Christina Sharpe facts for kids

Christina Elizabeth Sharpe, born in 1965, is an American professor. She teaches English literature and Black Studies at York University in Toronto, Canada. She holds a special position there as the Canada Research Chair in Black Studies in the Humanities. In 2024, she received a special award called the John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation fellowship.

Education and Early Life

Christina Sharpe grew up in a Catholic family. She went to different types of schools, including private and public ones. In 1987, she earned her first degree, a bachelor's degree, from the University of Pennsylvania. She studied English and Africana studies there. During her studies, she also spent time learning in Nigeria at the University of Ibadan. Later, she continued her education at Cornell University. She earned both her master's degree and her doctorate from Cornell. Her main project for her doctorate was about an African writer named Bessie Head.

Career and Research

Christina Sharpe is a well-known expert in Black studies. Her work covers many areas, including how Black people are shown in art and media, Black queer studies, and African-American literature from the mid-1800s to today.

The Idea of "Wake Work"

One of her most famous ideas is "wake work." She wrote about this in her important book, In the Wake: On Blackness and Being, which came out in 2016. In this book, she looks at the lasting effects of the transatlantic slave trade. She explores how this history still shapes the lives of Black people today. "Wake work" means actively dealing with how Black lives and deaths are affected by racism. It also means finding ways to survive, remember, and resist.

Other Important Books

Before In the Wake, she wrote another book called ... Intimacies: Making Post-Slavery Subjects. This book was published in 2010. It looks at how stories, relationships, and images help create Black identities after the time of slavery. Sharpe explores how the history of slavery, colonialism, and racial violence still affects Black communities. She uses ideas from critical race theory and cultural studies to understand these connections.

Her research also includes looking at how Black people are shown in visual media. This includes films, photographs, and modern art. She points out how these images can either support or challenge old ideas about race and colonialism. She studies how Black artists use their work to push back against these ideas.

Besides her books, Sharpe has written many essays for academic journals. These essays cover topics like memory and trauma related to Black experiences. Her work is known for its creative ways of helping people understand Black life. She shows how Black people live in a world shaped by historical slavery and ongoing racism. She has also given talks at many academic events and public gatherings.

Where She Has Taught

Sharpe worked at Hobart and William Smith Colleges from 1996 to 1998. From 1998 to 2018, she taught at Tufts University. She became a full professor there in 2017. She was the first Black woman to become a full professor in the English department at Tufts. She is also a senior research associate at a center in South Africa, the Centre for the Study of Race, Gender & Class (RGC), at the University of Johannesburg. Currently, she is a professor and research chair in Black Studies at York University in Canada.

Her Published Books

Christina Sharpe has written several award-winning books:

• In the Wake: On Blackness and Being
• ... Intimacies: Making Post-Slavery Subjects
• Ordinary Notes

She also wrote an introduction for a collection of poems by Dionne Brand.

... Intimacies (2010)

In ... Intimacies, Christina Sharpe explores difficult relationships and hidden histories. She describes these as "known and unknown performances and inhabited horrors." These are things that are passed down and often not recognized as harmful. Sharpe's ideas help us understand how power is built in personal and close relationships. She looks at how the effects of slavery continue to be seen in different ways.

In the Wake: On Blackness and Being (2016)

Her second book, In the Wake: On Blackness and Being, was published in 2016. The publishers describe it as a deep look into how Black lives are shaped by the history of slavery. Sharpe uses the word "wake" in several ways: like the path a ship leaves behind, watching over the dead, and becoming aware. She shows how Black lives are affected by the past, but also how they survive and resist. The book offers new ways to think about living in the Black diaspora.

How Her Books Were Received

Christina Sharpe's books have been highly praised. They are seen as very important contributions to Black studies. Her 2010 book, ... Intimacies, was noted for combining literature, psychology, and history. It helped people understand how slavery still affects Black life today. Some readers found the language in this book a bit complex.

Her 2016 book, In the Wake, also received great reviews. People liked how she mixed personal stories with historical and theoretical ideas. This book has become a must-read in Black studies and is often mentioned by other scholars. Like her first book, some found its ideas challenging if they were not already familiar with the topic. Despite this, it won many awards and was named a best book of the year by several groups.

Her book Ordinary Notes has also received different reactions. Many reviewers liked its new structure and insights into Black life. Kirkus Reviews called it "an exquisitely original celebration of American Blackness." The New York Times said it offered a new way to understand Black life, different from common ideas.

However, some critics noted that the book's fragmented style could be a challenge. The Chicago Review of Books mentioned that while the varied format supports the wide range of topics, it might be hard for readers looking for a traditional story. Despite these comments, it also won many awards and was recognized as a best book of the year by many outlets.

Awards and Honors

Christina Sharpe has received many awards for her important work:

• In the Wake:
  • Was a finalist for the 2017 Hurston/Wright Legacy Award in Nonfiction.
  • Named one of the "Best Books of 2016" by The Guardian.
  • Named one of the "Best Books of 2016" by The Walrus.
• Ordinary Notes:
  • Won the 2023 Hilary Weston Writers' Trust Prize for Nonfiction.
  • Was a finalist for the 2023 National Book Award.
  • Was a finalist for the 2023 National Book Critics Circle Award in Nonfiction.
  • Was a finalist for the 2023 Los Angeles Times Current Interest Book Award.
  • Was a finalist for the 2023 James Tait Black Prize in Biography.
  • Named "Best Book of the Year 2023" by The New York Times.
  • Named "Best Book of the Year 2023" by The Atlantic.
  • Named "Best Book of the Year 2023" by The New Yorker.
  • Named "Best Book of the Year 2023" by The Globe and Mail.
  • Named "Best Book of the Year 2023" by The Toronto Star.
  • Named "Best Book of the Year 2023" by NPR.
• She won the Windham-Campbell Prize for Nonfiction in 2024.
• She received the Canada Council for the Arts Molson Prize for the Sciences and Humanities in 2024.
• She was named a Guggenheim Fellow in 2024.

Selected Works

• Ordinary Notes. Farrar, Straus and Giroux, 2023.
• In the Wake: On Blackness and Being. Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 2016.
• ... Intimacies: Making Post-Slavery Subjects. Durham, N.C.: Duke University Press, 2010.