The aim of this project is to conduct analyses of twelve American novels and one short story collection published between 1920 and 1936 and to demonstrate their effect in scripting cultural memory and in shaping public sentiment toward military intervention in the United States during that period. Specifically, these novels, all dealing directly with the First World War or its fallout/aftermath, provided a rhetorical framework within which pacifist, isolationist, and anti-militarist elements were ultimately able to influence legislation directly regarding the role America would play in the world's conflicts until 1941. Furthermore, following years of official propaganda and press censorship and in the absence of any modern mass media, they represented for the post-war public nearly the sole outlet through which the experience of the war could be "accurately" or "authoritatively" rendered. As a result, American public feeling toward military intervention turned increasingly negative during the interwar period, mirroring in many ways the fictional works' own bitter and disillusioned (if not outright horrified or defeated) tones. Highlighting the theories of Vincent J. Roscigno's and William Danaher's 2001 study on the "shaping" ability of music on the goals and aims of striking textile workers in the 1930s South, I will demonstrate a parallel effect of these selected American World War I novels during the 1920s and 1930s. / A Dissertation submitted to the Department of English in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy.. / Summer Semester, 2005. / April 29, 2005. / Lost Generation, Pacifism, War Fiction, World War, American History / Includes bibliographical references. / John Fenstermaker, Professor Directing Dissertation; Neil Jumonville, Outside Committee Member; Anne Rowe, Committee Member; Joseph McElrath, Committee Member.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:fsu.edu/oai:fsu.digital.flvc.org:fsu_181002 |
| Contributors | Nank, Christopher (authoraut), Fenstermaker, John (professor directing dissertation), Jumonville, Neil (outside committee member), Rowe, Anne (committee member), McElrath, Joseph (committee member), Department of English (degree granting department), Florida State University (degree granting institution) |
| Publisher | Florida State University, Florida State University |
| Source Sets | Florida State University |
| Language | English, English |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Text, text |
| Format | 1 online resource, computer, application/pdf |
| Rights | This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s). The copyright in theses and dissertations completed at Florida State University is held by the students who author them. |
Page generated in 0.002 seconds