Morrison, Toni: 1931 - 2019
Information about Toni Morrison
- General Information
- Facts
- Toni Morrison was born Chloe Anthony Wofford
- In 1993 Toni Morrison was awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature and on November 3, 2010 she received France's highest decoration, the Legion of Honour.
- Biography from National Women's History Museum
- Bibliography
- Bibliography with information about the books. Thomas King, The Book Report; 1999
- The Life of Toni Morrison documentary (2015)
- Video (9:31)
Learn about Toni Morrison's life and literary legacy, with discussion questions. PBS; August 9, 2019 - The US Postal Service Celebrates Author Toni Morrison on New Forever Stamp. A Forever Stamp remains valid for mailing a standard first-class letter, regardless of future postage rate increases. March 7, 2023
- About Toni Morrison
- Laureate-poet of America's pain: "Toni Morrion's fierce resistance to racism, which informs all of her writing, has led critics to dub her racism's 'avenging angel'." The Guardian; October 10, 1993
- Lessons we can learn from Toni Morrison: "Morrison said racist white people don’t understand that they are also a race, it’s also constructed, it’s also made." PBS; August 6, 2019
- A Celebration of Toni Morrison: Panel Discussion with Honorée Fannone Jeffers and Carolyn Denard on teaching Toni Morrison. September 2, 2023
- A bit of gossip
- She was an editor in New York when she wrote her first novel, The Bluest Eye (1970) - the story of a black girl who wanted to be white. Morrison said, "I wrote it because I wanted to read it." Seventeen years later, she wanted to read a book about the true story of Margaret Garner, a black slave woman who kills her own child to free him from slavery, but was annoyed and worried that such a story was inaccessible to art. She proved herself wrong with the publication of what many consider her greatest masterpiece, Beloved (1987). She said, When there is pain, there are no words. All pain is the same. She also said, We die. That may be the meaning of life. But we do language. That may be the measure of our lives.
- Obituaries
- Toni Morrison’s impact on the publishing industry. Kimberly Adams; August 6, 2019
- Nobel prizewinner and author whose stories are specifically African American: "Her desire was to create stories which could be lingered over and relished, not consumed and gobbled as fast food." The Guardian; August 6, 2019
- Toni Morrison, Nobel laureate who transfigured American literature, dies at 88: "Ms. Morrison placed African Americans, particularly women, at the heart of her writing at a time when they were largely relegated to the margins both in literature and in life." The Washington Post; August 6, 2019
- Obituary: Toni Morrison: "Morrison focused particularly on the experience of women within the black community." BBC; August 6, 2019
- Audio (7:00)
Toni Morrison, Whose Soaring Novels Were Rooted In Black Lives, Dies At 88. NPR Radio; August 6, 2019 - Remembering Toni Morrison's 'beautiful human urgency'. Jeffrey Brown talks about how she was influenced by Morrison's work, generosity and “amazing vigor.” PBS; August 6, 2019
- Toni Morrison’s impact on the publishing industry. Kimberly Adams; August 6, 2019