Political uses of literature have been used in various way over the years to both create and maintain a political following. Italo Calvino states that “literature is necessary to politics above all when it gives a voice to whatever is without a voice, when it gives a name to what as yet has no name, especially to what the language of politics excludes or attempts to exclude” (1976, 98). The premise suggests that in every political undertaking, there are people who will have a voice and those who will not. Additionally, the scholar suggests that those with a voice are obligated to speak for the voiceless. Any other form of communication or literature that does not bear this is, thus, considered ineffective. Towards this end, one can argue that political use of literature is a form of art that has to be used well in order to achieve political prowess. The stated quote will be used in light of the play “Dutchman” by Amiri Baraka. The essay will corroborate the quotation by Calvino proving that political use of literature is a voice of the voiceless, a name for the nameless and a way of including the excluded.
One can argue that the work gives a voice to those previously voiceless or unheard in two main ways. The first is by recognizing the impact of racism on both the racist (Lula) and the person who has been affected by the derogatory terms (Clay). It can be argued that Clay is the voice of the voiceless and unheard. Not only is he directly seduced by the Caucasian lady, but when he does not respond as desired by the white woman, he is shamed, insulted and blamed. Secondly, the work gives a voice to the unheard in regards to black people who have extremely negative attitudes toward other races that discriminate against the African race. Clay wishes he was able to kill off whites in order to stop racism in America, which can be argued to be an extreme action (Jones 24). Towards this end, one can also argue that the writer attempted to give a name to the struggle Clay was experiencing at the time. However, this was not effectively executed.
On the same note, the political use of literature silences and also takes away the voice of some of the parties involved. One can argue that the work gives a general representation of two races, where Clay represents black Americans while Lula is a representation of Caucasians. Further analysis indicates that gender also plays a critical role in why the author decided the black American to be represented by a male figure while the Caucasian was represented by a female character. Towards this end, one can argue that the gender representation silences the voices of men and women in the different races. For example, the experience and voice of black women is silenced through the experience of Clay. On the same note, the voice of white male figures is taken away by the behavior and actions of Lula. This is a significant factor considering the fact that it is such generalizations that lead to bias and discriminations.
The main voice in the literary work is that of Clay. It can actually be argued that Clay embodied the writer’s (Bakari’s) own personality. The nature of the main voice in the work is both of a victim and a patriarchal personality. In regards to the victim, the character appears to blame everything that transpired in that train ride to the woman. For instance, he purports that Lula is to blame for his attraction to her due to her actions. On the other hand, he beats Lula (two slaps) and argues that she was trying to seduce him. The main voice has a reaction to the voice of “black manhood” which is also heighted in the literal work (Jones 4). In relation, the voice has a direct link to one of the silenced voices (that of black women) as it encourages the argument that black women were also often blamed and battered by their men/husbands. The voice of Lula is equally important but has not been carefully considered as opposed to that of Clay. This can be attributed to the general theme of the literary work, which is racism.
It can be argued that the work also names what was previously nameless. It does this by giving both a physical characteristic and a mental conception of what this could represent. First, the work names what has often been described as flirting as “manipulative tactics”. Debatably, black men have been accused on numerous occasions of harassing white women either in the form of talk or even behavior. In the chosen literary work, the same is expressed when Lula criticizes Clay and insults him yet she started the conversation. The fact that she accused Clay of staring at her buttocks shows the bias and discrimination that is attached to the behavior of black men. It is not clear whether Clay stared at the lady or not and this goes to show that it rarely matters. Indeed, it raises the assumption that black men are ill behaved and sexual predators who cannot control their emptions. The work puts a name to this previously nameless, cruel and absolutely abhorrent nature of racist Caucasian women. As mentioned, the writer calls it manipulative tactics.
The work also incorporates the “language of politics” in various ways. The use of the term “manipulative” is politically correct both for patriarchal concerns and also for purposes of correctly depicting the struggles of black communities living in the US. In regards to patriarchy, manipulation arises from the fact that women have been viewed as the weaker sex. However, from the writer’s and character’s point of view, Lula has the power to not only change Clay’s mind (he agreed to take her to a party he was not going to initially) but can use various strategies to get what they want. In the case of the selected work, the strategy is viewed in negative light, thus, the name, manipulative. This language attempts to exclude the role of the male figure in the entire exchange. It is for this reason that one can argue that the narration furthers the concepts of patriarchy.
The new voices that are represented in the work selected are not highlight in purely positive light. The voice of Clay, as mentioned, is represented not only as a victim (black identity) but also as a patriarchal voice (black manhood). Whereas one can argue that the identity has been portrayed in a significantly positive light – where he is portrayed as a victim of racism, the aspect of black manhood has been highlighted negatively. The voice that supports the latter is portrayed as violent and highly conservative (he beats Lula). It can be argued that the voice of black men is further depicted in negative light due to Clay’s thoughts. It can be argued that the new voices do not support the process of name-giving. Apart from being violent to women (represented by Lula in this case) he also has murderous thoughts towards white people in general. In fact, during his monologue, he notes that killing off Caucasians would be the best way of dealing with racism in the US.
Indeed, there are numerous instances of new voices depicted in the work. For purposes of further analysis, the new voices represented by Clay will be used. One of the voices enhanced by Clay’s character is that of the victim. A second voice is that of a male character while a third voice is that of a mentally ill person. One main conflict that can be derived from the three stated voices is the reaction of the man (Clay). As a victim he is offended by the accusations made by Lula. As a man, he wants to defend his honor and this leads to him physically abusing Lula. These two voices seem to be in sync, however, as a mentally unstable person he is in conflict of his reactions. He finds reason in stating that he should kill all white people in an attempt to get rid of racism. However, he also understands how wrong this would be and his mind keeps conflicting on the best action to take. Eventually, he agrees that killing white people will be morally and legally wrong.
Works Cited
Calvino, Italo. Right and Wrong Political Uses of Literature. Harcourt, 1976.
Jones, LeRoi. Dutchman: A Play. Faber & Faber, 1967.