"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
"The War on Words delivers an impressively wide-ranging reinterpretation, at once rigorously astringent and perceptively sympathetic, of how canonical American writers coped with the formidable challenges not to engage in public talk about slavery and racism. Though some of Gilmore's assessments are bound to provoke controversy, no serious reader of this book--which should indeed be required reading for all serious Americanists--will fail to come away informed and invigorated by Gilmore's understanding of the de facto constraints on expression that confront even our 'free' society, both then and now."
--Lawrence Buell, Harvard University"The War on Words is a brave and brilliant book that explores the fact of censorship, particularly as it operated in matters of slavery and race, in nineteenth-century American literature and politics. While positioning the Civil War as the moment when 'the nature of utterance' shifted from the comic to the tragic, from prophecy to indirection, from abolitionists to the Klan, Gilmore nevertheless attends to the consistency, across the century, with which words are championed, attacked, feared, and erased. With remarkable range and acuity, Gilmore convincingly demonstrates that what could not be said is as significant an impetus for the production and understanding of American literature as what could."
--Cindy Weinstein, California Institute of Technology"Starting from the silences and evasions about race in the Declaration and Constitution, Michael T. Gilmore traces the fate of free speech as he conducts a compelling re-envisioning of the whole span of nineteenth-century American political culture and literature--from Emerson, Thoreau, and Lincoln to Stephen Crane, Twain, and Thomas Dixon. Using Bartleby's mid-century silence as a brilliant hinge to its narrative, The War on Words moves from heroic antebellum proponents of words as deeds to the 'tragedy of linguistic impotence' that marked the betrayal of African-Americans as Reconstruction unraveled and realism reflected the repudiation of racial equality. In Gilmore's expert hands nearly a score of canonical figures are accorded fresh and persuasive readings; The War on Words is an exciting book."
--Ross Posnock, Columbia University"Gilmore's interpretations explain the texts' plot twists and figurative language in original ways, and with illuminating reference to historical contexts."
--Choice"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
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Book Description hardback. Condition: New. Language: ENG. Seller Inventory # 9780226294131
Book Description Condition: New. How did slavery and race impact American literature in the 19th century? This book argues that they were the carriers of linguistic restriction, and writers like Frederick Douglass wrestled with the demands for silence and circumspection that accompanied the antebellum fear of disunion and the postwar reconciliation between the North and South. Num Pages: 344 pages, 1 halftone. BIC Classification: 1KBB; 2AB; DSBF. Category: (U) Tertiary Education (US: College). Dimension: 235 x 162 x 24. Weight in Grams: 596. . 2010. Hardcover. . . . . Seller Inventory # V9780226294131
Book Description Condition: New. Seller Inventory # 7760281-n
Book Description Condition: New. Brand New. Seller Inventory # 0226294137
Book Description HRD. Condition: New. New Book. Shipped from UK. Established seller since 2000. Seller Inventory # FW-9780226294131
Book Description Hardcover. Condition: New. Seller Inventory # 6666-WLY-9780226294131
Book Description Condition: New. Seller Inventory # 7760281-n
Book Description Hardback. Condition: New. New copy - Usually dispatched within 4 working days. How did slavery and race impact American literature in the 19th century? This book argues that they were the carriers of linguistic restriction, and writers like Frederick Douglass wrestled with the demands for silence and circumspection that accompanied the antebellum fear of disunion and the postwar reconciliation between the North and South. Seller Inventory # B9780226294131
Book Description Hardcover. Condition: Brand New. 344 pages. 9.50x6.50x1.25 inches. In Stock. Seller Inventory # __0226294137
Book Description Condition: New. How did slavery and race impact American literature in the 19th century? This book argues that they were the carriers of linguistic restriction, and writers like Frederick Douglass wrestled with the demands for silence and circumspection that accompanied the antebellum fear of disunion and the postwar reconciliation between the North and South. Num Pages: 344 pages, 1 halftone. BIC Classification: 1KBB; 2AB; DSBF. Category: (U) Tertiary Education (US: College). Dimension: 235 x 162 x 24. Weight in Grams: 596. . 2010. Hardcover. . . . . Books ship from the US and Ireland. Seller Inventory # V9780226294131