Popular and the Serious in Select Twentieth-Century American Novels

This book takes a close look at the relationship between popular and serious fiction, with some surprising results. There are comparisons, for instance, between Norwegian Immigrant and Emigrant novels, or novels dealing extensively with mental retardation; examination on how a novel can spin out of formula to become truly serious (The Great Gatsby), or not always successfully become serious (The Sun Also Rises). Deals with a number of theoretical issues, Westerns, major figures such as William Faulkner, and Richard Brautigan, a post-modern writer who deconstructs the ability to differentiate between the popular and the serious.