This book presents a new theory of American culture based not on the phenomenologically- and existentially-derived vocabularies of consciousness, which have dominated earlier accounts, but rather on a revitalized notion of the unconscious. Drawing on the writings of the French psychoanalyst Jacques Lacan, Dean develops a theory of the constitution of the very notion of America itself as based on a complicated relation to the American landscape.
This book presents a new theory of American culture based not on the phenomenologically- and existentially-derived vocabularies of consciousness, whic...
The American Scene considers major texts of nineteenth century American literature: The Leatherstocking Tales, Poe's fiction, The Scarlet Letter, Moby-Dick, Leaves of Grass, Dickinson's poetry, Huckleberry Finn, James's The American Scene. It sees these works as attempts to articulate relationships between the self and the New World. The indeterminacy of the relationships is expressed in the formal instability of the works themselves. In these respects, nineteenth century American literature is shown to offer a striking contrast to comparable English literature.
The American Scene considers major texts of nineteenth century American literature: The Leatherstocking Tales, Poe's fiction, The Scarlet Letter, Moby...
