Burke and Gates

Henry Gates Jr. writes about how Race has become a common trope of "difference" between cultures, religions, linguistic groups, etc because of how arbitrary it is in its application (Gates, 5). He goes on to distinguish that the criteria used to define difference between the sexes is non applicable to race, saying that difference in race is dictated mostly through metaphor. These issues of racial difference are seen often in our art, culture and rhetoric. Gates writes that he has edited his "critical Inquiry" to explore these racial issues and how the intersect with our use of formal language.




Gates uses the example of an African American slave girl who was also a poet. He writes that the publication of her poetry was important because it meant that African Americans could master the arts and sciences and therefore could hold reason. Which, gave justification to the fact that they were enslaves human beings (Gates, 9). The poet, Wheatley, was freed soon after her publication.

If we think about this in relation to Burkes terministic screens. Burke says that language can be viewed as symbolic action and the screens through which we view language allow us to understand these symbolic actions. So it's interesting to read about how when an African American women acquired language, she was seen differently. The difference that was placed on her, that metaphor of unlikeness, was broken. This action that occurred is because of her new acquired language and her being viewed as someone who was now like others. The question then becomes, why was she ever viewed not like others?