This thesis examines William Dean Howells' two most notable novels of business, The Rise of Silas Lapham (1885) and A Hazard of New Fortunes (1890), suggesting that the business of literature, in its dissemination of success myths and its ultimate internalization of these myths, was complicit in America's industrial strife during the 1880s. Both novels operate meta-critically. In Silas Lapham, for instance, Howells dramatizes several unhealthy business behaviors that derive from prosperity tropes found in newspapers and other popular writings. In this novel, the focus is on the ways these tropes affect the individual - both the reader who consumes them and the writer who must produce them. Meanwhile, Hazard explores the effects of these myths within the industry of literary production, showing how the publishers themselves are susceptible to the same romanticized economic ideals they disseminate. These novels do not correct the problematic behaviors that popular writing likely had a role in inspiring. They certainly do not resolve the seemingly contradictory values within the publishing industry. But Silas Lapham and Hazard generate a clearer picture of the complex relationship between literature and business, in a time punctuated by literary disputes between realists and romantics, and violent strikes between the labor class and the capital class. / Master of Arts

Syftet med den här uppsatsen är att undersöka hur self-made men används i nutidaamerikanska TV-serier. Två far/son-konstellationer ur serierna Succession ochOzark analyseras med hjälp av mansforskning för att komma fram till hurrelationerna ser ut, vilket förhållande karaktärerna har till sin egen maskulinitetoch hur serierna adresserar ämnet nyliberalism. Uppsatsen landar i att fäderna harsvårt att släppa sin hårda mask medan sönerna i viss mån vågar visa sig sårbara.Sönerna modellerar sig efter fäderna samtidigt som de försöker bryta sig loss ochbli självständiga. Mäns svårigheter att visa sig sårbara tas upp och problematiserasi båda serierna medan den nyliberala ekonomin snarare ses som en obekvämnaturlag att anpassa sig till vare sig man vill eller inte.

Made available in DSpace on 2016-04-26T18:11:58Z (GMT). No. of bitstreams: 1 Andre Campos de Carvalho.pdf: 13957392 bytes, checksum: 2f027ba96c71955dac32809108ee486c (MD5) Previous issue date: 2012-06-28 / Coordenação de Aperfeiçoamento de Pessoal de Nível Superior / Graphic expression and verbal narrative are the main constitutive elements of the language of comics, and its media features have been already studied by several authors: Juan Acevedo, Daniele Barbieri, Luiz Carneiro, Umberto Eco, Scott McCloud, Décio Pignatari, Paulo Ramos, and Waldomiro Vergueiro. This master s degree dissertation seeks to contribute to these studies conducting an investigation concerning the characterization of the myth of the self-made man, present in the American imaginary, through the analysis of narratives of American cartoonist Carl Barks, a major user of Comic Stories as a language in the twentieth century. This dissertation aims to understand the main criticism of Barks to the myth of the self-made man and the Success ethic in American culture of the twentieth century through a rapprochement with the studies of the imaginarium. We analyze the image of Donald Duck, specifically the plots portraying his attempts to be successful, and characteristics that guide these narratives. This hypothesis analyses the myth of self-made man and its incorporation into Western culture, and the confrontation of the concept of career success versus frustration in modern society, it is possible to find features that guide the cartoonist's graphic narratives. About Barks's work we relied on work done by Thomas Andrae, Michael Barrier and Geoffrey Blum. The theoretical basis for the field of communication focuses on the vision of Vilém Flusser. For studies of the imaginarium depart from the viewpoint of Gilbert Durand, who defines the imaginary as a reservoir of all images, narratives, values, perspectives, points of departure, cognitive processes, myths, legends, art, conceptual frameworks that interfere with the perception of the world and in building a culture. The theory of mith-hermeneutic extracted from the work of Marcos Ferreira dos Santos. The study of the language of comics is based on the work of Paulo Ramos. The research body is formed by the work of Carl Barks, published between 1942 and 1966, accessed by contemporary reissues, as well as interviews and commentary. The methodology involved literature review, observation and analysis of works from a diachronic perspective based on the readings of the imaginary, cultural studies and mith-hermeneutic. Conclusively, its creation, extensive studied body of work and republications indicate the persistence and resilience of the myth of self-made man in American culture / Expressão gráfica e narrativa verbal são os principais elementos constituintes da linguagem das Histórias em Quadrinhos, e suas características midiáticas já foram estudadas por vários autores: Juan Acevedo, Daniele Barbieri, Luiz Carneiro, Umberto Eco, Scott McCloud, Décio Pignatari, Paulo Ramos e Waldomiro Vergueiro. A presente dissertação de mestrado busca contribuir para esses estudos realizando uma investigação acerca da caracterização do mito do self-made man, presente no imaginário norte-americano, através da análise de narrativas do cartunista norte-americano Carl Barks, um dos principais utilizadores das Histórias em Quadrinhos como linguagem no século XX. Esta dissertação tem por objetivo principal compreender a crítica de Barks ao mito do self-made man e à ética do sucesso na cultura norte-americana do século XX através de uma aproximação com os estudos do imaginário. Analisamos a imagem do Pato Donald, especificamente os enredos que narram suas tentativas de ser bem-sucedido, e as características que norteiam essas narrativas. Nossa hipótese é que, pela análise do mito de self-made man e sua incorporação à cultura ocidental, e pela confrontação do conceito de sucesso profissional versus frustração na sociedade contemporânea, é possível chegar às características que norteiam as narrativas gráficas do cartunista. Sobre a obra de Barks nos baseamos nos trabalhos realizados por Thomas Andrae, Michael Barrier e Geoffrey Blum. A fundamentação teórica do campo da comunicação se concentra na visão de Vilém Flusser. Para os estudos do imaginário partiremos do ponto de vista de Gilbert Durand, que define o imaginário como um reservatório de todas as imagens, narrativas, valores, perspectivas, pontos de partida, processos cognitivos, mitos, lendas, obras de arte, molduras conceituais que interferem na percepção do mundo e na construção da cultura. A teoria mitohermeneutica parte do trabalho de Marcos Ferreira dos Santos. O estudo da linguagem das Histórias em Quadrinhos baseia-se no trabalho de Paulo Ramos. O corpus da pesquisa é formado pela obra de Barks, publicada entre 1942 e 1966, acessada pelas reedições contemporâneas, assim como entrevistas e comentários. A metodologia adotada envolveu pesquisa bibliográfica, observação e análise das obras a partir de uma perspectiva diacrônica fundada nas leituras do imaginário, dos estudos culturais e da mitohermeneutica. Conclusivamente, verificamos que a criação das obras estudadas e suas republicações recorrentes indicam a persistência e a resiliência do mito do self-made man na cultura norte-americana

