PAPERBACK ISBN: 0-88258-248-8      $35.95

432 pages; 6 x 9 inches

Edited by Philip Butcher

The Ethnic Image in Modern American Literature, 1900–1950, Volume II, edited by Philip Butcher, focuses on the conflicts engendered in a nation within which a large variety of ethnic groups seek to fulfill the ideals of “life, liberty, and the pur­suit of happiness.” The section “Abuse and Violence” explores how individual and group prejudices create dis­trust, contempt, antagonism, and confrontation. Such dynamics are thrown into bold relief in “The War Abroad–The Battle at Home,” where certain selections point to a bitter irony: soldiers fighting side by side on the battlefield bury their prejudices but revive them the moment they return home to “the land of the free.”  Also highlighted in this volume are the dilemmas faced by individuals who attempt to transcend their ethnicity. In “Love Conquers All?” characters choose to love someone of a different ethnic background despite pressures to conform to tradition. In “Identity in Question–‘Passing,’” individuals disavow their racial heritage in order to improve their status in the majority society.

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