In the 1960s, as the underpinnings of society weakened, the
traditional novel form seemed less suited to describe American
reality. Theorists groped towards non-mimetic fiction as the tools
that had sustained the novel since its birth--coherent
characterization, linear plot, symbolism--became tools of New
Journalism. "The New American Novel of Manners" explores the
virtual reinvention of the novel of manners in America out of the
same subjectivity that charged the works of New Journalism.
In place of the rigid social structures that never seemed to
depict America, novelists such as Richard Yates, Dan Wakefield, and
Thomas McGuane located America's modern-day manners in its
semiotics, in the system of signs that envelops us--the blue jeans
people wear, the fast food they eat, the decor of the bars they
drink in and the rock-and-roll lyrics that play through memories.
The new generation of mannerists describe lifestyles that are
determined by words and images, by actions that are dictated by
what has been read and seen, and patterns of behavior in which life
is edited and fictionalized. Klinkowitz reveals a fiction that is
once again capable of reflecting the way people live.
General
Is the information for this product incomplete, wrong or inappropriate?
Let us know about it.
Does this product have an incorrect or missing image?
Send us a new image.
Is this product missing categories?
Add more categories.
Review This Product
No reviews yet - be the first to create one!