Skip to content
Your Trusted NYC Bookstore for More Than 40 Years ∙ Now Offering Art Supplies!
Your Trusted NYC Bookstore for More Than 40 Years ∙ Now Offering Art Supplies!

Playing in the Dark: Whiteness and the Literary Imagination

ISBN 9780679745426

Original price $14.40 - Original price $14.40
Original price
$14.40
$14.40 - $14.40
Current price $14.40

An immensely persuasive work of literary criticism that opens a new chapter in the American dialogue on race—and promises to change the way we read American literature—from the acclaimed Nobel Prize winner

Morrison shows how much the themes of freedom and individualism, manhood and innocence, depended on the existence of a black population that was manifestly unfree--and that came to serve white authors as embodiments of their own fears and desires. According to the Chicago Tribune, Morrison "reimagines and remaps the possibility of America." Her brilliant discussions of the "Africanist" presence in the fiction of Poe, Melville, Cather, and Hemingway leads to a dramatic reappraisal of the essential characteristics of our literary tradition. 

Written with the artistic vision that has earned the Nobel Prize-winning author a pre-eminent place in modern letters, Playing in the Dark is an invaluable read for avid Morrison admirers as well as students, critics, and scholars of American literature.

Return & Refund

Books: Return within 7 days for store credit, excluding shipping costs.

Non-Book Items:

  • In-Person Purchases: Store credit or exchange within 14 days.
  • Online Purchases: Full refund within 14 days (shipping excluded).

Exceptions: Textbooks, course packs, and lab manuals are final sale unless a class is dropped within the first 4 weeks from the start of the term with proof of dropping the class.

All Returns: Items must be in original condition with tags/packaging. A receipt is required for in-person refunds.

Read our full Return and Refund Policy.

Shipping & Pickup
  • Most in-stock items are processed and shipped through USPS within 72 hours (excluding weekends and holidays) after receiving your order confirmation email. You will receive another notification when your order has shipped.
  • Shipping charges and estimated delivery times will be calculated and displayed at checkout based on the weight of your order and the destination.
  • Pickup from 939 Lexington Avenue is available for most in-stock items.
  • Read our full Shipping Policy.