19. Flannery O’Connor, Wise Blood (1952)
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Sonja Schillings
Abstract
The short novel Wise Blood follows the journeys of two protagonists in existential states of isolation in the urban South of the 1950s: Hazel Motes, an ascetic “Christian despite himself,” and Enoch Emery, who follows the animalistic instincts of his “wise blood.” The novel does not offer a comprehensive moral to the story in its depiction of violence, alienation, and a range of specific moral and ethical dilemmas. Instead, it presents an almost dreamlike stream of images and allegories that have led to the categorization of the novel as “grotesque” but have also led to extremely contradictory readings of the novel in scholarship. Its author, Flannery O’Connor, is most famous for her short stories; this is the first of two novels that she published.
Abstract
The short novel Wise Blood follows the journeys of two protagonists in existential states of isolation in the urban South of the 1950s: Hazel Motes, an ascetic “Christian despite himself,” and Enoch Emery, who follows the animalistic instincts of his “wise blood.” The novel does not offer a comprehensive moral to the story in its depiction of violence, alienation, and a range of specific moral and ethical dilemmas. Instead, it presents an almost dreamlike stream of images and allegories that have led to the categorization of the novel as “grotesque” but have also led to extremely contradictory readings of the novel in scholarship. Its author, Flannery O’Connor, is most famous for her short stories; this is the first of two novels that she published.
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Frontmatter I
- Editors’ Preface V
- Contents VII
- 0. Introduction 1
-
Part I. Systematic Questions
- 1. Modernism 21
- 2. Postmodernism 35
- 3. Cultural Diversity 52
- 4. Intermediality 68
- 5. Inter-American Perspectives 84
- 6. The American Novel and the Marketplace 98
- 7. Futures of the American Novel 113
-
Part II. Close Readings
- 8. Henry James, The Ambassadors (1903) 131
- 9. Willa Cather, My Ántonia (1918) 148
- 10. F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby (1925) 162
- 11. John Dos Passos, Manhattan Transfer (1925) 177
- 12. Ernest Hemingway, The Sun Also Rises (1926) 192
- 13. William Faulkner, Absalom, Absalom! (1936) 206
- 14. Djuna Barnes, Nightwood (1936) 222
- 15. John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath (1939) 237
- 16. Richard Wright, Native Son (1940) 250
- 17. Robert Penn Warren, All the King’s Men (1946) 264
- 18. Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man (1952) 278
- 19. Flannery O’Connor, Wise Blood (1952) 294
- 20. Vladimir Nabokov, Lolita (1955) 308
- 21. Thomas Pynchon, The Crying of Lot 49 (1966) 322
- 22. Leslie Marmon Silko, Ceremony (1977) 337
- 23. Sandra Cisneros, The House on Mango Street (1984) 351
- 24. Don DeLillo, White Noise (1985) 361
- 25. Toni Morrison, Beloved (1987) 374
- 26. Philip Roth, American Pastoral (1997) 388
- 27. Jonathan Safran Foer, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2005) 401
- 28. Cormac McCarthy, The Road (2006) 414
- 29. Louise Erdrich, The Round House (2012) 427
- Index of Subjects 443
- Index of Names 447
- List of Contributors 459
Kapitel in diesem Buch
- Frontmatter I
- Editors’ Preface V
- Contents VII
- 0. Introduction 1
-
Part I. Systematic Questions
- 1. Modernism 21
- 2. Postmodernism 35
- 3. Cultural Diversity 52
- 4. Intermediality 68
- 5. Inter-American Perspectives 84
- 6. The American Novel and the Marketplace 98
- 7. Futures of the American Novel 113
-
Part II. Close Readings
- 8. Henry James, The Ambassadors (1903) 131
- 9. Willa Cather, My Ántonia (1918) 148
- 10. F. Scott Fitzgerald, The Great Gatsby (1925) 162
- 11. John Dos Passos, Manhattan Transfer (1925) 177
- 12. Ernest Hemingway, The Sun Also Rises (1926) 192
- 13. William Faulkner, Absalom, Absalom! (1936) 206
- 14. Djuna Barnes, Nightwood (1936) 222
- 15. John Steinbeck, The Grapes of Wrath (1939) 237
- 16. Richard Wright, Native Son (1940) 250
- 17. Robert Penn Warren, All the King’s Men (1946) 264
- 18. Ralph Ellison, Invisible Man (1952) 278
- 19. Flannery O’Connor, Wise Blood (1952) 294
- 20. Vladimir Nabokov, Lolita (1955) 308
- 21. Thomas Pynchon, The Crying of Lot 49 (1966) 322
- 22. Leslie Marmon Silko, Ceremony (1977) 337
- 23. Sandra Cisneros, The House on Mango Street (1984) 351
- 24. Don DeLillo, White Noise (1985) 361
- 25. Toni Morrison, Beloved (1987) 374
- 26. Philip Roth, American Pastoral (1997) 388
- 27. Jonathan Safran Foer, Extremely Loud & Incredibly Close (2005) 401
- 28. Cormac McCarthy, The Road (2006) 414
- 29. Louise Erdrich, The Round House (2012) 427
- Index of Subjects 443
- Index of Names 447
- List of Contributors 459