Great American Novel Explained

The Great American Novel (sometimes abbreviated as GAN) is the term for a canonical novel that generally embodies and examines the essence and character of the United States. The term was coined by John William De Forest in an 1868 essay and later shortened to GAN. De Forest noted that the Great American Novel had most likely not been written yet.

Practically, the term refers to a small number of books that have historically been the nexus of discussion, including Moby-Dick (1851), Adventures of Huckleberry Finn (1884), The Great Gatsby (1925), and Gone with the Wind (1936). Exactly what novel or novels warrant the title is without consensus and an assortment have been contended as the idea has evolved and continued into the modern age, with fluctuations in popular and critical regard. William Carlos Williams, Clyde Brion Davis and Philip Roth have written novels about the Great American Novel—titled as such—the latter in the 1970s, a time of prosperity for the concept.

Equivalents to and interpretations of the Great American Novel have arisen. Writers and academics have commented upon the term's pragmatics, the different types of novels befitting of title and the idea's relation to race and gender.

History

Background and origin of the term

The development of American literature coincided with the nation's development, especially of its identity.[1] Calls for an "autonomous national literature" first appeared during the American Revolution,[2] and, by the mid-18th century, the possibility of American literature exceeding its European counterparts began to take shape, as did that of the Great American Novel, this time being the genesis of novels that would later be considered the Great American Novel.[3] [4] [5]

The term "Great American Novel" originated in an 1868 essay by American Civil War novelist John William De Forest. De Forest saw it serving as a "tableau" of American society,[6] and said that the novel would "paint the American soul" and capture "the ordinary emotions and manners of American existence". Similarly, Daniel Pierce Thompson said it had to be distinctly American.[7] Although De Forest espoused praise and critique for contemporaneous novels, he ultimately concluded that the Great American Novel had yet to be written.[8] The essay's publication coincided with the rising prestige of the novel. Previously, only five percent of American books were marked as novels, with most fictional works given the self-effacing title of a "tale".[9] In 1880, writer Henry James simplified the term with the initialism "GAN".[10]

Development

The term soon became popular, its ubiquity considered a cliché and disparaged by literary critics.[11] Lawerence Buell stated that the concept was seen as a part of a larger national, cultural and political consolidation. According to JSTOR Daily's Grant Shreve, as the concept grew, concrete criteria for the Great American Novel developed:

Additionally, Shreve states, referencing Buell, that "several 'templates' or 'recipes' for the Great American Novel emerged.... Recipe 1 is to write a novel that is 'subjected to a series of memorable rewritings.'... Recipe 2 is what Buell calls 'the romance of the divide.' Novels of this kind... imagine national (and geographic) rifts in the 'form of a family history and/or heterosexual love affair.'... Recipe 3, a 'narrative centering on the lifeline of a socially paradigmatic figure... whose odyssey tilts on the one side toward picaresque and on the other toward a saga of personal transformation, or failure of such.'"[4]

From the turn of the century to the mid-twentieth century, the idea eluded serious academic consideration, being dismissed as a "naively amateurish age-of-realism pipe dream" not aligned with the culture of that time.[12] [13] [3] Writers such as William Dean Howells and Mark Twain were equally blasé. Frank Norris too saw the concept as not befitting the time, stating that the fact of a great work being American should be incidental.[13] Edith Wharton complained that the Great American Novel concept held a narrow view of the nation, simply being concerned with "Main Street".[13] At this time, it also grew to become associated with masculine values.Despite this critical disregard, many writers, prepped with "templates" and "recipes" for the matter, sought to create the next Great American Novel; Upton Sinclair and Sinclair Lewis both sought to create the Great American Novel with The Jungle (1906) and Babbit (1924), respectively.[14] William Carlos Williams and Clyde Brion Davis released satirical explorations both entitled The Great American Novel – Philip Roth would later release a novel of the same name.[13] [15] Bernard F. Jr. Rogers said that Kurt Vonnegut's "entire career might be characterised as an attempt to produce something like "the GAN", but of its own time".[3] The 1970s saw a general resurgence of the concept, with The New York Times using the phrase the most in their history, a total of 71 times.[16] The revival was perhaps the result of social change and related anxieties and the pursuit of a plateau between them.

