The Business of Literary Circles in Nineteenth-Century America [Hardcover]

This comprehensive study ranges from Irving's Knickerbockers, Emerson's Transcendentalists, and Garrison's abolitionists to the popular serial fiction writers for Robert Bonner's New York Ledger to unearth surprising convergences between such seemingly disparate circles.Introduction As Merchants on the 'Change': The Economy of Literary Coteries, 1807-1864 PART I: LITERARY NEW YORKERS 'An Instinct for Gold': Irving's Knickerbockers Staff Bonds: Bonner's New York Ledger PART II: NEW ENGLAND CIRCLES 'The Section to Which We Belong': Emerson's Transcendentalists Boston and Beyond: Elizabeth Peabody's Promotional Practice PART III: POLITICAL ECONOMY: NORTH AND SOUTH Print Warriors: Garrison's Abolitionists Proslavery and the Pen: Fitzhugh's Apologists Conclusion: The Boston Bellamy Club, Rand's Objectivists, and Iowa Writers' Workshop

An important analysis of literary coteries in the United States, Dowling's book is the first to provide a firm sense of what precisely they offered, besides mutual support, to their members. He demonstrates persuasively that they were formed from the exigencies of the literary marketplace and allowed participants to face it in more powerful and confident ways. And, as an added plus, his prose is as richly compelling as his subjects. An important book for students of American literature and print culture, and of American Studies generally. - Philip Gura, William S. Newman Distinguished Professor of American Literature and Culture, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill