The Law of the Heart

Individualism and the Modern Self in American Literature

Fiction & Literature, Literary Theory & Criticism, American
Cover of the book The Law of the Heart by Sam B. Girgus, University of Texas Press
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
Author: Sam B. Girgus ISBN: 9780292772946
Publisher: University of Texas Press Publication: July 3, 2014
Imprint: University of Texas Press Language: English
Author: Sam B. Girgus
ISBN: 9780292772946
Publisher: University of Texas Press
Publication: July 3, 2014
Imprint: University of Texas Press
Language: English
The Law of the Heart is a vigorous challenge to the prevailing concept of the “antidemocratic” image of the self in the American literary and cultural tradition. Sam B. Girgus counters this interpretation and attempts to develop a new understanding of democratic individualism and liberal humanism in American literature under the rubric of literary modernism. The image of the individual self who retreats inward, conforming to a distorted “law of the heart,” emerges from the works of such writers as Cooper and Poe and composer Charles Ives. Yet, as Girgus shows, other American writers relate the idea of the self to reality and culture in a more complex way: the self confronts and is reconciled to the paradox of history and reality. In Girgus’ view, the tradition of pragmatic, humanistic individualism provides a foundation for a future where individual liberty is a major priority. He uses literary modernism as a bridge for relating contemporary social conditions to crises of the American self and culture as seen in the works of writers including Emerson, Howells, Whitman, Henry James, William James, Fitzgerald, Bellow, and McLuhan.
View on Amazon View on AbeBooks View on Kobo View on B.Depository View on eBay View on Walmart
The Law of the Heart is a vigorous challenge to the prevailing concept of the “antidemocratic” image of the self in the American literary and cultural tradition. Sam B. Girgus counters this interpretation and attempts to develop a new understanding of democratic individualism and liberal humanism in American literature under the rubric of literary modernism. The image of the individual self who retreats inward, conforming to a distorted “law of the heart,” emerges from the works of such writers as Cooper and Poe and composer Charles Ives. Yet, as Girgus shows, other American writers relate the idea of the self to reality and culture in a more complex way: the self confronts and is reconciled to the paradox of history and reality. In Girgus’ view, the tradition of pragmatic, humanistic individualism provides a foundation for a future where individual liberty is a major priority. He uses literary modernism as a bridge for relating contemporary social conditions to crises of the American self and culture as seen in the works of writers including Emerson, Howells, Whitman, Henry James, William James, Fitzgerald, Bellow, and McLuhan.

More books from University of Texas Press

Cover of the book Latin American Law by Sam B. Girgus
Cover of the book Clovis Blade Technology by Sam B. Girgus
Cover of the book How to Suppress Women's Writing by Sam B. Girgus
Cover of the book Whose School Is It? by Sam B. Girgus
Cover of the book Home on the Double Bayou by Sam B. Girgus
Cover of the book Twentieth Century-Fox by Sam B. Girgus
Cover of the book Climate and Culture Change in North America AD 900–1600 by Sam B. Girgus
Cover of the book Art and Society in a Highland Maya Community by Sam B. Girgus
Cover of the book Industrial Sexuality by Sam B. Girgus
Cover of the book Sam Houston, the Great Designer by Sam B. Girgus
Cover of the book The Best American Newspaper Narratives, Volume 2 by Sam B. Girgus
Cover of the book Hebrew and Hellene in Victorian England by Sam B. Girgus
Cover of the book Notable Men and Women of Spanish Texas by Sam B. Girgus
Cover of the book Palestinian Cinema in the Days of Revolution by Sam B. Girgus
Cover of the book Desert Duty by Sam B. Girgus
We use our own "cookies" and third party cookies to improve services and to see statistical information. By using this website, you agree to our Privacy Policy