In the 21st century, retaining its contention and derision, the concept has moved towards a more populist attitude, functioning as "catnip for a listicle-obsessed internet".[17] [18] Adam Kirsch noted that books such as Roth's American Pastoral (1997) indicate that writers are still interested in creating the Great American Novel. Commenting upon the Great American Novel's place in the 21st century, Stephens Shapiro said that "Maybe the GAN is a theme that rises in interest when the existing world system is amidst transformation, as America's greatness of all kinds swiftly fades away."[5] When asked in a 2004 interview if the Great American Novel could be written, Norman Mailer—who had long been interested in the idea—said it could not, for United States had become too developed of a nation.[19] Tony Tulathimutte similarly dismissed it as "a comforting romantic myth, which wrongly assumes that commonality is more significant than individuality".[20]

Analysis

Racial and gender commentary

Multiple commentators have noted the concept's relation to racial and national identity, be it influence from by large-scale immigration, which brought forth authors closely aligned with the Great American Novel or novels detailing marginalized peoples, some furthermore trying to "bridge the racial divide".[21] Commenting upon the idea's racial aspects and presence in popular conscious, Hugh Kenner wrote in a 1953 issue of Perspective that:

Perrin, Andrew Hoberek and Barbara Probst Solomon all noted that the 70s saw Jews pursue the GAN. Perrin said it was a boom decade for, what Hoberek, called the "Jewish GAN". Solomon was by 1972 sick of "nice Jewish sons who are writing the GAN". Aaron Latham, in a 1971 article, highlighted Roth and Mailer as Jews who wanted to the write the next GJN and GAN, respectively.

The Great American Novel's relation to masculinity was seen as a problem by female writers. Gertrude Stein once lamented that, as a lesbian Jewish woman, she would be unable to compose the Great American Novel. Joyce Carol Oates similarly felt that "a woman could write it, but then it wouldn't be the GAN". Viet Thanh Nguyen said that of the unspoken silences of the Great American Novel is the assumption that it can only be written by white men".[22] Laura Miller wrote, in a Salon article, that "The presumption and the belligerence embodied in this ideal have put off many American women writers". She also noted that many characters in Great American Novel candidates are male: "the notion that a female figure might serve the same purpose undermines the very concept of the Great American Novel".[23] Although British analyst Faye Hammill noted that Gentlemen Prefer Blondes by Anita Loos, was one of the few that 'doesn't stink'. Emily Temple of Literary Hub suggested that if the protagonist of Sylvia Plath's The Bell Jar (1963) were male it would likely be considered more seriously as a Great American Novel contender.[24]

Interpretations

There are several different interpretations of what makes a Great American Novel. Some say that it depicts a diverse group facing issues representative of "epoch-defining public events or crises." John Scalzi felt that for a novel to be the Great American Novel it had to be ubiquitous and notable, and analyze United States through a moral context. De Forest, similarly saw the Great American Novel as having to capture the "essence" of America, its quality irrelevant. Norris considered the musings upon what made a novel "great" and/or "American" to showcase patriotic insecurity.[13] Mohsin Hamid echoed the idea that the GAN is indicative of insecurity, connecting it to a "colonial legacy".[25]

Commentators have said that the concept is exclusively American in nature.[26] Journalist John Walsh offered a national equal in the form of Russian writer Leo Tolstoy's War and Peace (1869); Buell felt that Australia was the only country to replicate America's search. Scholes said that the Great American Novel has always been thought of adjacent to European literature. David Vann was of the belief that they had to be "anti-American".[27] Rogers felt that it does not need to have American protagonists or be set in United States and should not espouse patriotism or nationalism.[3]

Buell identifies multiple types of Great American Novels. First is one who is subject to mysticism and stands the test of time.[28] The second is "the romance of the divide", which imagines national rifts in the "form of a family history and/or heterosexual love affair"—race often plays a role. The third variety encapsulates the American Dream and see its protagonist rise from obscurity. Fourthly, novels which are composed of a diverse cast of characters "imagined as social microcosms or vanguards" and who are placed with events and crises that serve to "constitute an image of 'democratic' promise or dysfunction". Buell also said speculative science fiction may be the basis for a possible fifth archetype.

Kasia Boddy wrote that, its initial formulation", the concept "has always been more about inspiration than achievement; the very fact that it has been attempted but remains 'unwritten' providing a spur to future engagement with both nation and national literature".[29] Speculating on De Forest's intentions when devising the notion of the Great American Novel and commenting upon its development, Cheryl Strayed wrote that:

Denoting an apocryphal state, film critic A. O. Scott compared the GAN to the Yeti, the Loch Ness monster and the Sasquatch.

