American Narrative Realism
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- Publisher:
- Cambridge University Press
- Publication date:
- 17 November 2025
- 04 December 2025
- ISBN:
- 9781009660143
- 9781009660099
- Dimensions:
- (229 x 152 mm)
- Weight & Pages:
- 0.398kg, 194 Pages
- Dimensions:
- Weight & Pages:
- Series:
- Cambridge Studies in American Literature and Culture (199)
- Subjects:
- Literature, Area Studies, American Literature, American Studies, Literary Theory
You may already have access via personal or institutional login- Series:
- Cambridge Studies in American Literature and Culture (199)
- Subjects:
- Literature, Area Studies, American Literature, American Studies, Literary Theory
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Book 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.
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