Description

How did slavery and race impact American literature in the nineteenth century? In this ambitious book, Michael T. Gilmore argues that they were the carriers of linguistic restriction, and writers from Frederick Douglass to Stephen Crane wrestled with the demands for silence and circumspection that accompanied the antebellum fear of disunion and the postwar reconciliation between the North and South. Proposing a radical new interpretation of nineteenth-century American literature, "The War on Words" examines struggles over permissible and impermissible utterance in works ranging from Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience" to Henry James' "The Bostonians". Combining historical knowledge with groundbreaking readings of some of the classic texts of the American past, "The War on Words" places Lincoln's Cooper Union address in the same constellation as Margaret Fuller's feminism and Thomas Dixon's defense of lynching. Arguing that slavery and race exerted coercive pressure on freedom of expression, Gilmore offers here a transformative study that alters our understanding of nineteenth-century literary culture and its fraught engagement with the right to speak.

The War on Words: Slavery, Race, and Free Speech in American Literature

Product form

£80.00

Includes FREE delivery
Usually despatched within 5 days
Hardback by Michael T. Gilmore

1 in stock

Short Description:

How did slavery and race impact American literature in the nineteenth century? In this ambitious book, Michael T. Gilmore argues... Read more

    Publisher: The University of Chicago Press
    Publication Date: 30/07/2010
    ISBN13: 9780226294131, 978-0226294131
    ISBN10: 0226294137

    Number of Pages: 344

    Non Fiction , ELT & Literary Studies , Education

    Description

    How did slavery and race impact American literature in the nineteenth century? In this ambitious book, Michael T. Gilmore argues that they were the carriers of linguistic restriction, and writers from Frederick Douglass to Stephen Crane wrestled with the demands for silence and circumspection that accompanied the antebellum fear of disunion and the postwar reconciliation between the North and South. Proposing a radical new interpretation of nineteenth-century American literature, "The War on Words" examines struggles over permissible and impermissible utterance in works ranging from Thoreau's "Civil Disobedience" to Henry James' "The Bostonians". Combining historical knowledge with groundbreaking readings of some of the classic texts of the American past, "The War on Words" places Lincoln's Cooper Union address in the same constellation as Margaret Fuller's feminism and Thomas Dixon's defense of lynching. Arguing that slavery and race exerted coercive pressure on freedom of expression, Gilmore offers here a transformative study that alters our understanding of nineteenth-century literary culture and its fraught engagement with the right to speak.

    Customer Reviews

    Be the first to write a review
    0%
    (0)
    0%
    (0)
    0%
    (0)
    0%
    (0)
    0%
    (0)

    Recently viewed products

    © 2025 Book Curl,

      • American Express
      • Apple Pay
      • Diners Club
      • Discover
      • Google Pay
      • Maestro
      • Mastercard
      • PayPal
      • Shop Pay
      • Union Pay
      • Visa

      Login

      Forgot your password?

      Don't have an account yet?
      Create account