The Unwritten War: American Writers and the Civil War Contributor(s): Aaron, Daniel (Author) |
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ISBN: 0817350020 ISBN-13: 9780817350024 Publisher: University Alabama Press
Binding Type: Paperback - See All Available Formats & Editions Published: January 2003 Annotation: Assesses the muted impact of the Civil War on American letters. In The Unwritten War, Daniel Aaron examines the literary output of American writers--major and minor--who treated the Civil War in their works. He seeks to understand why this devastating and defining military conflict has failed to produce more literature of a notably high and lasting order, why there is still no "masterpiece" of Civil War fiction. In his portraits and analyses of 19th- and some 20th-century writers, Aaron distinguishes between those who dealt with the war only marginally--Henry Adams, Henry James, William Dean Howells, Mark Twain--and those few who sounded the war's tragic import--Herman Melville, Walt Whitman, and William Faulkner. He explores the extent to which the war changed the direction of American literature and how deeply it entered the consciousness of American writers. Aaron also considers how writers, especially those from the South, discerned the war's moral and historical implications. The Unwritten War was originally published by Alfred A. Knopf in 1973. The New Republic declared, "[This book's] major contribution will no doubt be to American literary history. In this respect it resembles Edmund Wilson's Patriotic Gore and is certain to become an indispensable guide for anyone who wants to explore the letters, diaries, journals, essays, novels, short stories, poems--but apparently no plays--which constitute Civil War literature. The mass of material is presented in a systematic, luminous, and useful way." 1974 Finalist for the National Book Award in Arts and Letters |
Additional Information |
BISAC Categories: - Literary Criticism | American - General - History | United States - Civil War Period (1850-1877) |
Dewey: 810.935 |
LCCN: 2002073239 |
Physical Information: 1.08" H x 6.06" W x 9.32" L (1.55 lbs) 426 pages |
Themes: - Topical - Civil War |
Review Citations: Atlantic Monthly 07/01/2003 pg. 126 |
Descriptions, Reviews, Etc. |
Publisher Description: In The Unwritten War, Daniel Aaron examines the literary output of American writers--major and minor--who treated the Civil War in their works. He seeks to understand why this devastating and defining military conflict has failed to produce more literature of a notably high and lasting order, why there is still no masterpiece of Civil War fiction. In his portraits and analyses of 19th- and some 20th-century writers, Aaron distinguishes between those who dealt with the war only marginally--Henry Adams, Henry James, William Dean Howells, Mark Twain-and those few who sounded the war's tragic import--Herman Melville, Walt Whitman, and William Faulkner. He explores the extent to which the war changed the direction of American literature and how deeply it entered the consciousness of American writers. Aaron also considers how writers, especially those from the South, discerned the war's moral and historical implications. The Unwritten War was originally published by Alfred A. Knopf in 1973. The New Republic declared, This book's] major contribution will no doubt be to American literary history. In this respect it resembles Edmund Wilson's Patriotic Gore and is certain to become an indispensable guide for anyone who wants to explore the letters, diaries, journals, essays, novels, short stories, poems-but apparently no plays-which constitute Civil War literature. The mass of material is presented in a systematic, luminous, and useful way. |
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