Kirjahaku

When it was initially published in 1939, John Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath instantly became a bestseller. Like many phenomenally popular works, it has elicited a wide range of critical responses. Some earlier reviewers faulted Steinbeck for his apparent sentimentality, while others were disturbed by his portrait of heartless, greedy Americans. Others, too, criticized his aesthetics. His novel became an important part of the American curriculum, many readers praised his epic vision, and modern critics have tended to respond favorably to his works. But despite the publication of four new editions of the book from 1989 to 1997, its place in the American literary canon is precarious.Through reprints of early reviews and scholarly articles, along with original essays and reviews of the four most recent major editions, this volume traces the critical reception of Steinbeck's novel. The first part of the book looks back at the first 50 years of the novel's reception, from 1939 to 1989, while the second examines the response to Steinbeck during the 1990s. Some of these later essays reflect on the lasting significance of the novel, while others note that some scholars and educators have questioned its relevance. The volume includes a chronology and bibliography, and an extensive introductory essay overviews the major trends in Steinbeck scholarship.

Examines Steinbeck's The Grapes of Wrath by providing an understanding of the author's life and experiences and offering a plot summary, major themes, characters, and details of other reviews.

One of the great works of American literature, Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men is popular with the international reading public and is widely taught at high schools and colleges. Although it is a short work with relatively few characters, it is intricately structured. This book is an introductory guide to the novel. Included are chapters on the book's plot, textual history, social and intellectual contexts, themes and ideas, literary style, and critical reception. The volume concludes with a valuable bibliographical essay. One of the great works of American literature, John Steinbeck's Of Mice and Men is popular with the international reading public and is widely taught at high schools and colleges. Like the Joads of The Grapes of Wrath, the novel's principal protagonists, George and Lennie, have joined a cavalcade of literary figures that forever inhabit the imaginary landscape of America and the world. The novel has also generated controversy: it was one of the most frequently banned books in the public school curriculum of the 1990s. This guide provides a concise overview of Steinbeck's work. Though it is a short novel with relatively few characters, it is intricately structured and much more complex than some critics have acknowledged. Steinbeck considered it an experiment, and his use of language is challenging. The book includes chapters on: ; Steinbeck's life and the place of the novel in his canon ; The novel's plot ; The textual background of the work ; The social, cultural, literary, and intellectual contexts surrounding the novel ; Themes and ideas in Of Mice and Men ; Steinbeck's literary artistry ; The novel's critical and scholarly reception ; And a bibliographical essay. General readers and students at all levels will find this guide to be a valuable introduction to this major American masterpiece.