From Native Son to King's Men by Robert McParland

From Native Son to King's Men

The Literary Landscape of 1940s America

Robert McParland

Rowman · Print & ebook · November 8, 2017

On the heels of the Great Depression and staring into the abyss of a global war, American writers took fiction and literature in a new direction that addressed the chaos that the nation-and the world-was facing.

Buy on Amazon

We earn from qualifying purchases.

Who it’s for
Robert McParland examines how American fiction and literature represented the upheavals of the 1940s.
Genres
20th-Century Literary Criticism, American Lit Crit, Literature & History
Published
Rowman, November 8, 2017

About this book

On the heels of the Great Depression and staring into the abyss of a global war, American writers took fiction and literature in a new direction that addressed the chaos that the nation-and the world-was facing. These authors spoke to the human condition in traumatic times, and their works reflected the dreams, aspirations, values, and hopes of people living in the World War II era.

Continue reading

In FromNative Son to King's Men: The Literary Landscape of 1940s America, Robert McParland examines notable works published throughout the decade. Among the authors covered are James Baldwin, Pearl S. Buck, James Gould Cozzens, William Faulkner, Ernest Hemingway, John Hersey, Norman Mailer, Ann Petry, Irwin Shaw, John Steinbeck, Robert Penn Warren, Eudora Welty, and Richard Wright. McParland explores how popular novels, literary fiction, and even short stories by these authors represented this pivotal period in American culture. By examining the creative output of these authors, this book reveals how the literature of the 1940s not only offered a pathway for that era's readers but also provides a way of understanding the past and our own times. From Native Son to King's Men will appeal to anyone interested in the cultural climate of the 1940s and how this period was depicted in American literature.

1940s American Literature

Robert McParland examines how American fiction and literature represented the upheavals of the 1940s.

Come here for

  • Examinations of notable works by Baldwin, Faulkner, Petry, and other 1940s writers
  • Attention to novels, literary fiction, and short stories

Expect

  • A literary view of the decade’s cultural climate
  • Works by writers including James Baldwin, Eudora Welty, and Richard Wright

Where it sits

Literature & History63%
20th-Century Literary Criticism62%
American Lit Crit47%

Percentages are BookFrontier’s reading of the book.

Publisher categories

  • Creative Writing
Authors
Robert McParland
Publisher
Rowman
Published
November 8, 2017
Format
Print & ebook
Reading lane
Creative Writing