Who is Toni Morrison?

Biography:

Toni Morrison was born Chloe Anthony Wofford in Lorain, Ohio, on February 18, 1931 after her parents, George and Ramah Wofford, moved up north to escape pressing southern racial discrimination. Morrison’s early life consisted of a focus on African American heritage within her family and her educational studies, for she quickly became an avid reader. When Morrison was 12 years old she converted to Catholicism and was baptized under the name Anthony. This is where she adopted the name “Toni” after the saint. In 1949, Morrison pursued her education at Howard University where she studied to teach English. After graduating from Howard in 1953 she attended Cornell University in order to complete her Master’s degree. Upon completing in 1955, she began teaching at Texas Southern University. In 1957 she returned to Howard University to teach English where she met her husband Harold Morrison. They married in 1958, and not long after had two children: Harold and Slade. 

After teaching for seven years, Morrison left Howard in 1963 to pursue writing where she moved to Syracuse, New York as a senior editor for Random House publishing. Morrison was 39 when she published her first novel, The Bluest Eye in 1970. Three years later she published Sula which was nominated for a National Book Award. In 1977, Morrison published Song of Solomon and would go on to win the National Book Critics Circle Award. It was then in 1987 that Beloved was published which would bring a great deal of fame for Morrison. Beloved was an active bestseller for 25 weeks and received the Pulitzer prize in 1988 as well as countless other awards and recognitions. Morrison pursued teaching once again as a professor at Princeton University, but continued to publish a variety of works while teaching. In 1993, Morrison became the first African American woman to receive the Nobel Prize in Literature. Three years later, Morrison was awarded the National Book Foundation Medal for Distinguished Contribution to American Letters as well. In 1998, Beloved, the movie, starring Oprah Winfrey was produced and not short after that she received a GRAMMY nomination for best spoken word album with Beloved as well. 

Morrison continued to write and produce works in her later years while also working with her son, Slade, to produce children’s books. In 1994, she established a creative writing program at Princeton University known as the Princeton Atelier in the pursuit to help students create original work such as hers. In 2000, Morrison was awarded the National Humanities medaled and named a Living Legend by the Library of Congress. Morrison then retired from Princeton and worked on a series of non fictional work including essays and speeches. In 2015, Morrison published her last novel, God Help the Child, and continued to receive numerous amounts of accolades. She published about 12 novels throughout her life. Morrison died at 88 years old on August 5, 2019 due to complications with pneumonia and left behind a lasting legacy.

Click here to see Toni Morrison’s official website!

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