Realities of postracial America in Michael Thomas’ “Man Gone Down”

Abstract

The actuality and novelty of the proposed article lie in the use of postracial theories in the process of rethinking postmodern subjectivity. The purpose of the article is to analyze Michael Thomas' novel “Man Gone Down” through a hermeneutics of post-identity. Emphasis is made on racial identity in the realities of contemporary American society. The subject of the article is racial identity in the context of today's politics of so-called “racial tolerance”. In Ukrainian literary criticism, Michael Thomas' fiction has drawn little attention, as well as postracial theory. The following methods have been used in the article: close reading, hermeneutic, and cultural. It is concluded that Michael Thomas' novel “Man Gone Down” belongs to the body of those texts that debunk the political construct of postracial America. The novel adds new emphasis to depicting racial relations in the United States, to issues of class stratification, access to education, the common good, and finally to the crisis of the American dream. In addition, a new understanding of the identity of Black Americans has been emphasized, in particular, the departure from the rhetoric of ​​racial advancement or the prominent mission of “a racial man”. One of the main focuses is the narrator's attempt to find his place in the world and at the same time not to imitate the social roles defined by the ideology of the ruling white majority. The form of the inner monologue allows the readers to focus on the narrator’s past, which is constantly reviewed by him. The author describes hidden, and sometimes truly invisible but tangible to the racial Other, discriminatory practices. The desire of the main character to express himself and not meet the expectations that have traditionally been placed on members of his race is the main issue of the novel. Being yourself in the realities of totalitarian discourses is not an easy endeavor.