This is a study of continuity and change in middle-class conceptions of ideal manhood. My theoretical cues are the notions of the male as an unproblematised and genderless norm, masculinity as homosocial, and George L. Mosse’s use of countertypes. Notions of passions, youth, and character were important throughout the century. If young men could learn to master the dangerous passions especially in the precarious period of youth, they would develop character. If men instead gave in to the passions, they would fall and become countertypes. Meanwhile, young men lived according to another notion, that young men should have their fling. The meaning of manhood also changed over time. In the decades around 1800, manhood meant to lead a life which would be beneficial to society as a whole. Another ideal, that of the man of the world, was founded on urbane manners as a tactic to further one’s career. By mid-century, the ideal of the self-made man came to the fore. The homosocial world of business was now seen as a good way to mould manly characters. In the last decades of the century, moralists criticized the sexual double standard and male sexuality. To remain chaste until marriage became a central mark of manhood. Autobiographers, however, reveal that to many men, Don Juan was a hero rather than a villain. The notion that men were genderless and that masculinity was not a subject of discussion cannot be sustained. Masculinity was indeed the subject of intense discussions. Meanwhile, neither moralists nor autobiographers shed critical light on married, adult men. The problem was how young men should best be guided into an adult position of legitimate power; that position of power in itself was not problematised. While most masculinities were homosocial, this was not exclusively so. Countertypes were more complex than what Mosse allows for. Men who had taken ideal manhood too far could be countertypes, and at times men endorsed ideals which meant unmanliness to moralists.

Most books written about American drama concern definitions of masculinity, the American dream, and the family in a society that encourages people to surpass their competences and limits. American playwrights of the twentieth century reveal the anxiety and insecurity of men who do not rise up to the standards of the American dream. In concentrating on these themes, most critics have analyzed the main characters and plots but have left aside hints about other myths. This study aims to analyse the extended use of the cowboy, of salesman, and of pirate in Tennessee Williams’s The Glass Menagerie and Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman. The recurrence of these three myths touches on the core of American drama that playwrights and critics have tried to define endlessly: the definition of the male in the American society.

Most books written about American drama concern definitions of masculinity, the American dream, and the family in a society that encourages people to surpass their competences and limits. American playwrights of the twentieth century reveal the anxiety and insecurity of men who do not rise up to the standards of the American dream. In concentrating on these themes, most critics have analyzed the main characters and plots but have left aside hints about other myths. This study aims to analyse the extended use of the cowboy, of salesman, and of pirate in Tennessee Williams’s The Glass Menagerie and Arthur Miller’s Death of a Salesman. The recurrence of these three myths touches on the core of American drama that playwrights and critics have tried to define endlessly: the definition of the male in the American society.