The Real Thing: Imitation and Authenticity in American Culture, 1880-1940

By Miles Orvell

Book Overview

This is a perceptive study of the relationship between technology and culture. Orvell discusses Whitman and his world, then considers material culture, photography, and literature. Among the cultural figures discussed are writers Henry James, John Dos Passos, and James Agee; photographers Alfred Stieglitz and Margaret Bourke-White; and architect-designers Gustav Stickley and Frank Lloyd Wright. A witty essay on the significance of junk in the 1930s concludes the book.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 0807818372
• ISBN13: 9780807818374
• Release Date: April 1989
• Publisher: University of North Carolina Press
• Length: 408 Pages
• Weight: 1.40 lbs.