Wow! eBook
Sensational Modernism: Experimental Fiction and Photography in Thirties America New Edition
Author(s): Joseph B. Entin (Author)
- Publisher: University North Carolina Pr
- Publication Date: 22 Aug. 2015
- Edition: New
- Language: English
- Print length: 340 pages
- ISBN-10: 080785834X
- ISBN-13: 9780807858349
Book Description
Challenging the conventional wisdom that the 1930s were dominated by literary and photographic realism, Entin uncovers a rich vein of experimental work by politically progressive artists. Examining images by photographers such as Weegee and Aaron Siskind and fiction by writers such as William Carlos Williams, Richard Wright, Tillie Olsen, and Pietro di Donato, he argues that these artists drew attention to the country’s most vulnerable residents by using what he calls an “aesthetic of astonishment,” focused on startling, graphic images of pain, injury, and prejudice.
Editorial Reviews
Review
“Remind[s] us how powerful the ideological battles over meaning-making can be, particularly at decisive moments such as the Great Depression.”
— American Journalism”
— American Journalism”
“Sensational Modernism” brilliantly explores the ‘bloody crossroads’ where the socialist politics of the 1930s and modernist literary style met.
—Paul Lauter, Trinity College
“This text’s subtle exposition of an unacknowledged countertradition in 1930s writing makes it a valuable contribution to the decade’s cultural history.”
— “American Historical Review”
Entin’s study will be an important addition to the revisioning of that decade from so many directions in recent years.
—Miles Orvell, Temple University
About the Author
JOSEPH B. ENTIN is assistant professor of English at Brooklyn College, City University of New York.
