About this product

Product Identifiers

PublisherUniversity of Missouri Press

ISBN-10082622119X

ISBN-139780826221193

eBay Product ID (ePID)26038800031

Product Key Features

Number of Pages248 Pages

LanguageEnglish

Publication NameThe Making of a New American Identity

SubjectUnited States / 19th Century, General, Literary, American / General

Publication Year2017

TypeTextbook

AuthorPaula Harrington, Ronald Jenn

Subject AreaLiterary Criticism, Biography & Autobiography, History

SeriesMark Twain and His Circle Ser.

FormatHardcover

Dimensions

Item Height1 in

Item Weight18.2 Oz

Item Length9.1 in

Item Width6 in

Additional Product Features

Intended AudienceScholarly & Professional

LCCN2017-932482

Reviews"Alternately takes up panoramic historical and cultural vistas and carefully analyzes passages from all sorts of text with judgment and a sense of proportion."-- Tom Quirk , University of Missouri, author of Mark Twain and Human Nature, "Alternately takes up panoramic historical and cultural vistas and carefully analyzes passages from all sorts of text with judgment and a sense of proportion."--Tom Quirk, University of Missouri, author of Mark Twain and Human Nature, "Alternately takes up panoramic historical and cultural vistas and carefully analyzes passages from all sorts of text with judgment and a sense of proportion."-- Tom Quirk , University of Missouri, author of Mark Twain and Human Nature "The authors work seamlessly back and forth between historical data, biographical detail, and attention to multiple works by Twain that illuminate his complex relationship to the French and to France."-- Linda A. Morris , University of California, author of Gender Play in Mark Twain: Cross-Dressing and Transgression "The layers of Mark Twain's protean life and ideas seem infinite and infinitely rich, especially when peeled back by such scrupulous scholars as Paula Harrington and Ronald Jenn. This fascinating, well written summa of his thoughts about the French people, their culture, and their politics--for decades regarded by most of us as merely part of his comic repertoire--reveal them in all their depth and complexity."-- Ron Powers , Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, author of Mark Twain: A Life, "The authors work seamlessly back and forth between historical data, biographical detail, and attention to multiple works by Twain that illuminate his complex relationship to the French and to France."--Linda A. Morris, University of California, author of Gender Play in Mark Twain, "The resources utilized are impressive and indicate Harrington and Jenn left few stones unturned. Their writing style is direct and to the point. Their arguments that the French served Mark Twain as a foil to advance American culture and his own reputation as a distinctly American writer are strong and likely to convince future scholars for years to come."-- Mark Twain Forum, "The layers of Mark Twain's protean life and ideas seem infinite and infinitely rich, especially when peeled back by such scrupulous scholars as Paula Harrington and Ronald Jenn. This fascinating, well written summa of his thoughts about the French people, their culture, and their politics--for decades regarded by most of us as merely part of his comic repertoire--reveal them in all their depth and complexity."-- Ron Powers , Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist, author of Mark Twain: A Life, "The authors work seamlessly back and forth between historical data, biographical detail, and attention to multiple works by Twain that illuminate his complex relationship to the French and to France."-- Linda A. Morris , University of California, author of Gender Play in Mark Twain: Cross-Dressing and Transgression

Grade FromCollege Freshman

Number of Volumes28 Bks.

IllustratedYes

Grade ToCollege Graduate Student

Table Of ContentList of Illustrations Acknowledgments Timeline of the Clemenses in France: 1867-1895 Introduction Chapter 1 Accounting for the Creoles: 1835-60 "Ambassador General to the World" Early French Palimpsests Twain, Parkman, and France in American History The World at Hannibal's Feet Book-Learning and Early Reporting New Orleans and Mardi Gras Chapter 2 Leaving the River: 1861-66 French Encounters in the Sierra Days Lewd Merchandise and a Hanging Of Conquerors and Cannibals Chapter 3 France for the First Time: 1867-69 Nobody's Secretary The Fourth of July to Quartorze Juillet An "Innocent" Remakes His Experience The Doctor and the Writer The Making of a Novelist Chapter 4 Jumping the French: 1870-78 The Last of the Newspapering Days No Battle Yet! Paris Was Never Situated This Way Clawed Back Into a Civilized Language Once More Chapter 5 Paris From the Inside: 1879 A Tramp in Paris The Octagon of Montmartre The American Colony and French Outings Mark Twain's French Faces: The Carte de Visite Album The Unpublished French Chapters of A Tramp Abroad Marriage v. Mariage: The Unpublished Material "On Courtship and Marriage" "The French and the Comanches": Historical Backdrop An American Corps of Civil Missionaries The Published French Chapters of A Tramp Abroad Chapter 6 Less to Prove: 1880-92 "Mark Twain," Un Fait Accompli The Long European Tour "Bon voyajj!" The Innocents Adrift Versus "Down the Rhone" Not So Dirty, Lazy, or Immoral After All From Virgins to the Virgin Chapter 7 Coming to Terms: 1893-99 A Home Base in France Mark Twain, French Historian Writing Joan of Arc--in France Joan-less in Rouen Paul Bourget: Bentzon Redux Last Days in Paris Back to the Frame: Sieur Louis De Conte The End of the French Foil Notes Bibliography Index

SynopsisBlending cultural history, biography, and literary criticism, this book explores how one of America's greatest icons used the French to help build a new sense of what it is to be "American" in the second half of the nineteenth century. While critics have generally dismissed Mark Twain's relationship with France as hostile, Harrington and Jenn see Twain's use of the French as a foil to help construct his identity as "the representative American." Examining new materials that detail his Montmatre study, the carte de visite album, and a chronology of his visits to France, the book offers close readings of writings that have been largely ignored, such as The Innocents Adrift manuscript and the unpublished chapters of A Tramp Abroad , combining literary analysis, socio-historical context and biographical research., While critics have generally dismissed Mark Twain's relationship with France as hostile, Harrington and Jenn see Twain's use of the French as a foil to help construct his identity as "the representative American."

LC Classification NumberPS1342