MIDDLEBURY — UVM professor Emily Bernard will discuss the significance of Toni Morrison’s Pulitzer Prize-winning novel “Beloved” in a talk at Ilsley Public Library in Middlebury on Jan. 3 at 7 pm. Her talk, “In This Here Place: Race, Nation, and Toni Morrison’s ‘Beloved,’” is part of the Vermont Humanities Council’s First Wednesdays lecture series and is free and open to the public.
Composed in the midst of popular fantasies about color-blindness, “Beloved” demonstrates that while the racism inherent in the very fabric of the country might be denied, it can never be erased. Bernard’s talk will explore how “Beloved” argues that America must reckon with the consequences of our nation’s original sin — slavery.
Those wishing to read “Beloved:” prior to attending the talk can pick up a loan copy at Ilsley Library, or can download Beloved as an e-book or audiobook from listenupvermont.org.
Emily Bernard is a professor of English and Critical Race and Ethnic Studies at the University of Vermont.