Description
Book SynopsisOpting Out explores the theme of deviance as a form of protest in famous cult novels that have left an indelible mark on contemporary American culture – from Jack Kerouac's On the Road to Chuck Palahniuk’s Fight Club. Adopting a generational lens, it centers on the deviant heroes and literary spokesmen of two major cohorts: the Baby Boomers and Generation X. Here for the first time the cult texts that defined these generations are submitted to a critical analysis that allows them to enter into a dialogue – or rather a heated debate – with each other. This opens new perspectives on the generation gap in America since 1945, offering a dynamic look at the role of youth as agents of social change and cultural innovation. The volume is of interest to students and researchers in contemporary American literature and culture, as well as to fans of cult fiction in general. The interdisciplinary approach to the themes of generational conflict and deviant behaviour also makes a significant contribution to the fields of sociology, contemporary history and cultural studies.
Trade Review“[…] it is the ‘heated debate’ (6) arising from the X-ers’ rejection of the boomer ethos that she seeks to explore.[…] Opting Out remains an informed analysis of how cult fiction has helped forge the US’s two major postwar generations.” – Edward Jackson, in Journal of American Studies 48 (2014)
Table of ContentsAcknowledgements Introduction Opting Out as a Modern Paradigm: Generations, Deviance and Cult Fiction Generational Identity: Origins, Formation and Impact Deviance: Definitions, Reactions and Implications Cult Fiction: Writing from the Margins The Generational Constellation in Post-War America: A Brief Overview Deviance in Cult Fiction of the 1950s and 1960s The Road Out: Deviance in Jack Kerouac’s On the Road An Unlocked Window: Deviance in Ken Kesey’s One Flew Over the Cuckoo’s Nest “Edge City”: Deviance in Tom Wolfe’s The Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test Deviance in Cult Fiction of the 1980s and 1990s “Disappear Here”: Deviance in Bret Easton Ellis’ Less Than Zero “The Lunar Side of the Fence”: Deviance in Douglas Coupland’s Generation X “Hitting Bottom”: Deviance in Chuck Palahniuk’s Fight Club Conclusion: Opting Out and America’s Social Imaginary Bibliography Index
