The American Roman Noir: Hammett, Cain and Chandler - Softcover

Marling, William

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0820320811 ISBN 13: 9780820320816

Publisher: University of Georgia Press, 1998

Synopsis

In this text, William Marling reads classic hard-boiled fiction and film in the contexts of narrative theories and American social and cultural history. His theories for the origins of the dark narratives that emerged during the 1920s and 1930s leads to a sweeping critique of Jazz-Age and Depression-era culture, integrating economic history, biography, consumer product design, narrative analysis and film scholarship. Taking a closer look at noir classics by Dashiell Hammett, James M. Cain and Raymond Chandler, Marling reads these narratives first as novels, then as films, showing how they helped Americans adapt - for better or worse - to a society driven by economic and technological forces beyond their control.

About this title

Review:

[An] extremely well-written . . . book that will delight those looking for a new kind of American studies.

--American Literature

About the Author:

William Marling is an associate professor of English at Case Western Reserve University. His books include "Raymond Chandler" and "Dashiell Hammett."

About this edition

• Publisher: University of Georgia Press
• Publication date: 1998
• ISBN 10: 0820320811
• ISBN 13: 9780820320816
• Binding: Paperback
• Number of pages: 328