A teller of tales: Narratology and the works of Sherwood Anderson

Abstract

The publication of Winesburg, Ohio in 1919 introduced Sherwood Anderson as an American author with great potential, but when critics attempted to evaluate Anderson's legacy following his death in 1941, most concluded that his career beyond that book and a few short stories failed to deliver on that promise to permanently establish Anderson as a writer with a lasting impact. However, Anderson's direct influence on key players of the modernist period, most notably Ernest Hemingway and William Faulkner, suggests the need for scholars to take a closer look at his work in order to better understand his impact and the evolution of American literature during the modern period. This thesis analyzes the narrational choices found Anderson's most famous work as well as his texts Poor White (1921), The Triumph of the Egg (1922), and Dark Laughter (1925) in order to reveal the connection between Anderson's storytelling techniques and the story's theme. In each text, he tries a different narrative method, choosing the narrator's perspective and presence within the story that will best reflect what the characters are experiencing, which is usually some form of alienation or confusion in their attempts to build relationships with one another.

Date of Award	2010
Original language	American English
Awarding Institution	Eastern Illinois University
Supervisor	Fern Kory (Supervisor)