Roots (novel)

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Roots "Roots" (in the American original Roots: The Saga of an American Family ) is a novel by the American author Alex Haley from 1976 . The book was made into a film for television shortly after it was published . The German version of the series was also called Roots , which is why the novel is also known by its original title in German-speaking countries. In 1979 the last seven chapters of the novel were filmed under the title Roots - The Next Generations . A series remake followed in 2016 .

action

In 1750 Binta Kinte, wife of Omoro Kinte of the Mandinka people , gave birth to their first son, named Kunta Kinte after his grandfather . The boy grew up sheltered but strictly raised in the village of Juffure in what is now the state of Gambia ; he has to cope with the difficulties of growing up, sees the birth of three younger brothers and is finally ordained a man after hard years of apprenticeship . From then on he went on trips and prepared himself to start a family.

But this does not occur; Slave traders kidnapped the 17-year-old Kunta from near his home in 1767, in order to later sell him as a " nigger " at a slave market in America to a plantation in Virginia . His buyer gives him the slave name "Toby". After his second unsuccessful escape attempt, part of his foot is chopped off to prevent him from tearing off in the future. Kinte finally surrenders to his lot and becomes his owner's coachman. The daughter Kizzy emerges from the marriage with the cook Bell. When she tries to help her lover escape north when she is a teenager and is sold to South Carolina for it, her father remains a broken man.

Kizzy is sold to a nouveau riche named Tom Lea, who raises fighting cocks . He abuses and impregnates the young black woman, whereupon she gives birth to her son George.

In several episodes, the story of Kunta Kinte and seven generations of his descendants is told, who have to survive in the time of slavery in the United States.

background

Alex Haley, who says he was fascinated from childhood by the stories his grandmother had told him about her ancestors, began researching the history of his family in the 1960s and was particularly interested in that first ancestor, the was abducted by slave traders to America and was referred to in the family only as "the African".

Haley began digging in archives and traveled to Africa, to the village of Juffure . Based on this research, he believed to have conclusively reconstructed the biography of an ancestor named Kunta Kinte and some of his descendants.

The historian couple Mills accused Haley of ignoring existing records when they contradicted the fictional family history. Haley, on the other hand, defended himself by stating that files from the times of slavery could not be relied on and that oral traditions should always be preferred for the writing of the history of black families .

Allegations of plagiarism

Haley's reputation suffered from plagiarism allegations . In an out-of-court settlement, Haley paid $ 650,000 and had to admit that he had taken over parts of Roots from The African from Harold Courlander , but claimed that this was accidental. In 1988 Margaret Walker Alexander charged him with violating the copyrights of her novel Jubilee . The case was dismissed by the court because it found no judicial similarities between the works.

Reception and adaptation

Roots is widely considered to be one of the most important literary works on slavery in the United States and the identification of the African-American population. The book has been translated into 37 languages.

Alex Haley received the Pulitzer Prize for Roots in 1977 .

success

The book was number 1 on the Spiegel bestseller list for 2 weeks in 1978 .

expenditure

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Mills, Gary B., and Elizabeth Shown Mills: The Genealogist's Assessment of Alex Haley's Roots . In: National Genealogical Society Quarterly . March 1984.
  2. ↑ Kaplan, Eliot: Roots: The Saga Continues . In: Lakeland Ledger . 2nd August 1981.
  3. ^ Fein, Esther B .: Book Notes . In: The New York Times , March 3, 1993. 
  4. ^ Crowley, Anne S .: Research Help Supplies Backbone for Haley's Book . In: Chicago Tribune , October 24, 1985. 
  5. ^ " Judge Rules" Roots "Original ", Associated Press (September 21, 1978).
  6. ^ " Suit against Alex Haley is dismissed, " United Press International (September 22, 1978).