it contains a variety of literary elements that are
frequently absent from much of the popular lit-
erature in contemporary America. These elements
include storytelling in the black male tradition, a
narrative complexity that ranks Allen among the
best of the modern and postmodern literary styl-
ists, and a concern for character and place that
recalls some of the most significant works in the
American literary canon. At the same time, Allen
treads into the popular province of the comic and
the violent, showing that he knows well the con-
temporary dimensions of the lives of the people
about whom he writes.
The narrative voice is largely that of Hatch
Jones, a present-generation character who tries
to arrive at some sense of himself and his family
in the aftermath of a painful past and as a victim
of more recent familial fractures and dysfunc-
tion. Allen deals deftly with the Great Migration
of blacks from South to North and the resulting
changes in their economic and emotional fortunes.
He also deals with contemporary urban plagues
like drug abuse, intraracial crime and violence, and
neighborhood blight that have devastated so many
black families. What makes the devastation so in-
tense for this family is that members of the present
generation have received double doses of heritage:
Their fathers are brothers who married two sisters.
The tragedy associated with all these occurrences
is most clearly seen in the life of Hatch’s double
first cousin, Jesus Jones, a proverbial lost child in
the jungle of drugs, alcohol, and violence, reminis-
cent of CLAUDE BROWN’s character in Manchild in
the Promised Land.
Stylistically, there is a mélange of narrative styles
that are often complex and nonlinear. Sometimes
other characters intrude on Hatch Jones’s narra-
tion; at other times, a newspaper clipping, a page
torn from a Bible, or an obituary notice propels the
narrative. Often, an omniscient narrator provides
clarity or, more often than not, deliberately adds
greater confusion. Just as frequently, lines blur be-
tween people and places. Allen handles all of these
strategies with great skill. The text also confirms
that Allen is a lover of words and of storytelling in
its most artistic sense.
Thematically, Allen explores the results of de-
ferred dreams in the context of the African-Amer-
ican quest for America’s promise. Other themes
include the importance of the extended family,
suffering, reconciliation, and the journey toward
fulfillment. Moreover, the South as a touchstone
for African Americans figures prominently in the
novel. Allen is clearly aware of the African-Ameri-
can literary tradition, and he is deeply rooted in
the elements of the culture.BIBLIOGRAPHY
Carson, Warren J. Review of Rails under My Back.
AALCS Newsletter 6, no. 1 (May 2002): 5–6.
Channer, Colin. Review of Rails under My Back. Min-
neapolis Star Review, April 2000.
Tate, Greg. Review of Rails under My Back. Village
Voice Literary Supplement, February 2000.
Warren J. CarsonAngelou, Maya (née Margeurite
Johnson) (1928– )
Acclaimed for her serial autobiographies, poetry,
and public performance lectures, Maya Angelou
was born Marguerite Johnson in Saint Louis, Mis-
souri, to Bailey Johnson, a navy dietitian, and Viv-
ian Johnson, a cocktail hostess. In 1931 Maya and
her brother, Bailey, were sent to Stamps, Arkansas,
to live with their grandmother, Annie Henderson.
Later, in 1936, while living in St. Louis, Angelou
was raped by her mother’s boyfriend, who was
subsequently found kicked to death in a vacant
lot. Fearing her confession had literally killed him,
she became ill and was sent back to Stamps suffer-
ing from voluntary mutism. During this time she
read prodigiously and discovered poetry. In 1944
she dropped out of high school in San Francisco,
where she lived with her mother; worked as the
first black trolley car conductor; and gave birth to
her son, Guy. She married Tosh Angelou in 1949,
later worked as a singer at the Purple Onion night-
club in San Francisco, and soon thereafter dissolved
the marriage. She toured Europe from 1954 to 1955
with the Everyman’s Opera Company’s production12 Angelou, Maya