Power and Class in Political Fiction : Elite Theory and the Post-War Washington Novel

David Smit

ISBN 10: 3030267717 / ISBN 13: 9783030267711

Published by Springer International Publishing, 2020

About this Item

Druck auf Anfrage Neuware - Printed after ordering - This book introduces Elite Theory to the literary study of class as a framework for addressing issues of the nature of governance in political fiction. The book describes the historical development and major tenets of Elite Theory, and shows how each of four post-war Washington novels-Gore Vidal's Washington, D.C.; Allen Drury's Advise and Consent; Joan Didion's Democracy; and Ward Just's Echo House-illustrates the way class-based political elites exhibit forms of 'ruling-class consciousness' and maintain their legitimacy in an ostensibly democratic form of government by promoting themselves as models of behavior, promulgating an ideology that justifies their rule through their control of the media, and accepting new members from the lower classes. Reading these novels through a socio-political lens, David Smit offers suggestions for ways to work for a more just and equitable society in light of what this analysis reveals about the 'culture' that produces our political elites.

Seller Inventory # 9783030267711

Bibliographic Details

• Title: Power and Class in Political Fiction : Elite Theory and the Post-War Washington Novel
• Publisher: Springer International Publishing
• Publication Date: 2020
• Language: English
• ISBN 10: 3030267717
• ISBN 13: 9783030267711
• Binding: Taschenbuch
• Condition: Neu
• Dimensions: 210W x 148H x 11D millimeters 210 millimeters width by 148 millimeters height by 11 millimeters depth
• Weight: 261 grams

About this title

Synopsis

This book introduces Elite Theory to the literary study of class as a framework for addressing issues of the nature of governance in political fiction.  The book describes the historical development and major tenets of Elite Theory, and shows how each of four post-war Washington novels―Gore Vidal’s Washington, D.C.; Allen Drury’s Advise and Consent; Joan Didion’s Democracy; and Ward Just’s Echo House―illustrates the way class-based political elites exhibit forms of “ruling-class consciousness” and maintain their legitimacy in an ostensibly democratic form of government by promoting themselves as models of behavior, promulgating an ideology that justifies their rule through their control of the media, and accepting new members from the lower classes. Reading these novels through a socio-political lens, David Smit offers suggestions for ways to work for a more just and equitable society in light of what this analysis reveals about the “culture” that produces our political elites.

About the Author

David Smit is Emeritus Professor of English at Kansas State University, USA, where he taught courses on Post-War American Literature and Culture, Henry James, and Expository Writing.  His previous books are The Language of a Master: Theories of Style and the Late Writing of Henry James (1988); The End of Composition Studies (2004); and Ingrid Bergman: The Life, Career, and Public Image (2012).