather as "Brooding, silent, tyrannical ... and physically abusive, he was also a …
Structure and synopsis
Go Tell It on the Mountain has a nonlinear structure. The story takes place during one twenty-four hour period, but contains extended flashbacks which cover a period of over 70 years. The novel is focused on John Grimes, but narrative voice shifts between characters' perspectives, allowing access to the thoughts and reminiscences of John's father, mother, and aunt. The novel is divided into three parts, with the second part further subdivided into three: "Part One: The Seventh Day", "…
Themes
The religious theme pervades all aspects of the novel. However, critics have not agreed on whether it is "an ironic indictment of Christianity" or a "stirring vindication". Barbara Olson summarized the dispute noting that "those favoring vindication number in their ranks such notable critics as Albert Gerard, Donald Gibson, and Shirley Allen" while "those favoring the indictment position include Robert Bone, Michael Fabre, Nathan Scott, Howard Harper, Stanley Macebuh, Da…
Adaptations
The Public Broadcasting Service produced a made-for-television movie based on Go Tell It on the Mountain in 1984. Stan Lathan directed the film, with Paul Winfield starring as Gabriel in his adulthood and Ving Rhames playing Gabriel in his youth. Baldwin was pleased with the adaptation, saying in an interview with The New York Times, "I am very, very happy about it ... It did not betray the book."
Reception
Go Tell It On the Mountain was widely praised at its publication and since. It received favorable reviews in The New York Times, The Virginia Quarterly Review, The Hudson Review, and Phylon, among others.
Writing a decade later, Wallace Graves noted in a highly critical essay, that "when the book was reviewed in the summer of 1953, critics were most generous in praise, and except for Anthony W…