The Black God Trope and Rhetorical Resistance

The Black God Trope is the apogee of rhetorical examinations regarding Black nationalism and religion, particularly how the divine is used as ethos, authority, and resistance. Armondo R. Collins incisively synthesizes centuries of Black rhetorical tradition in the United States - from early orators in the pulpit and at the lyceum to contemporary literary geniuses - as he concomitantly analyzes the nuances of such texts. This volume demonstrates not just the power of the divine as a rhetorical trope for resistance, but it also centers its dynamism as an epistemology for living - for community, for agency, and for survival. In the same way liberation theologists have contributed to a deeper, more reflexive understanding of religion, so too does Collins provide a vigorous and fresh mapping of Black nationalism for rhetorical studies. -- Jason Edward Black, University of North Carolina at Charlotte
“Collins has taken a very creative and helpful approach by examining the manifestation of the Black God trope in various kinds of documents (two jeremiads, a catechism, three novels, and three poems). The discussions of the ways Bambara, Morrison, and Walker explore a womanist theological perspective are exceedingly rich, as are the author’s explications of how these novelists make connections between Black women’s self-identity versus group identity.” -- Brenda E. Aghahowa, Chicago State University