Notable candidates

YearCover or
title page
NovelPortraitAuthorCommentary
1826scope=rowAlthough De Forest critiqued Cooper's writing as boring, many consider The Last of the Mohicans to be the first GAN. It was influential in defining American literature and addresses themes which are common in later American works, including rugged individualism and freedom.[30] [31]
1850scope=rowAlthough De Forest specifically labelled The Scarlet Letter as not being worthy of the label of GAN, it is now widely included on most lists.[32] Buell recognized it as a "reluctant master text"—his first GAN script.[33] [34]
1851scope=rowMoby-DickAccording to Hester Blum of Penn State University, "What makes Moby-Dick the Greatest American Novel, in other words, is that Melville can invoke the preposterous image of a sobbing, heart-stricken moose and we think, yes, I have come to know exactly what that sounds like, and I know what world of meaning is contained within that terrific sound".[35]
1852scope=rowUncle Tom's CabinBuell claimed it to be the first novel to receive the acclaim of the GAN and that it was widely accepted that it was 'nearest approach to the desired phenomenon'.[36] De Forest noted it as the only possible contender and as "a picture of American life".[37]
1868scope=rowAccording to Marlowe Daly-Galeano, what makes Little Women "such an amazing novel [and possible contender for the GAN] is that it gives women's voices and women's stories the prime position in a way that...[was] very new and fresh to readers in the...late 1860s," and suggests that the "strongest mark of Little Womens influence" lies in subsequent stories told about "circles of women" and "cool girl protagonists" which all seem to have a "direct link" to Little Women. Gregory Eiselein remarks that several aspects of Little Women (its inclusion of colloquialisms and grammatical errors in its dialogue, the familiarity of the March girls' struggles, etc.) make it "one of the founding documents of American literary realism."[38]
1884scope=rowAdventures of Huckleberry FinnThe Adventures of Huckleberry Finn was one of the first American novels to utilize a regional vernacular.[39] In 1935, Ernest Hemingway stated that "All modern American literature comes from one book by Mark Twain called 'Huckleberry Finn'."[40] William van O'Connor wrote, in a 1955 issue of College English, that "we are informed, from a variety of critical positions, that [it] is the truly American novel".[41] [42] [43] [44]
1895scope=rowCrane was among the earliest generation of American novelists to be influenced by De Forest and consciously strove to produce a "National Novel".[45] Critic Robert Barr had named him the "most likely to produce the great American novel" only two years before Crane died suddenly at the age of 28.[46] According to Yale professor of literature Jay Martin, Crane's war novel The Red Badge of Courage, set during the Civil War, "marks the culmination of the Great American Novel".[47]
1899scope=rowMcTeagueMcTeague was declared a GAN as early as 1899. The librarian Faith Lee puts McTeagues status as a GAN beyond doubt.[48] Norris's novel The Octopus has been declared one of the three GANs by Bill Kauffman.[49]
1925scope=rowEmory Elliott wrote, in 1991, that it is "still frequently nominated as the GAN".[50] Kirsch, in 2013, said it to be "one of the first titles to come to mind whenever the Great American Novel is mentioned". Deirdre Donahue of USA Today and Fitzgerald scholar James L. W. West III felt that its "embodiment of the American spirit", relevance and prose were the reasons as to why it's the GAN.[51] [52] [53] [54]
1925scope=rowEdith Wharton and Frank Crowninshield proclaimed the novel to be the GAN.[55] [56]
1936scope=rowAbsalom, Absalom!Absalom, Absalom! has been said to represent Buell's "romance of the divide".[57] [58]
1939scope=rowJay Parini identified it as "a great American novel" due to its focus on United States during a crisis and the eclectic depiction of American life. Richard Rodriguez, similarly, felt that it was "the great American novel that everyone keeps waiting for" because of how it showed "the losers in America". Bill Kauffman declared it one of three possible candidates for the GAN.[59] [60]
1951scope=rowThe Catcher in the Rye is an example of a writer setting out to write the GAN and receiving such praise.[61] [62]
1952scope=rowInvisible ManJoseph Fruscione said that Invisible Man was the GAN because it can be "many things to many readers".[63] [64]
1953scope=rowAmis felt that The Adventures of Augie March was the GAN because of its "fantastic inclusiveness, its pluralism, its qualmless promiscuity".[65]
1955scope=rowLolitaMary Elizabeth Williams called Lolita the GAN because of its prose and says "'Lolita' forever remains a thing of timeless beauty."[66]
1960scope=rowTo Kill a MockingbirdScalzi calls it a GAN in that it is a notable and ubiquitous work that also deals with morality and the American experience. Oprah Winfrey described it as "our national novel."[67] [68] [69]
1973 scope=rowGravity's RainbowPynchon's postmodern novel of World War II is commonly cited as "the most important American novel" of the post-war era.[70] It has been said to conform to Buell's fourth type of GAN.[71]

