American Classics - (Evolution, Cognition, and the Arts) by Judith P Saunders (Paperback)

About the Book

This book examines selected works in the American literary tradition from an evolutionary perspective. Individual essays address figures ranging from Benjamin Franklin to Billy Collins, targeting a variety of fitness-related issues--courtship, nepotism, competition, cooperation, status, and deception, for example--in the context of both physical and social environment.

Book Synopsis

This book examines selected works in the American literary tradition from an evolutionary perspective. Individual essays address figures ranging from Benjamin Franklin to Billy Collins, targeting a variety of fitness-related issues-courtship, nepotism, competition, cooperation, status, and deception, for example-in the context of both physical and social environment.

Review Quotes

"American Classics: Evolutionary Perspectives is a very interesting and discerning study, cogently argued, well-written, propelled by Saunders's knowledge of theory and research in evolutionary biology, post-Darwin. She has made a noteworthy contribution to evolutionary criticism, and, more, generally, to our understanding of American literary and cultural history. American Classics also has important-and controversial-implications for scholarship and teaching. ... In American Classics, Saunders sets out, with special skill and distinction, an array of textual interpretations, close readings of American authors, a detailed series of model case studies that are stimulating and persuasive. She convinces me that her approach can make familiar literary texts feel new, reanimating them, impelling us to peruse and ponder them in a new light. ... I look forward to the next stage of her research, and to the new directions in the field of evolutionary literary criticism that she is expertly helping to chart and explore." -William E. Cain, Evolutionary Studies in Imaginative Culture, Vol. 3, No. 1

"As Saunders makes clear at the outset, her aim is to offer 'an accessible introduction to Darwinian literary critical methodology in tandem with new insights into acknowledged classics' (x). This is precisely what she does with admirable clarity and grace. To assist readers not familiar with Darwinian methodology, Saunders provides a succinct glossary of essential terms that matches up nicely with the general approach she spells out in her brief, well-focused introduction. ... Teachers seeking to shake up predictable discussions of classic works will find Saunders's interpretations immensely useful and entertaining. This is not to suggest that Saunders is not a serious scholar whose work contributes to literary scholarship. Quite the contrary, her essays are carefully researched, articulate additions to American literary naturalism that offer important insights into the evolutionary forces that inform literary texts. ... Readers will find American Classics: Evolutionary Perspectives every bit as thought provoking as it is delightful." -Paul Crumbley, Utah State University, Studies in American Naturalism Vol. 13, No. 2

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