Book contents
- James Baldwin in Context
- James Baldwin in Context
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Introduction: James Baldwin in Context
- Part 1 Life and Afterlife
- Chapter 1 Harlem During and After the Renaissance
- Chapter 2 American Writers in Paris
- Chapter 3 Greenwich Village and Emerging Bohemianism
- Chapter 4 1963: Baldwin’s Annus Mirabilis
- Chapter 5 East Meets West: Baldwin in Istanbul in the 1960s
- Chapter 6 Baldwin as Teacher
- Chapter 7 A Long Way from Home: Baldwin in Provence
- Chapter 8 Decline of Reputation in the 1980s
- Chapter 9 The Critical Renaissance: 1999–Present
- Chapter 10 Biographies
- Chapter 11 The Matter of Black Lives: Baldwin Today
- Part 2 Social and Cultural Contexts
- Part 3 Literary Contexts
- Index
Chapter 7 - A Long Way from Home: Baldwin in Provence
from Part 1 - Life and Afterlife
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 July 2019
- James Baldwin in Context
- James Baldwin in Context
- Copyright page
- Contents
- Contributors
- Introduction: James Baldwin in Context
- Part 1 Life and Afterlife
- Chapter 1 Harlem During and After the Renaissance
- Chapter 2 American Writers in Paris
- Chapter 3 Greenwich Village and Emerging Bohemianism
- Chapter 4 1963: Baldwin’s Annus Mirabilis
- Chapter 5 East Meets West: Baldwin in Istanbul in the 1960s
- Chapter 6 Baldwin as Teacher
- Chapter 7 A Long Way from Home: Baldwin in Provence
- Chapter 8 Decline of Reputation in the 1980s
- Chapter 9 The Critical Renaissance: 1999–Present
- Chapter 10 Biographies
- Chapter 11 The Matter of Black Lives: Baldwin Today
- Part 2 Social and Cultural Contexts
- Part 3 Literary Contexts
- Index
Summary
Situated at the hilltop terminus of the winding and narrow Route des Serres, around twelve miles west from Nice, the village of St.-Paul-de-Vence appears unexpectedly among terraced vineyards, terracotta-tiled farmhouses, and contemporary luxury villas of southeastern Provence. Looking south from the medieval ramparts that encircle the preserved walled village, one sees the verdant hills and sandstone towns that meander down to the azure blue of the Mediterranean; looking north, the Alpes-Maritimes gently crest on the horizon. In the fifteenth and sixteenth centuries, St.-Paul-de-Vence was a frontier battlement, fortified as a strategic military stronghold to defend against Spanish and Italian invasion. Since its founding, it has thus served as an enchanted, yet embattled, refuge for a changing community of inhabitants, and this tradition of refuge was still present for James Baldwin when he arrived there in late 1970 seeking creative, emotional, and physical sanctuary.
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- Information
- James Baldwin in Context , pp. 66 - 75Publisher: Cambridge University PressPrint publication year: 2019