The Library of Congress has acquired the Omar ibn Said Collection, including an exceptional artifact, the autobiography of Omar ibn Said, written in ancient Arabic by an African enslaved man. In this article, I analytically examine the role of literacy in Omar ibn Said's life as informed by African cultures, ethnicities, histories, languages, and…

It has been created within the larger realm culture, in that "Black methodology differs from most colonial differences by members of a minority community who reside within a nation of cultural biases."

Literature by African women has a social function. Popular topics are colonialism, feminism, and culture conflict. The works of two Senegalese writers, Ba and Sow Fall, are described and compared. They recognize conflict, but they also write about less obvious social influences and recognize that social change can be beneficial. (VM)

Reviews issues surrounding African-American cultural identity in cultural discourse about the arts, especially literature. Identifies positions in the current debate, critiques some positions being argued, and focuses on the work of Henry Louis Gates, Jr., in his book, "The Signifying Monkey: A Theory of Afro-American Literacy…