Wednesday, June 10, 2015

Melody Ellison: BeForever 2016?

Is the newly trademarked name Melody Ellison a sneak peak at the rumored BeForever 2016 doll? American Girl officially announced many months ago that BF 2016 will be an African American doll--so do we now have her name as well?

MELODY ELLISON:  BF 2016?

The name Ellison is not without significance in African American literary history. A greatly lauded piece of literature by an AA author is the novel Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison. Invisible Man was published in 1952 and chronicles the struggles and frustrations of a black man in 1930s New York City who was essentially, because of the color of his skin, rendered socially "invisible."



I would like to think the choice of Ellison is a not-too-subtle nod to AA history. I do not in any way believe Melody Ellison, if she is the BF2016 doll, would be made to be actually related to AA author Ralph Ellison, but rather that the name choice would be an appropriate and interesting subtle homage to Ellison the writer as well as the AA history of struggle for "visibility."

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