[72] [73]

1985scope=rowBlood MeridianVann felt that Blood Meridian was a GAN because it explored United States’ genocidal past. Dalrymple states "this book the Great American Novel. It's a beautifully written, dark, bleak western—but unlike any western I'd ever known."[74]
1987scope=rowBelovedThe novel is noted for its depiction of the psychological effects of slavery and racism. When Beloved topped a poll seeking "the best work of American fiction" published from 1980 to 2005, A. O. Scott remarked that "Any other outcome would have been startling, since Morrison's novel has inserted itself into the American canon more completely than any of its potential rivals."[75] Beloved has been noted to align with Buell's third type of GAN.[76]
1991scope=rowAmerican PsychoJulia Keller saw the novel's inclusion of "brand names and sex and social anxiety" as part of the reason why it is the GAN.[77] [78]
1996scope=rowInfinite JestBuell noted that "For an appreciable number of turn-of-the-twenty-first-century readers...Infinite Jest [is] the GAN of our days".[79]
1997scope=rowUnderworldAccording to Robert McCrum, it developed a reputation as the GAN almost immediately after its publication.[80] [81]
2010scope=rowFreedomBuell described it as the "most widely acclaimed GAN contender...post-9/11".[82]
2012scope=rowTelegraph AvenueJohn Freeman of the Boston Globe, praised Chabon for "imagining the Great American Novel with a multiracial cast."[83] [84] [85]

