The Early Prose Writings of William Dean Howells, 1853-1861

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Ohio University Press, 1990 - 387 Seiten

While William Dean Howells is today best remembered as Mark Twain's staunchest defender, Howells was, at his peak, the unrivaled man of letters in America: he had no contemporary equal. The achievements of both Twain and Henry James have since surpassed those of Howells in the literary hierarchy, but the work of Howells still remains an important part of American letters.

In The Early Prose Writings of William Dean Howells, 1852-1861, Thomas Wortham provides a chronological assortment of Howells' first prose compositions, beginning with apprentice pieces published before the writer's eighteenth birthday. Born in Martin's Ferry, Ohio, Howells also lived in Hamilton, Dayton, Cincinnati, and Columbus, where Howells' father, a printer and newspaper publisher, would move the family and set up shop.

Howells started writing as a newspaperman, and this volume assembles pieces by Howells which appeared in the Ashtabula Sentinel, the Kingsville Academy Casket, and the Ohio Farmer, as well as the complete text of "The Independent Candidate"--his first attempt in print of an extended work of fiction--serialized in the Ashtabula Sentinel in 1854-55. Also included here is Howels' novela, Geoffrey: A Study of American Life, a thoughtful psychological study, which was never published, as well as Howells' letters to the New York World, in which he recorded his impressions and experiences relating to Ohio's early response to the declaration of the War Between the States.

Dr. Wortham furnishes extensive source annotations to document quotations and references as well as framing each selection by Howells with background and explanatory glosses. As he points out, "Howells' literary life is not wanting in sufficient documentation," but his apprentice work--"that long foreground which has in his instance been too largely represented by a handful of mediocre poems, has been lost in old files of newspapers, journals, and manuscripts." Thanks to Dr. Wortham's careful scholarship, American literature now has a much more detailed and accurate picture of the young Howells and his early works.

Im Buch

 

Inhalt

The Poor Boys College
5
Pictures of River Travel
100
Something Literary in the Line of Journalism
123
Urheberrecht

7 weitere Abschnitte werden nicht angezeigt.

Häufige Begriffe und Wortgruppen

American appeared Ashtabula County Ashtabula Sentinel beautiful Beauville believe Berson boots Camp Harrison charming Cincinnati Clara Columbus cousin cries Cuffins dead dear death delight door dream Dulldale editor Emerson Bennett eyes face feel gentleman Geoffrey Geoffrey's George Gilky girl gossip hand happy heart hope Howells Howells's humor Jane Grove lady Larker laugh Leaves of Grass letter light literary literature live look Merla Miss Moore morning mother nature Ned Buntline never newspaper night Ohio State Journal Oldbury paper passed passion person Piatt pleasant poem poet poetry political published reader remember river seemed sentiment sketch smile soul story sweet talk tender Tennyson thing thought trees Trooze verses village W. D. Howells walk Whig wife William William Dean Howells Winter words write York young youth

Autoren-Profil (1990)

William Dean Howells was born in Martin's Ferry, Ohio on March 1, 1837. He dropped out of school to work as a typesetter and a printer's apprentice. He taught himself through intensive reading and the study of Spanish, French, Latin, and German. He wrote a campaign biography of Abraham Lincoln in 1860. Lincoln appointed him U.S. consul in Venice, Italy in 1861 as a reward. After returning to the U.S. several years later, he became an assistant editor for The Atlantic Monthly, later becoming editor from 1871 to 1881. He also wrote columns for Harper's New Monthly Magazine and occasional pieces for The North American Review. As an editor and critic, he was a proponent of American realism. Although he wrote over a 100 books in various genres including novels, poems, literary criticism, plays, memoirs, and travel narratives, he is best known for his realistic fiction. His novels include A Modern Instance, The Rise of Silas Lapham, A Hazard of New Fortunes, The Undiscovered Country, A Chance Acquaintance, An Imperative Duty, Annie Kilburn, and The Coast of Bohemia. He received several honorary degrees from universities as well as a Gold Medal for fiction (later renamed after him as the Howells Medal) from the National Institute of Arts and Letters. He died from pneumonia on May 11, 1920. Thomas Wortham, professor of American literature at the University of California, Los Angeles, is an editor of the Selected Letters of W. D. Howells, as well as of other nineteenth-century works and documents. He is also co-editor of the journal Nineteenth-Century Literature and author of numerous articles on nineteenth-century American literature.

Bibliografische Informationen

TitelThe Early Prose Writings of William Dean Howells, 1853-1861
Autor/inWilliam Dean Howells
HerausgeberThomas Wortham
Ausgabeillustriert
VerlagOhio University Press, 1990
Original vonUniversity of Michigan
Digitalisiert12. Dez. 2006
ISBN0821409603, 9780821409602
Länge387 Seiten
  
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