Aesthetic representation and political economy in the beat narrative: Structures of feeling in the post-World War II generation

<p>This interdisciplinary project, which primarily uses cultural studies methodologies, explores the role of the literary text in relation to both Karl Marx's "material conception of history," as well as Raymond William's idea of a "structure of feeling." Using the novels published by Jack Kerouac and William S. Burroughs in the 1950s (specifically, <em>On the Road</em>, <em>Dharma Bums</em>, and <em>Naked Lunch</em>), the intent is to gain some understanding of the relationship between the historical moment in which these texts were written and the material conditions affecting both culture and society during the immediate post-World War II era. It will focus largely on the intersectionality between aesthetic representation and political economy during the transition from the modern to the post-modern and the industrial to the post-industrial.</p>

Name thesis:degree_name

Master of Arts (MA)

Level thesis:degree_level

Campus Only Thesis

Discipline thesis:degree_discipline

English Language and Literature

Year dc:date.available

2012

Author dc:creator

• Macdonald, Lindsey A.

Contributors dc:contributor

• Charles Cunningham, PhD, Chair
• Paul Bruss, PhD

• methodology
• post-World War II
• political economy
• English Language and Literature

Repository record dc:identifier

https://commons.emich.edu/theses/443

OAI identifier oai:identifier

oai:commons.emich.edu:theses-1812