See also

Notes and references

Works cited

Further reading

External links

Notes and References

  1. [Nina Baym|Baym, Nina]
  2. [#Buell|Buell (2014)]
  3. Rodgers . Bernard F. Jr. . December 1, 1974 . The Great American Novel and "The Great American Joke" . Critique: Studies in Contemporary Fiction . 16 . 2 . 12–29 . 10.1080/00111619.1974.10690080 . 0011-1619.
  4. Web site: Shreve. Grant. December 17, 2017. The Great American Game of Picking the Great American Novel. January 21, 2021. JSTOR Daily. JSTOR. en-US.
  5. Shapiro. Stephen. 2015. Review: The Dream of the Great American Novel. Nineteenth-Century Literature. 69. 4. 539–543. 10.1525/ncl.2015.69.4.539. 10.1525/ncl.2015.69.4.539. 0891-9356.
  6. [#Buell|Buell (2014)]
  7. Brown. Herbert R.. 1935. The Great American Novel. American Literature. 7. 1. 1–14. 10.2307/2920328. 2920328. 0002-9831. January 4, 2021. January 14, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210114213053/https://www.jstor.org/stable/2920328. live.
  8. News: Zafarris . Jess . July 4, 2018 . The First Book to Ever Be Dubbed the "Great American Novel" Might Not Be the One You'd Guess . . live . June 15, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200801050133/https://www.writersdigest.com/be-inspired/the-first-great-american-novel . August 1, 2020.
  9. [#Buell|Buell (2014)]
  10. News: Showalter. Elaine. Elaine Showalter. February 20, 2014. Can the Great American Novel survive? . Prospect. June 15, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20140317142040/http://www.prospectmagazine.co.uk/magazine/end-of-the-dream-can-the-great-american-novel-survive/. March 17, 2014. live.
  11. Book: Buell, Lawrence. The Dream of the Great American Novel. Harvard University Press. 2014. 978-0-674-05115-7. Cambridge, Massachusetts. 871257583.
  12. Buell . Lawrence . 2008 . The Unkillable Dream of the Great American Novel: Moby-Dick as Test Case . American Literary History . 20 . 1–2 . 132–155 . 10.1093/alh/ajn005 . 170250346.
  13. Knox . George . 1969 . The Great American Novel: Final Chapter . live . American Quarterly . 21 . 4 . 667–682 . 10.2307/2711602 . 0003-0678 . 2711602 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210118200225/https://www.jstor.org/stable/2711602 . January 18, 2021 . January 16, 2021.
  14. [#Buell|Buell (2014)]
  15. Boone . April . 2006 . William Carlos Williams's The Great American Novel: Flamboyance and the Beginning of Art . William Carlos Williams Review . 26 . 1 . 1–25 . 10.1353/wcw.2007.0000 . 10.5325/willcarlwillrevi.26.1.0001 . 145489399 . 0196-6286. free .
  16. Book: Perrin, Tom. American Literature in Transition, 1970–1980. February 2018. Cambridge University Press. 978-1-107-15076-8. Curnutt. Kirk. Cambridge. Chapter 12 - The Great American Novel in the 1970s. https://www.cambridge.org/core/books/american-literature-in-transition-19701980/great-american-novel-in-the-1970s/2729F04B669A8D3454CAF4F2A000873C.
  17. Web site: Scholes. Lucy. October 21, 2014. Can a 'Great American Novel' be written in French?. January 22, 2021. BBC. en. https://web.archive.org/web/20221225130201/https://www.bbc.com/culture/article/20140512-great-american-novel-in-french. December 25, 2022. live.
  18. [#Buell|Buell (2014)]
  19. Web site: Hammond. Margo. 2004-02-05. Norman Mailer on the Media and the Message. 2021-01-17. Poynter. en-US. https://web.archive.org/web/20221105030229/https://www.poynter.org/reporting-editing/2004/norman-mailer-on-the-media-and-the-message/. November 5, 2022. live.
  20. News: Tulathimutte. Tony. Tony Tulathimutte. December 7, 2016. Why There's No 'Millennial' Novel (Published 2016). en-US. The New York Times. January 19, 2021. 0362-4331.
  21. Web site: González. Rigoberto. Rigoberto González. June 30, 2016. Rigoberto Gonzalez's Great Américas Novel: 'The Brief Wondrous Life of Oscar Wao' by Junot Díaz. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20201108102313/https://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-ca-jc-great-american-novel-oscar-wao-20160622-snap-story.html. November 8, 2020. January 17, 2021. Los Angeles Times. en-US.
  22. Web site: Nguyen. Viet Thanh. Viet Thanh Nguyen. June 30, 2016. Viet Thanh Nguyen's Great American Novels: 'The Woman Warrior' and 'China Men'. January 19, 2021. Los Angeles Times. en-US. https://web.archive.org/web/20221105030229/https://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-ca-jc-great-american-novel-woman-warrior-20160623-snap-story.html. November 5, 2022. live.
  23. Web site: Miller. Laura. June 6, 2013. Rachel Kushner's ambitious new novel scares male critics. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20210114213156/https://www.salon.com/2013/06/05/rachel_kushners_ambitious_new_novel_scares_male_critics/. January 14, 2021. January 17, 2021. Salon. en.
  24. Web site: Temple. Emily. January 9, 2017. A Brief Survey of the Great American Novel(s). live. https://web.archive.org/web/20210114213104/https://lithub.com/a-brief-survey-of-great-american-novels/. January 14, 2021. January 17, 2021. Literary Hub. en-US.
