Stephen Fender Livres

The book explores the profound literary and cultural responses to the Californian Gold Rush of 1849-1850, highlighting how this pivotal event shaped American identity and creativity. It delves into the narratives, themes, and characters that emerged during this era, reflecting the hopes, struggles, and transformations experienced by those drawn to the promise of wealth and opportunity in California. Through various literary works, it captures the dynamic interplay between ambition and the harsh realities of life during the Gold Rush.

The book examines the enduring impact of the Great Depression, focusing on how popular memory emphasizes rural experiences over urban hardships. Through detailed rhetorical analysis of various media, including fiction, journalism, and documentaries, it highlights iconic representations of impoverished rural whites, drawing on works by John Steinbeck, Dorothea Lange, and others. By exploring these narratives, the author reveals the complexities of collective memory and its implications for understanding the economic crisis in America's cities and factories.

The book explores the development of American identity through the lens of emigration, delving into the concept of the 'American difference' and the elements that shape the American character. This revised edition offers a comprehensive analysis of how cultural experiences influence personal and national identities, making it a significant study of the American cultural landscape.

Stephen Fender explains why To Kill a Mockingbird has had such an extraordinary impact on American life and at how skilfully Harper Lee tells her story.

Chaucer has been called the father of English literature and here Stephen Fender explores his greatest work, The Canterbury Tales, in all its variety and humour.

Everyone knows the great American Dream: that America is the land of free enterprise, offering men and women without inherited advantages the chance to get ahead through hard work and self-reliance. Yet The Great American Speech offers an alternative vision, one enshrined in the country's most memorable speeches.

First published between 1982 and 1983, this series examines the peculiarly American cultural context out of which the nation's literature has developed. Covering the years from 1620 to 1830, this first volume of American Literature in Context examines a range of texts from the writings of the Puritan settlers through the declaration of Independence to the novels of Fenimore Cooper. In doing so, it shows how early Americans thought about their growing nation, their arguments for immigration, for political and cultural independence, and the doubts they experienced in this ambitious project. This book will be of interest to those studying American literature and American studies.