Black face, maligned race

the long version

The author considers the influence of English political, social, and theatrical history on the depiction of black characters on the English stage from 1589 to 1695. He shows that almost without exception blackness was associated with treachery, evil, and ugliness. The first work to study the depiction of blacks in the drama of this period in a complete cultural context, this book will be informative for anyone interested in the stereotypical representation of blacks in literature. -- from Book Jacket.