  25. News: Hamid . Mohsin . October 15, 2013 . Where Is the Great American Novel by a Woman? . en-US . . live . January 21, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20221130061943/http://www.nytimes.com/2013/10/20/books/review/where-is-the-great-american-novel-by-a-woman.html . November 30, 2022 . 0362-4331.
  26. Web site: Konnikova. Maria. June 30, 2012. Why Are Americans Obsessed With the Great American Novel?. January 22, 2021. Slate. en. https://web.archive.org/web/20190807065600/https://slate.com/culture/2012/06/the-great-american-novel-fitzgerald-wharton-morrison-on-the-search.html. August 7, 2019. live.
  27. News: Vann. David. November 14, 2009. David Vann on Cormac McCarthy's Blood Meridian Rereading. en-GB. The Guardian. live. January 17, 2021. 0261-3077. July 13, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200713063233/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2009/nov/14/david-vann-cormac-mccarthy.
  28. Baym. Nina. 2014. Review of The Dream of the Great American Novel. The New England Quarterly. 87. 3. 538–540. 10.1162/TNEQ_r_00397. 43285103. 147646001. 0028-4866.
  29. Boddy. Kasia. February 7, 2019. Making it long: men, women, and the great American novel now. Textual Practice. 33. 2. 318–337. 10.1080/0950236X.2018.1509268. 150330138. 0950-236X. January 15, 2021. January 18, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210118200224/https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/full/10.1080/0950236X.2018.1509268. live.
  30. News: Italie. Hillel. September 21, 1992. 'Last of the Mohicans' was first great American novel. The Daily Gazette. October 14, 2015. https://web.archive.org/web/20221105030236/https://news.google.com/newspapers?nid=1957&dat=19920921&id=lsBKAAAAIBAJ&pg=2923,5076520&hl=en. November 5, 2022. live.
  31. News: Lewis. Randy. October 3, 1992. Writer's Wit Found Target in 'Mohicans'. Los Angeles Times. August 20, 2020. August 1, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200801182530/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-1992-10-03-ca-246-story.html. live.
  32. News: Konnikova. Maria. Maria Konnikova. June 29, 2012. The Great American Novel. Slate. June 15, 2020. January 14, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210114213056/https://slate.com/culture/2012/06/the-great-american-novel-fitzgerald-wharton-morrison-on-the-search.html. live.
  33. The Dream of the Great American Novel, by Lawrence Buell. registration. https://web.archive.org/web/20160108201656/https://www.timeshighereducation.com/books/the-dream-of-the-great-american-novel-by-lawrence-buell/2011522.article. January 8, 2016. Messent. Peter. Times Higher Education. October 14, 2015 . There are, Buell says, four main types of potential Great American Novels. Nathaniel Hawthorne's The Scarlet Letter epitomises the first – a cultural 'master narrative', identified as such by the number of reinterpretations and imitations that follow in its wake..
  34. News: Latson. Jennifer. March 16, 2015. Why The Scarlet Letter Was a Mixed Blessing for Its Author. Time. May 17, 2020. August 21, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200821031319/https://time.com/3742240/scarlet-letter-hawthorne-history/. live.
  35. The Unkillable Dream of the Great American Novel: Moby-Dick as Test Case. Buell. Lawrence. American Literary History. 2008. 20. 1–2. 132–155. 10.1093/alh/ajn005. 170250346.
  36. [#Buell|Buell (2014)]
  37. News: Fuller. Randall. May 2013. The First Great American Novel. National Endowment for the Humanities. May 15, 2020. August 1, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200801035929/https://www.neh.gov/humanities/2013/marchapril/feature/the-first-great-american-novel. live.
  38. Web site: The Great American Novel series: Little Women . April 27, 2022 .
  39. 3823856. The Publication of "Huckleberry Finn": A Centennial Retrospect. Bulletin of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences. 37. 5. 18–40. Smith. Henry Nash. Henry Nash Smith. 1984. 10.2307/3823856.
  40. News: Ulin. David L.. November 14, 2010. Celebrating the genius of 'Huckleberry Finn'. Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles. May 14, 2020. August 1, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200801183225/https://www.latimes.com/archives/la-xpm-2010-nov-14-la-ca-mark-twain-20101114-story.html. live.
  41. O'Connor. William van. 1955. Why Huckleberry Finn Is Not the Great American Novel. College English. 17. 1. 6–10. 10.2307/495715. 495715. 0010-0994. January 16, 2021. January 18, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20210118200310/https://www.jstor.org/stable/495715. live.
  42. Web site: One Hundred Years of Huck Finn. Brown. Robert B.. June–July 1984. American Heritage Publishing. December 10, 2011. It was called the 'great American novel' as early as 1891 by the English writer Andrew Lang .... August 18, 2011. https://web.archive.org/web/20110818054210/http://www.americanheritage.com/content/one-hundred-years-huck-finn. live.
