American Narrative Realism : The Novel, Film, Television, and Theater (Cambridge Studies in American Literature and Culture)

Shumway, David R.

Cambridge University Press（2025/12発売）

• 製本 Hardcover:ハードカバー版／ページ数 197 p.
• 言語 ENG
• 商品コード 9781009660099

Full Description

Realism has been disparaged for over a hundred years as an outmoded form, and, more recently, as a pernicious illusion, typical of nineteenth-century novels and Hollywood movies alike. After a long period of disrepute, realism has had in recent years something of a revival among critics and theorists. Yet this revival still represents a minority, and much of the old critique of realism remains taken for granted. This book treats realism as a persistent aspect of narrative in American culture, especially after World War II. It does not seek to elevate realism above other forms of fictional narrative - that is, to restore it to some real or imagined past supremacy. Rather, the goal is to reclaim realism as a narrative practice that has remained vital despite a long history of critical disapproval, by showing how it functions in significant recent works across media.

Contents

1. Redefining realism; 2. Howard Hawks and the illusion of classic era realism; 3. Print fiction: the persistence of realism in Updike's Rabbit novels; 4. Theatrical realism and August Wilson's century cycle; 5. Realism and long-form TV: The Wire; Conclusion: realism, its others, and climate fiction.