Edward P. Jones—The Neighborhood Preservationist

Fire!!!

Vol. 5, No. 2, Examining the Humanity of Blackness (Spring 2020), pp. 40-52 (13 pages)

Published By: Association for the Study of African American Life and History

For many people, Washington, DC, prompts ideas about the White House, historical monuments, and elected officials. Edward P. Jones’s DC, as observed by Nichole Rustin-Paschal, is “unapologetically a black world with its norms rooted in black culture.”3 Therefore, he includes references to locales and landmarks that carry special significance for Black people in DC, such as Howard University, DC General, Dupont Circle, and Dunbar High School. The recurring uses of sites familiar to Black people suggest that the characters and narratives are elements of a larger interconnected production. Jones situates his stories within the actual geography of the city by describing and name-checking numerous specific locales and communities across DC.