  43. News: Mailer . Norman . Norman Mailer . December 9, 1985 . Huckleberry Finn, Alive at 100 . . May 15, 2020 . August 28, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200828211844/https://www.nytimes.com/1984/12/09/books/huckleberry-finn-alive-at-100.html . live .
  44. Web site: Harrnett. Kevin. July 10, 2013. The Greatest American Novel? 9 Experts Share Their Opinions. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20201208113234/https://themillions.com/2013/07/the-greatest-american-novel-9-experts-share-their-opinions.html. December 8, 2020. January 17, 2021. The Millions. en-US.
  45. [#Martin|Martin (1967)]
  46. [#Martin|Martin (1967)]
  47. [#Martin|Martin (1967)]
  48. Web site: Friday Reads: McTeague: a story of San Francisco by Frank Norris. Lee. Faith. Falmouth Public Library. March 24, 2021. It is a great American novel. No doubt about it. And if you haven't read it, Karl Bridges and I recommend that you do. Bridges describes Norris’ novel as being similar to Émile Zola's realistic tone and style, but "distinctive in its American voice".. October 31, 2019. https://web.archive.org/web/20191031164055/http://www.falmouthpubliclibrary.org/blog/friday-reads-mcteague-story-san-francisco-frank-norris/. dead.
  49. Web site: 1899. A Great American Novel. March 24, 2021. The New York Times.
  50. [Emory Elliott]
  51. Web site: Donahue. Deirdre. May 7, 2013. Five reasons 'Gatsby' is the great American novel. January 20, 2021. USA Today. en-US.
  52. News: Achenbach. Joel. Joel Achenbach. March 20, 2015. Why 'The Great Gatsby' is the Great American Novel. The Washington Post. May 17, 2020. June 15, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200615164409/https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/achenblog/wp/2015/03/20/why-the-great-gatsby-is-the-great-american-novel/. live.
  53. News: Williams. John. January 14, 2021. The 'Great Gatsby' Glut. en-US. The New York Times. January 21, 2021. 0362-4331. https://web.archive.org/web/20221221142902/https://www.nytimes.com/2021/01/14/books/the-great-gatsby-public-domain.html. December 21, 2022. live.
  54. Gutterman. Annabel. December 24, 2020. What 'The Great Gatsby' Copyright Expiration Means for Its Legacy. January 21, 2021. Time. https://web.archive.org/web/20221219123152/https://time.com/5923279/great-gatsby-copyright-expires/. December 19, 2022. live.
  55. News: Konnikova. Maria. June 29, 2012. The Great American Novel. Slate. March 24, 2021. https://web.archive.org/web/20221105030238/https://slate.com/culture/2012/06/the-great-american-novel-fitzgerald-wharton-morrison-on-the-search.html. November 5, 2022. live.
  56. "One of the few books that doesn't stink': The Intellectuals, the Masses and Gentlemen Prefer Blondes" by Faye Hammill. Critical Survey. Vol. 17, No. 3. 2005. Accessed March 24, 2021.
  57. News: Hirsch . Arthur . The real great American Novel: 'Absalom, Absalom!' Faulkner: His ninth novel, for its span, its revelation, its American essence, stands above all others in reaching for this literary absolute. . The Baltimore Sun . Baltimore, Maryland . November 16, 1997 . September 21, 2010 . December 29, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20111229141402/http://articles.baltimoresun.com/1997-11-16/news/1997320006_1_absalom-great-american-novel-faulkner . live .
  58. Kirsch . Adam . Adam Kirsch . January–February 2014 . Made in the U.S.A. . . December 23, 2020 . November 11, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20201111203359/https://harvardmagazine.com/2014/01/made-in-the-u-s-a . live .
  59. Web site: Gioia . Dana . The Grapes of Wrath Radio Show (interview with Richard Rodriguez) – Transcript . The Big Read . The National Endowment for the Arts . dead . https://web.archive.org/web/20100620070008/http://www.neabigread.org/books/grapesofwrath/audiotranscript.php . June 20, 2010 . September 22, 2010 . There hasn't been anything like this novel since it was written. And this is the great American novel that everyone keeps waiting for but it has been written now..
  60. Web site: Nixon . Rob . The Grapes of Wrath . This Month Spotlight . Turner Classic Movies . September 22, 2010 . January 4, 2013 . https://archive.today/20130104214437/http://www.tcm.com/thismonth/article.jsp?cid=182376&mainArticleId=252903 . live . Nixon quotes John Springer, author of The Fondas (Citadel, 1973), a book about Henry Fonda and his role in film version of The Grapes of Wrath: "The Great American Novel made one of the few enduring Great American Motion Pictures."
  61. News: McGrath . Charles . Charles McGrath (critic) . J. D. Salinger, Literary Recluse, Dies at 91 . . January 28, 2010 . February 24, 2017 . February 5, 2017 . https://web.archive.org/web/20170205082131/http://www.nytimes.com/2010/01/29/books/29salinger.html . live .
