Faulkner And the Great Depression: Aesthetics, Ideology, And Cultural Politics PDF
Preview Faulkner And the Great Depression: Aesthetics, Ideology, And Cultural Politics
Faulker and the Great Depression: Aesthetics, Ideology, and Cultural Politics Ted Atkinson The University of Georgia Press faulkner and the great depression ted atkinson Faulkner and the Great Depression Aesthetics, Ideology, and Cultural Politics TheUniversityofGeorgiaPress|AthensandLondon ©2006byTheUniversityofGeorgiaPress Athens,Georgia30602 Allrightsreserved DesignedbyMindyBasingerHill SetinSabonbyBookcomp,Inc. PrintedandboundbyThomson-Shore Thepaperinthisbookmeetstheguidelinesfor permanenceanddurabilityoftheCommitteeon ProductionGuidelinesforBookLongevityofthe CouncilonLibraryResources. PrintedintheUnitedStatesofAmerica 09 08 07 06 05 c 5 4 3 2 1 LibraryofCongressCataloging-in-PublicationData Atkinson,Ted,1967– FaulknerandtheGreatDepression:aesthetics, ideology,andculturalpolitics/TedAtkinson. p. cm. Includesbibliographicalreferencesandindex. isbn-13:978-0-8203-2750-1(alk.paper) isbn-10:0-8203-2750-6(alk.paper) 1.Faulkner,William,1897–1962—Knowledge— History. 2.Literatureandhistory—UnitedStates— History—20thcentury. 3.Faulkner,William, 1897–1962—Politicalandsocialviews. 4.Literature andsociety—UnitedStates—History—20thcentury. 5.Socialproblemsinliterature. 6.Depressionsin literature. 7.Historyinliterature. I.Title. ps3511.a86z5872005 813'.52—dc22 2005014070 BritishLibraryCataloging-in-PublicationDataavailable Contents Acknowledgments vii ListofAbbreviations xi introduction PlacementandPerspective:Faulknerandthe GreatDepression 1 chapter one HistoryandCulture:FaulknerinPoliticalContext 16 chapter two DecadenceandDispossession:Faulknerandthe “LiteraryClassWar” 55 vi Contents chapter three PowerbyDesign:Faulknerandthe SpecterofFascism 115 chapter four RevolutionandRestraint:Faulkner’s AmbivalentAgrarianism 173 conclusion DestructionandReconstruction:Faulkner’sCivilWar andthePoliticsofRecovery 221 Notes 237 Bibliography 247 Index 261 Acknowledgments AsIhavecometorealizeinmystudyofliterature,theproduction ofabookinvolvesmuchmorethanthesolitaryexperienceofwriting.A widerangeofinfluencesactsonanauthorbeforeandduringthewriting process to make the work possible. Bearing that in mind, I want to ac- knowledge those who have helped in myriad ways to bring this book to light. First of all, I owe a debt of gratitude to the dedicated teachers who fosteredmyloveoflanguage,literature,andhistoryovertheyears.Betty Simmons, Joan King, Ted Ownby, and Jack Barbera immediately come tomindwhenIthinkofinfluentialteachers.DoreenFowlergavememy first tour of Yoknapatawpha while I was enrolled in her undergraduate course on Faulkner at Ole Miss. It was nothing short of an epiphany vii viii Acknowledgments to discover Mississippi’s eighty-third county. Jay Watson continued the tour,demonstratinganenthusiasmforFaulknerandforteachingthatstill servesasamodeltomeinmyresearchandpedagogy. I have benefited greatly from the advice of readers at various stages in the writing process. Without the initial guidance and the continued support of Panthea Reid, this book simply would not have been possi- ble. I also wish to thank Richard C. Moreland and Patrick McGee for their careful reading and thoughtful responses in the early going. Susan Donaldson’sinsightfulcommentsandsuggestionshelpedmetodefinethe scope of this project more clearly and thus to improve its consistency. I appreciate as well her collegiality and kind words of support during my search for stable ground in academia. I also wish to thank Philip Cohen for his careful reading and constructive criticism during the review and revisionphase.Hisadvicehelpedmetosharpentheinterdisciplinaryfocus ofthisstudy.HughRuppersburgsteppedinasareaderlateinthegame, andIamgratefulforhistimeandeffortatacrucialstage.JeanéeLedoux is an extraordinary copyeditor. Her attention to detail and diagnosis of my “not only...but also” disease enabled my manuscript to become morereaderfriendly. The scholarly community in Faulkner studies has been a valuable re- source. Along the way, Faulkner scholars have offered intellectual stim- ulation, inspiration, and encouragement—sometimes knowingly, some- times not. I want to thank the Faulkner Journal for publishing an essay thatIrevisedandincorporatedintochapter1.TheWilliamFaulknerSoci- etyandtheFaulknerandYoknapatawphaConferencegavemeopportu- nitiestopresentmaterialassociatedwiththisprojectandtoreceiveuseful feedbackfromotherFaulknerians.IamgratefultoAnneGoodwynJones andKevinRaileyfortheirgenuineexpressionsofinterestandencourage- ment.ThescholarlycontributionsofJohnMatthews,EricSundquist,and RichardGoddentothefieldofFaulknerstudieshavebeensoinfluential thatIconsiderthemexofficioadvisers. WorkingwiththestaffattheUniversityofGeorgiaPresshasbeenade- light. I appreciate Nancy Grayson’s enthusiastic response to this project Acknowledgments ix from the outset and her always prompt, thorough, and straightforward mannerofkeepingmepostedandrespondingtoquestions.Ialsowishto thankJonDavies,anexceptionalprojecteditor,SandraHudson,Patrick Allen,JohnMcLeod,AndrewBerzanskis,andJaneKobresfortheircour- tesy,creativity,andprofessionalismindealingwithafirst-timer. OvertheyearsIhavebeenfortunatetoworkwithmanywonderfulpeo- ple.WhenIreflectontheprocessofwritingthisbook,Irealizejusthow instrumentaltheyhavebeen.TheLSUcrew—AndreaAdolph,MegWat- sonBarrett,Anne-MarieThomas,ChristineCleveland,andJudiKemerait Livingston—hasprovidedmuchsupport,firstasgraduateschoolcohorts and now as longtime friends. Lillie Johnson, chair of the Department of Languages,Literature,andCommunicationsatAugustaStateUniversity, gave me a port in the storm so that I could finish this project. For that I am more grateful than words can express. Mary McCormack, Grace Heck, and Betty House are kind and wise mentors to the junior faculty, and I appreciate their always taking the time to ask, “How’s the book coming?” Christina Heckman and Christie Launius are ideal colleagues andthebestoffriends. Imustacknowledgethesupportoffamilyandmy“family.”Myparents both work with numbers, and so I am all the more grateful to them for acceptingmyloveofwordsandfornotmakingtoomuchofafusswhenI actedonitbyshiftingprofessionalgearsdramatically.CarolineLangston Jarboehasbeenaconstantsourceofwisdom,grace,andhumorinmylife. Sheis,intheimmortalwordsofE.B.White,thatrarestofcombinations: “a true friend and a good writer.” To the “ka-tet” in Augusta and to PeterConroy,thanksforaskingaboutthebookandthenhelpingtotake my mind off of it. I offer my heartfelt appreciation to Douglas Joubert forthemanyvotesofconfidenceandrecognitionsofachievementduring anuncertainbutultimatelytransformativejourney.Finally,Iamgrateful to Grant Williams for helping me to reach the end of this book and to imagineanewbeginning.
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