1.

Record Nr.

UNINA9910464206703321

Autore

Reising Russell

Titolo

The unusable past : theory and the study of American literature / / Russell J. Reising

Pubbl/distr/stampa

London : , : Routledge, , 2003

ISBN

1-136-49501-0

1-315-01602-8

Descrizione fisica

1 online resource (303 p.)

Collana

The new accent series

Disciplina

810.9

Soggetti

American literature - History and criticism - Theory, etc

Criticism - United States - History

Electronic books.

Lingua di pubblicazione

Inglese

Formato

Materiale a stampa

Livello bibliografico

Monografia

Note generali

"First published 1986"--T.p. verso.

Nota di bibliografia

Includes bibliographical references and index.

Nota di contenuto

""Cover""; ""Title Page""; ""Copyright Page""; ""Dedication""; ""Table of Contents""; ""General editor�s preface""; ""Acknowledgments""; ""Introduction""; ""1 The unused past: theorists of American literature and the problem of exclusivity""; ""An unusable past?""; ""What is an American author?""; ""American literature: out of space - out of time""; ""The consolation of criticism""; ""2 The problem of Puritan origins in literary history and theory""; ""Puritanism as tragic vision: Perry Miller""; ""Puritanism as allegory: Yvor Winters, Richard Chase, and Leslie Fiedler""

""Puritanism as rhetoric: Sacvan Bercovitch""""3 �Nothing that is not there and the nothing that is�: cultural theories of American literature""; ""Unreality in America: Lionel Trilling""; ""Parties of one: R. W. B. Lewis""; ""The romance of America: Richard Chase""; ""The apolitical unconscious: Leslie Fiedler""; ""An American fable: Leo Marx""; ""The Phelps farm revisited: cultural theorists on Huckleberry Finn""; ""4 American literature should not mean but be: self-reflexive theories of American literature""; ""D. H. Lawrence and American art-speech""

""New Criticism and the American Renaissance: F. O. Matthiessen""""Making the world safefor symbolism: Charles Feidelson, Jr""; ""Worlds elsewhere: Richard Poirier""; ""Myths of American origins: post-structuralism""; ""�The world�s body'""; ""5 What is to be done?"";



""What is the American tradition?""; ""New directions""; ""The American scene""; ""6 Conclusion: the significance of Frederick Douglass""; ""Notes""; ""Works Cited""; ""Index""