 |
Toni MorrisonAmerican Women Writer, Nobel Prize for Literature, 1993
Date of Birth: 18.02.1931
Country:  USA |
Biography of Toni Morrison
Early Life and Education
Toni Morrison, born Chloe Anthony Wofford, was an American writer who was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993. She was born on February 18, 1932, in Lorain, Ohio. Morrison attended Harvard and Cornell Universities from 1955 to 1964.
Academic Career and Marriage
After completing her education, Morrison taught at Texas Southern University before returning to Howard University in 1957. It was there that she met Jamaican architect Harold Morrison, whom she married. They had two sons but divorced in 1964. Later that year, Morrison became an assistant editor at the Syracuse branch of Random House, a publishing company that specialized in educational literature. In 1967, she became a senior editor and relocated to New York City.
Writing Career
While working at Random House, Morrison edited books by renowned African American figures such as Muhammad Ali, Andrew Young, and Angela Davis. She also began sending out the manuscript of her first novel, "The Bluest Eye," which had grown from a story she wrote for a writing seminar at Howard University. The novel, published in 1970, depicts the tragic impact of interracial prejudices on a young African American girl who dreams of having blue eyes, a symbol of white American beauty. It received critical acclaim upon its release.
Morrison continued working at Random House and taught English as an adjunct professor at the State University of New York from 1971 to 1972. During this time, she also wrote her second novel, "Sula," which was published in 1972. The book explores the relationship between two women, one of whom embraces the strict moral norms of their closed-off African American community while the other rejects them. "Sula" became a bestseller and was nominated for the National Book Award in 1973.
In 1976 and 1977, Morrison served as a guest lecturer at Yale University under contract. It was during this period that she worked on her novel "Song of Solomon," published in 1977. The book is based on a folklore theme of a spiritual journey. The protagonist, whose great-grandfather escaped slavery, leaves his affluent father's home in search of hidden family treasures, leading to the restoration of his family tree. "Song of Solomon" won the National Book Critics Circle Award and the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters Award.
Later Career and Achievements
In 1983, Morrison left her position at Random House. The following year, she became a professor on the Albert Schweitzer Chair in the Humanities at the State University of New York at Albany. Her novel "Beloved," published in 1987, won the Pulitzer Prize in 1988 and later the Nobel Prize in Literature in 1993. Returning to the theme of slavery, Morrison depicts its destructive impact on maternal love. The story is set in Ohio after the Civil War and revolves around an African American woman who chooses to kill her daughter rather than let her be subjected to slavery. "Beloved" became Morrison's first major bestseller.
Morrison's other notable works include the novels "Jazz" (1992) and "Paradise" (1998), as well as the non-fiction book "Playing in the Dark: Whiteness and the Literary Imagination" (1992). She also wrote children's books such as "The Big Box" (2000) and "The Book of Mean People" (2001).
Throughout her career, Morrison received numerous awards and honors, including the National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters in 1996. She was a member of the American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters and the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. Toni Morrison's profound impact on American literature was recognized by T. S. Eliot, who said, "Toni Morrison not only created a remarkable context of complex novels of extraordinary power, she reshaped American literary history in the 20th century."
Morrison actively participated in the feminist movement and spoke at African American congresses. Her works have been translated into multiple languages, including Italian, French, Norwegian, and Japanese. Her creative works and biography have been the subjects of several monographs.
