Authority, Appropriation of Voice, and the Writing of Multicultural Literature.
The article "Who Should Write Multicultural Literature" touches upon many of the central issues of this controversy. This paper will demonstrate that there are no easy or absolute answers to these issues. In particular, it will be argued that while a writer's "insider" status within a racial or ethnic group may give her an advantage over a "non-insider", it is not the primary determining factor in assessing qualifications or the quality of a literary work. It will be proposed that the criteria for evaluation of multicultural literature should not be race or skin colour, but rather sensitivity, accuracy, and honesty. 8 pgs. 0 f/c. 0b.
