Mass-Market Fiction and the Crisis of American Liberalism, 1972-2017

Addresses one of the most pressing issues facing readers in the United States: what has happened to liberalism over the past fifty years, and given current conflicts, where might it go from here? Focuses on contemporary popular fiction that has often been overlooked in academic studies, through a cultural studies lens Teases out unexpected complexities found within the analyzed texts

Autorentext

Michael J. Blouin is Associate Professor of English and the Humanities at Milligan College, USA. His research interests include critical theory and popular culture. He is author of Magical Thinking, Fantastic Film, and the Illusions of Neoliberalism (Palgrave 2016) as well as a recent guest editor for a special issue of The Journal of Popular Culture entitled Neoliberalism and Popular Culture (April 2018).

Klappentext

Mass-Market Fiction and the Crisis of American Liberalism, 1972 2017 tracks the transformation of liberal thought in the contemporary United States through the unique lens of the popular paperback. The book focuses on cultural shifts as they appear in works written by some of the most widely-read authors of the last fifty years: the idea of love within a New Economy (Danielle Steel), the role of government in scientific inquiry (Michael Crichton), entangled political alliances and legacies in the aftermath of the 1960s (Tom Clancy), the restructured corporation (John Grisham), and the blurred line between state and personal empowerment (Dean Koontz). To address the current crisis, this book examines how the changed character of American liberalism has been rendered legible for a mass audience.

Inhalt

1. Introduction: Popular Paperbacks and the Transformation of American Liberalism.- 2. The Reading, Writing, and Arithmetic of Mass-Market Fiction.- 3. Danielle Steel and New Home Economics.- 4. Michael Crichton and the Heritage of Invention.- 5. Tom Clancy and the Liberal Family Tree.- 6. John Grisham and the New Economy Thriller.- 7. Dean Koontz and the Problem with Power.