Exceptional Violence and the Crisis of Classic American Literature

The book examines antebellum American literature and the problem of political emergency, exploring two forms of governance and the periods of states of exception that arose from them. It employs Walter Benjamin's political and cultural insights to understand how antebellum writers situated themselves and their work in relation to these episodes, focusing on the experience of violence.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 261 pages
Publication date: 26 August 2023
Publisher: Springer International Publishing AG

This book offers an interdisciplinary exploration of antebellum American literature and the issue of political emergency. It contends that the United States experienced prolonged conflicts regarding sovereignty during the unsettled period from the Founding to the Civil War, leading to the emergence of two forms of governance: local and regional control and national governance. These competing imperatives gave rise to periods of exception, resulting in intense struggles over land, finance, and, most notably, slavery, which shaped national politics. Drawing extensively on the political and cultural insights of Walter Benjamin, the book examines antebellum American writers to understand how they positioned themselves and their works in relation to these turbulent events, with a particular focus on the experience of violence. The book delves into the works of Edgar Allan Poe, ex-slave narrators like Moses Roper and Henry Bibb, Herman Melville, and Emily Dickinson, applying key aspects of Walter Benjamin's literary and cultural criticism to the profound preoccupation with pain in antebellum politics and culture.

Dimension: 210 x 148 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9783031078477
Edition number: 1st ed. 2022