The Black Girl in Search of God
Encyclopedia
The Adventures of the Black Girl in Her Search for God (and Some Lesser Tales)
is a book of short stories written by George Bernard Shaw
. The title story is an allegory relating the experiences of an Africa
n black girl, freshly converted to Christianity, who takes literally the biblical injunction to "Seek and you shall find me." and attempts to seek out and actually speak to God. One by one, she meets the pantheon of Judaeo-Christian and Muslim deities and dignitaries and disposes of them all by trenchant logic and skilled use of her knobkerry. Eventually she abandons her quest and settles down with a red-headed Irishman
and rears a family. Only after the children are grown and gone does she resume her searching, and by then her "strengthened mental powers take her far beyond the stage at which there is fun in smashing idols".
The Black Girl, as protagonist, serves the same purpose as Christian in Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress
; that is to say she makes interesting adventures of what, otherwise, would be bleak theological and sociological discussions. She may also be viewed as an emerging feminist figure, able to defend herself with her knobkerry and—although naive—capable of formulating searching theological
questions. The speculation is supported by her apparent prior appearance as "The Negress"—a powerful figure in The Thing Happens, which is the third part of Back to Methuselah
.
The book was first published in 1932, as Short Stories, Scraps and Shavings. In December 1932 Constable and Company published an edition engraved and designed by John Farleigh
with the title The Adventures of the Black Girl in her Search for God. A Riposte appeared in a similarly-presented volume, The Adventures of the White Girl in her Search for God by Charles Herbert Maxwell, which showed an outdoor young woman wielding a niblick on the cover (far less improbable than that Shaw's girl should carry a knobkerry). This book advanced different views of what is really taught by Christianity, and deflected the racial construct presented by Shaw.
A 1934 reprinting including Black Girl, already serialized in 1932, along with a companion essay that disclaimed the supernatural origin of the Bible
. In the essay, Shaw declares the Bible to be a book without divine authority—but still important for its ethical messages and valuable as history. Both the story and the essay outraged the religious public, creating a demand that supported five reprintings.
Shaw was greatly distressed when the irreligious tone of Black Girl caused a rift in his long-term friendship with Dame Laurentia McLachlan
, Abbess of Stanbrook; eventually they reconciled. Shaw exacerbated the general furore by proposing intermarriage of blacks and whites as a solution to racial problems in South Africa. This was taken as a bad joke in Britain and as blasphemy in Nazi Germany.
The full text of this story is available on-line.
is a book of short stories written by George Bernard Shaw
George Bernard Shaw
George Bernard Shaw was an Irish playwright and a co-founder of the London School of Economics. Although his first profitable writing was music and literary criticism, in which capacity he wrote many highly articulate pieces of journalism, his main talent was for drama, and he wrote more than 60...
. The title story is an allegory relating the experiences of an Africa
Africa
Africa is the world's second largest and second most populous continent, after Asia. At about 30.2 million km² including adjacent islands, it covers 6% of the Earth's total surface area and 20.4% of the total land area...
n black girl, freshly converted to Christianity, who takes literally the biblical injunction to "Seek and you shall find me." and attempts to seek out and actually speak to God. One by one, she meets the pantheon of Judaeo-Christian and Muslim deities and dignitaries and disposes of them all by trenchant logic and skilled use of her knobkerry. Eventually she abandons her quest and settles down with a red-headed Irishman
Ireland
Ireland is an island to the northwest of continental Europe. It is the third-largest island in Europe and the twentieth-largest island on Earth...
and rears a family. Only after the children are grown and gone does she resume her searching, and by then her "strengthened mental powers take her far beyond the stage at which there is fun in smashing idols".
The Black Girl, as protagonist, serves the same purpose as Christian in Bunyan's The Pilgrim's Progress
The Pilgrim's Progress
The Pilgrim's Progress from This World to That Which Is to Come is a Christian allegory written by John Bunyan and published in February, 1678. It is regarded as one of the most significant works of religious English literature, has been translated into more than 200 languages, and has never been...
; that is to say she makes interesting adventures of what, otherwise, would be bleak theological and sociological discussions. She may also be viewed as an emerging feminist figure, able to defend herself with her knobkerry and—although naive—capable of formulating searching theological
Theology
Theology is the systematic and rational study of religion and its influences and of the nature of religious truths, or the learned profession acquired by completing specialized training in religious studies, usually at a university or school of divinity or seminary.-Definition:Augustine of Hippo...
questions. The speculation is supported by her apparent prior appearance as "The Negress"—a powerful figure in The Thing Happens, which is the third part of Back to Methuselah
Back to Methuselah
Back to Methuselah , by George Bernard Shaw consists of a preface and a series of five plays: In the Beginning: B.C. 4004 , The Gospel of the Brothers Barnabas: Present Day, The Thing Happens: A.D. 2170, Tragedy of an Elderly Gentleman: A.D. 3000, and As Far as Thought Can Reach: A.D...
.
The book was first published in 1932, as Short Stories, Scraps and Shavings. In December 1932 Constable and Company published an edition engraved and designed by John Farleigh
John Farleigh
John Farleigh , also known as Frederick William Charles Farleigh, was an English wood-engraver, noted for his illustrations of George Bernard Shaw's work The Adventures of the Black Girl in Her Search for God, which caused controversy when released due to the religious, sexual and racial themes...
with the title The Adventures of the Black Girl in her Search for God. A Riposte appeared in a similarly-presented volume, The Adventures of the White Girl in her Search for God by Charles Herbert Maxwell, which showed an outdoor young woman wielding a niblick on the cover (far less improbable than that Shaw's girl should carry a knobkerry). This book advanced different views of what is really taught by Christianity, and deflected the racial construct presented by Shaw.
A 1934 reprinting including Black Girl, already serialized in 1932, along with a companion essay that disclaimed the supernatural origin of the Bible
Bible
The Bible refers to any one of the collections of the primary religious texts of Judaism and Christianity. There is no common version of the Bible, as the individual books , their contents and their order vary among denominations...
. In the essay, Shaw declares the Bible to be a book without divine authority—but still important for its ethical messages and valuable as history. Both the story and the essay outraged the religious public, creating a demand that supported five reprintings.
Shaw was greatly distressed when the irreligious tone of Black Girl caused a rift in his long-term friendship with Dame Laurentia McLachlan
Laurentia McLachlan
Dame Laurentia McLachlan, OSB was born in 1866 in Coatbridge, Lanarkshire, Scotland. In 1884 she joined the Benedictine Abbey at Stanbrook Abbey. In 1931 she was elected Abbess of Stanbrook...
, Abbess of Stanbrook; eventually they reconciled. Shaw exacerbated the general furore by proposing intermarriage of blacks and whites as a solution to racial problems in South Africa. This was taken as a bad joke in Britain and as blasphemy in Nazi Germany.
The full text of this story is available on-line.