This book demonstrates the greatness of Joyce Carol Oates, who is a nominee for a Nobel Award in Literature. Nancy Watanabe discusses Oates's previously undiscovered roots in the literatures of Europe and Asia. Watanabe's thought-provoking analyses are enhanced by a cinematically inspired principle of organization that reflects Oates's own stratagems. In a massive build-up of metaphorical links between a Copernican world of nature and actions taken by ordinary people in the course of their daily living, Oates portrays America as a land of justice that is always a step behind a Faustian desire...

This book critically examines classic works of literature and film to suggest ways in which study of fictional characters, cultural themes, and vivid imagery helps us to understand problems that seriously concern Americans, including uniformed officers and public officials, as well as the general populace in today's turbulent times.