From slave narratives to the Civil War, and from country music to Southern sport, this Companion is the definitive guide to the literature and culture of the American South. Consisting of over 30 original contributions, each of them written by an acknowledged authority in their field, the Companion reveals the diversity of the Southern region, as expressed in different forms of thought, work, and imaginative play.
The first major section, concentrating on themes and issues, looks at the distinctive cultural characteristics of the American South and includes discussion of the visual arts, music, society, history and politics. The second focuses on writers who have made significant contributions to Southern thinking and the imaginative reinvention of the South. These include Edgar Allan Poe, Mark Twain, William Faulkner, Zora Neale Hurston, Flannery O'Connor and Eudora Welty, and range from the earliest writers in the region to all those - black and white, male and female -who are writing now.
The first major section, concentrating on themes and issues, looks at the distinctive cultural characteristics of the American South and includes discussion of the visual arts, music, society, history and politics. The second focuses on writers who have made significant contributions to Southern thinking and the imaginative reinvention of the South. These include Edgar Allan Poe, Mark Twain, William Faulkner, Zora Neale Hurston, Flannery O'Connor and Eudora Welty, and range from the earliest writers in the region to all those - black and white, male and female -who are writing now.
A CHOICE 'OUTSTANDING ACADEMIC TITLE'
"The latest volume in Blackwell s "Companions to Literature and Culture" series features 33 brief essays that run the gamut of the Southern experience, from the Jamestown settlers to the contemporary era...Like Blackwell guides, the quality of the essays is high, and the authors cover as many points as possible within the space limits given them. Highly recommended. All academic and public libraries."
Choice
"[T]he many contributors, British and American, to this splendid compendium of fact and opinion demonstrate the rich variety of literature and music that has emanated from the South in the past 150 years [...] The Companion is methodical in its overall structure and is comprehensive, informative and clearly written throughout. Each chapter has extensive lists of references and further reading and the index is full and accurate. This is a work that will remain a vital source for students of the subject and that can be profitably used by readers in general."
Reference Reviews
"The latest volume in Blackwell s "Companions to Literature and Culture" series features 33 brief essays that run the gamut of the Southern experience, from the Jamestown settlers to the contemporary era...Like Blackwell guides, the quality of the essays is high, and the authors cover as many points as possible within the space limits given them. Highly recommended. All academic and public libraries."
Choice
"[T]he many contributors, British and American, to this splendid compendium of fact and opinion demonstrate the rich variety of literature and music that has emanated from the South in the past 150 years [...] The Companion is methodical in its overall structure and is comprehensive, informative and clearly written throughout. Each chapter has extensive lists of references and further reading and the index is full and accurate. This is a work that will remain a vital source for students of the subject and that can be profitably used by readers in general."
Reference Reviews