The Trope of the Angry Black Woman: From Girlhood to Womanhood
Sydney Simms, Summer 2021
Thesis Director: Dr. Earl Brooks
Committee Members: Lucille McCarthy, Drew Holladay
This thesis examines Black young-adult fiction, specifically the work of Sharon G. Flake and Anne Schraff, and the pivotal experiences that turn Black girls into “angry Black women.” The phase between childhood and adulthood is often where Black girls face significant trauma, hypersexualization, and anti-Black beauty standards. These adolescent experiences are rarely centered when questioning the anger of Black women. The examination of these experiences will increase awareness about the challenges of Black girlhood and the negative effects of the “angry Black woman” stereotype.