In a Field of Static

James Bliss is an independent scholar living in New Orleans, Louisiana.

• Introduction. In a Field of Static 1Part I. Missed Encounters1. Open Letters, and the Irrelational Erotics of a Black Feminist Negativity 332. Buried Subjects, and the Lines from Intersectionality to Abolition 65Part II. Fields of Static3. Hope Against Hope, and the Queer Negativity of a Black Feminist Poiēsis 974. Nowhere, and Notes to Not Belonging 137Epilogue. In a Burning House 183Acknowledgments 195Notes 199Bibliography 235Index 239

“An achingly original, sparkling project that situates Black Feminism as the center of what we know as Critical Theory without making it look like, sound like, or come from the same histories or pedigrees. James Bliss’s book is a history of the field that is also at the edge of the field, conceptually, pushing Black feminist theory into new territory.”—Samantha N. Pinto, Inside the Body of Black Feminism “A stunning work of contemporary criticism, In a Field of Static establishes James Bliss as a laudable critic whose description and expression of Black feminist theorizing is both an important individual contribution and ongoing tribute to Hortense Spillers, Barbara Smith, Audre Lorde, Toni Morrison, and more. It’s both a primer on Black feminisms as well as a unique theorizing of them.”—Dana Murphy, author of, Foremother Love