  62. News: Burke. Declan. July 13, 2011. Sixty years and 65m copies on: Holden Caulfield and the great American novel. The Irish Times. May 15, 2020. August 10, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200810225632/https://www.irishtimes.com/culture/books/sixty-years-and-65m-copies-on-holden-caulfield-and-the-great-american-novel-1.598801. live.
  63. News: Giles . Patrick . The Great American Novel . Los Angeles Times . September 15, 2002 . April 1, 2011 . December 29, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20111229142123/http://articles.latimes.com/2002/sep/15/books/bk-giles15 . live .
  64. News: Gambaccini . Paul . October 7, 2015 . Book of a Lifetime by Paul Gambaccini - Invisible Man by Ralph Ellison . . December 23, 2020 . January 14, 2021 . https://web.archive.org/web/20210114213058/https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/book-lifetime-paul-gambaccini-invisible-man-ralph-ellison-a6684356.html . live .
  65. News: Shteir. Rachel. May 7, 2019. A New Adventure for 'Augie March': A Chicago Stage (Published 2019). en-US. The New York Times. January 28, 2021. 0362-4331.
  66. Web site: Williams. Mary Elizabeth. September 30, 1996. Personal Best: Lolita. live. https://web.archive.org/web/20201112030923/https://www.salon.com/1996/09/30/nabokov_4/. November 12, 2020. January 17, 2021. Salon. en.
  67. News: July 8, 2010. 'Mockingbird' Moments: 'Scout, Atticus And Boo'. NPR. January 18, 2021. January 10, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200110165715/https://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=128387104. live.
  68. News: 'To Kill a Mockingbird': Endearing, enduring at 50 years . USA Today . Maria . Puente . July 8, 2010 . It is Lee's only book and one of the handful that could earn the title of Great American Novel. . August 29, 2017 . October 17, 2011 . https://web.archive.org/web/20111017035222/http://www.usatoday.com/life/books/news/2010-07-08-mockingbird08_CV_N.htm . live . (Lee has since published a sequel, Go Set a Watchman.)
  69. News: Scalzi. John. John Scalzi. June 30, 2016. The Great American Novel is 'To Kill a Mockingbird'. Los Angeles Times. Los Angeles. May 14, 2020. July 14, 2020. https://web.archive.org/web/20200714170920/https://www.latimes.com/books/jacketcopy/la-ca-jc-great-american-novel-mockingbird-20160622-snap-story.html. live.
  70. [#Buell|Buell (2014)]
  71. [#Buell|Buell (2014)]
  72. [#Weisenburger|Weisenburger (2006)]
  73. Web site: Deresiewicz . William . William Deresiewicz . June 2014 . How the Novel Made the Modern World . . July 2, 2020 . July 2, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200702025111/https://www.theatlantic.com/magazine/archive/2014/06/how-the-novel-made-the-modern-world/361611/ . live .
  74. Web site: Blood Meridian is the Great American Novel . William . Dalrymple . Reader's Digest . McCarthy's descriptive powers make him the best prose stylist working today, and this book the Great American Novel. . May 10, 2020 . July 28, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200728233313/https://www.readersdigest.co.uk/culture/books/meet-the-author/william-dalrymple-blood-meridian-is-the-great-american-novel . live .
  75. Web site: Scott . A. O. . A. O. Scott . May 21, 2006 . In Search of the Best . . July 2, 2020 . July 9, 2020 . https://web.archive.org/web/20200709184824/https://www.nytimes.com/2006/05/21/books/review/scott-essay.html . live .
  76. [#Buell|Buell (2014)]
  77. Web site: Keller. Julia. July 1, 2007. The Great American Novel was written by. January 19, 2021. The Chicago Tribune. en-US.
  78. Web site: Burton. Charlie. June 5, 2019. How the Great American Novel made it to the movies. January 19, 2021. GQ. en-GB.
  79. [#Buell|Buell (2014)]
  80. News: McCrum. Robert. August 3, 2015. The 100 best novels: No 98 – Underworld by Don DeLillo (1997). en-GB. The Guardian. January 28, 2021. 0261-3077. https://web.archive.org/web/20221105030237/https://www.theguardian.com/books/2015/aug/03/100-best-novels-underworld-don-delillo. November 5, 2022. live.
  81. Web site: Wiegand. David. September 21, 1997. We Are What We Waste / Don DeLillo's masterpiece fits a half-century of experience inside a baseball. January 28, 2021. San Francisco Chronicle. en-US.
  82. Web site: Jonathan Franzen: One of America's Greatest Living Novelists. August 21, 2014. Secher, Benjamin. August 20, 2010. The Telegraph. August 26, 2014. https://web.archive.org/web/20140826071859/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/culture/books/7956524/Jonathan-Franzen-one-of-Americas-greatest-living-novelists.html. live.
  83. Web site: Freeman. John. September 1, 2012. 'Telegraph Avenue' by Michael Chabon. en-US. Boston Globe. February 4, 2021.
  84. Web site: Schulz. Kathryn. September 16, 2012. Michael Chabon May Just Be the Perfect Writer for the Obama Age. February 4, 2021. New York. en-US. https://web.archive.org/web/20221216081240/https://www.vulture.com/2012/09/michael-chabon-telegraph-avenue.html. December 16, 2022. live.
  85. Web site: Kessel. Joyce. August 1, 2012. Telegraph Avenue. February 4, 2021. Library Journal. en-US.