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John William De Forest coined the term "Great American Novel" in 1868 to refer to a novel that depicted the everyday emotions and behaviors of American life.
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Key Points
- The term "Great American Novel" was coined in 1868 by John William De Forest.
- De Forest argued that the novel that captured the ordinary emotions and manners of American existence had yet to be written.
- Nathaniel Hawthorne and Harriet Beecher Stowe were mentioned as authors who attempted to write the Great American Novel.
- De Forest believed that Stowe's Uncle Tom's Cabin came closest to achieving this, despite its faulty plot.
- The concept of the Great American Novel is still relevant today.
- The Economist is featuring a Summer reads series that includes book lists and guest essays.
Summaries
28 word summary
The term "Great American Novel" was coined by John William De Forest in 1868 to describe a novel that captured the ordinary emotions and manners of American existence.
42 word summary
The term "Great American Novel" was coined by John William De Forest in 1868, who argued that a novel capturing the ordinary emotions and manners of American existence had yet to be written. De Forest believed that authors such as Nathaniel Hawthorne
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The Great American Novel
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The Economist
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The Great
American Novel
An idiosyncratic
selection of works that portray the character of
America
Aug 25th 2023
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This article is part of our Summer
reads series. Visit the full
collection
for book
lists, guest essays and more seasonal distractions.
OHN WILLIAM DE FOREST
coined
the term Great American Novel in 1868. In an essay he argued that the
novel had yet to be written that captured the picture of the ordinary
emotions and manners of American existence. Worthy authors, such as
Nathaniel Hawthorne, he said, had staggered under the load of trying.
Harriet Beecher Stowe, in his reckoning, had come closest with her epic
slave tale, Uncle Toms Cabin (despite its very faulty
plot).
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