Additional+synopsis

Larry Andrews wrote the following article with these topics in mind: a sense of identity, purpose, and strength for survival. These subjects tie into the stereotypes of black women because all three are areas in which African American women have been labeled, judged, and have even been perpetuated by the very women who have absorbed and objectified these images. Though the novel, “The Women of Brewster Place,” focuses on the relationships of two lesbian African American women, Andrews found it necessary to use this novel to bring the issues of sisterhood to the light. Andrews’s article focused on three of Naylor’s novels, which were, The Women of Brewster Place, Linden Hills, and Mama Day. However, for this synopsis, Andrews’s explanations of The Women of Brewster Place will be analyzed. Andrews found it necessary to note that sisterhood, a term that describes the linking of women, no longer exists amongst black women. When they attempt to bond, it is then that sisterhood and the sense of community and connection are broken.

__Identity__
Andrews believed that African American women had lost their sense of identity as women, sisters, and as a community. He used the novel, “The Women of Brewster Place,” to explain this. According to Andrews, the knit between African American women derived from isolation. Women forgot to be wives because they spent so much time raising children while their husbands worked. By the time the husband arrived home, the woman would be to beat, worn down, and too exhausted to tend to her husbands’ needs. Raising children also left women to make decisions without the help of another woman. Andrews wondered if, for this reason, women lost their sense of who they were. The author of the article believed that the stereotypes of black women could be saved by shared experiences. This means that Andrews believed that if African American women would openly discuss their day-to-day struggles, pains, and frustration, then isolation would not take place, thus causing black women to become lost.

__Relationships__
Andrews believed that in the novel, “The Women of Brewster Place” images of the stereotypical belief that black have lost their identity, could have been restored through strong mother-daughter relationships and also through the bonding of female relationships outside of the family. Andrews used the character Theresa to express to the reader a woman’s desire to belong to a sense of community. Theresa wanted to be accepted by her community. She desired to be appreciated and not be looked down upon because of her lifestyle. Her lover Lorraine despised Theresa because her desire for acceptance. Andrews believed that sisterhood could have possibly taken place had the two lovers been accepted and loved by other women in the community. Andrews noted that female companionship is necessary in order to secure one’s identity. Though African American woman were the main focus of the novel, Andrews pointed out that Naylor did not shy away from including men in the lack of sisterhood amongst black women. He described the role that men play in the matter when he used examples from, The Women of Brewster Place.” He discussed the abandonment of the father who had no problem kicking his pregnant daughter, Butch, who was careless, and the deceitful preacher. Andrews believed that Naylor included male characters in her novel to show that women lost their identity have much to do with them carrying the weight of fragile men on their shoulders, making tough decisions alone, and navigating through life with no sisterly support. In his article, Andrews wondered if African American women could press past their chaotic relationships for purpose of rebuilding black women, the black race, and rebuilding one’s own identity. The author of the article stressed the importance of female bonding. The lack of it, he believed, would result in the perpetuation of negative images and stereotypes within the links of sisterhood.

=Andrews, Larry. “Black Sisterhood in Gloria Naylor’s Novels.” //Literature Resource Center. Gale Database.// 2002. [|http://go.galegroup.com.jproxy.lib.ecu.edu/ps/retrieve.do?sgHitCountType=None&sort=RELEVANCE&inPS=true&prodId=LitRC&userGroupName=ncliveecu&tabID=T001&searchId=R1&resultListType=RESULT_LIST&contentSegment=&searchType=BasicSearchForm&currentPosition=20&contentSet=GALE%7CH1100042347&&docId=GALE|H1100042347&docType=GALE&role=LitRC]=