UC Irvine UC Irvine Electronic Theses and Dissertations Title "Everything Was Strange": Regional Nationalisms and Ironic Identities in Early National American Fiction. Permalink https://escholarship.org/uc/item/9sx698sh Author Garcia, Brian João Publication Date 2015 Peer reviewed|Thesis/dissertation eScholarship.org Powered by the California Digital Library University of California UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE “Everything Was Strange”: Regional Nationalisms and Ironic Identities in Early National American Fiction. DISSERTATION submitted in partial satisfaction of the requirements for the degree of DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY in English by Brian João Garcia Dissertation Committee: Professor Steven Mailloux, Chair Professor Michael Clark Professor Rodrigo Lazo Professor Jack Miles 2015 © 2015 Brian João Garcia DEDICATION To My parents, Alice and João Garcia, my brother, Kevin Garcia, and Ashley Montgomery. Thank you for your patience, support, and love. ii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGMENTS iv CURRICULUM VITAE vi ABSTRACT OF THE DISSERTATION viii INTRODUCTION: Toward a National Literature 1 The Idea of the Nation 6 Originary Myths 10 Irony and Nationhood 14 Making the Nation Strange 17 CHAPTER 1: “The image that I once adored”: Interrogating the Nation in Wieland 21 The Indeterminate Ideologue 23 Pennsylvania’s Pious Saxons 27 Isolation, Inheritance, Education 40 Mediation and Skepticism 49 “If the senses be depraved…” 54 The Great Nation, on Paper 63 CHAPTER 2: (Per)forming the American Through Islam in Early American Literature 67 Coherence, Fragmentation, and Orientalism 69 Beginnings 75 Islam vs. Republican Womanhood 78 The Algerian Picaresque 85 Mustapha, the Metropolis, and the Logocracy 97 CHAPTER 3: Mockery, Mimicry, and Mutability: National Character and Literary Tradition in Washington Irving’s A History of New York and The Sketch-Book of Geoffrey Crayon 113 The “Pedantic Lore” of Knickerbocker’s History 115 City, Country, and Nation in The Sketch-Book of Geoffrey Crayon 122 Geoffrey Crayon and the Meaning of Christmas 140 Yankees, Indians, and the Barbarism of Connecticut 160 AFTERWORD: Against “Sheikh McScrooge” 169 WORKS CITED 174 iii ACKNOWLEDGMENTS Happy plight though it may be, I find that the enormous debt owed to so many people over so much time makes for a peculiarly vexing challenge when it comes to expressing my gratitude. It is a distinctly Shandyan endeavor to attempt to trace the beginnings of one’s work and then remember all those who made it possible, and I feel that I’m doomed to fail at some level. I will, however, try; and offer, along with these heartfelt thanks, a sincere apology to anyone who has been erroneously left out. It seems like a lifetime ago that, during an office hour at Cal State Fullerton, Chris Ruiz- Velasco first suggested that I look into entering a Ph.D. program. It had never even entered my mind as a possibility before then, but with his help and direction I approached the new goal with single-minded purpose. My efforts were further strengthened and encouraged by the generous advice of Marlin Blaine, Cornel Bonca, and Craig Carson, all of whom were crucial to turning my utter ignorance about graduate school into a successful application to UCI. At UCI, I’ve had the benefit of a scholarly community comprised of some of the most talented, intelligent, and generous people to be found anywhere in academia. More than anyone, Steven Mailloux has walked me through this process with unceasing kindness and patience. His methods are foundational to my work, while his combination of brilliance and humility is an example that I hope to emulate as a scholar. Michael Clark not only provided me with valuable input on my writing and research, but introduced me to several of the texts that would become the backbone of my dissertation. Jack Miles always brought a unique and encouraging perspective to bear on my work, and I will always appreciate the time he spent chatting with me about any number of fascinating topics. Finally, Rodrigo Lazo kept me honest, nudging me little by little toward greater rigor whenever it was lacking. In addition to my committee members, I’ve had the opportunity to work with some stunningly accomplished scholars, among whom I’ve been lucky enough to feel star-struck only for so long as it took to be introduced and welcomed into the academic community. I’ve benefited inestimably from instruction by, conversation with, and general proximity to Julia Reinhard-Lupton, Jerome Christensen, Jayne Lewis, John Smith, Jane Newman, Brook Thomas, Rei Terada, Gabriele Schwab, Michael Szalay, R. Radhakrishnan, Ngũgĩ wa Thiong'o, James Steintrager, David Pan, Joseph McKenna, Sohail Daulatzai, Lynda Haas, Tira Palmquist, Jonathan Alexander, Elizabeth Allen, Hugh Roberts, Victoria Silver, Ann Van Sant, Elisa Tamarkin, and J. Hillis Miller. I was fortunate early on at UCI to forge close and enduring friendships with Erin Pearson, Terry Pawlowski, John Nieman, Angela Beckett, Bowen Slate-Greene, and Robert Anasi, all of whom deserve credit for helping me maintain a shred of sanity over the course of this journey. My fellow musketeers Ali Meghdadi and Tae Sung have been fellow travelers in the truest sense of the expression. I’ve also been privileged to have the company and ear of Phil Walsh, Ian Jensen, Mo Rafi, Sam Lam, Nathan Fulton, Forrest Fleming, Robin Stewart, Jacqueline Way, Erin McNellis, Patrick Keller, Jesse Weiner, Tamara Beauchamp, Ameeth Vijay, CJ Gordon, Joe Blankholm, Tyler Dean, Hillary Branman, Brian Fonken, Cristina Rodriguez, Erin Sweeney, Samantha Cohen Tamulis, Elizabeth Wyatt, Chris Dearner, Jon Paul Lourenço, Nathan Gonçalves, and Ahmed Younis. This work was made possible by institutional support in the form of the Regents’ Fellowship, Humanities Travel Grants, Rhetoric and Composition Travel Grants, and a generous research grant from the Humanities Center. It also benefited from the assistance of people at the iv New York Public Library, New-York Historical Society, and especially Jennifer Steenshorne of the Butler Library at Columbia University. Outside of the academy, I have been shaped by a number of vibrant communities, and I’d be remiss not to express my affection for three places that have affected me more than any other: El-Mahalla El-Kubra, Egypt, for its hospitality; Artesia, CA., for raising me; and Altares, Terceira, for being the spring from which all else flowed. Long Beach also gets a shout, and I’m looking forward to getting back to boxing and beers with Adam Rupert Fisher. I’ve covered more miles with Wesam Nassar than with anyone else, and Gary Gaspar has been by my side since kindergarten. Their friendships have seen me through good times and bad, their words of support have carried me over some rough terrain, and I’m proud that they both still deign to call me a friend. Of course, I would never be anywhere without my family. Thanking my entire extended family would require a book-length document in itself, so I hope it suffices to say that they have played an important part in my life and development. I consider this work a feeble tribute to my late uncle Antonio Pinheiro, whose book collection was one of a kind in our community, who encouraged curiosity and critical inquiry, and whose opinions helped me hone my argumentative skills. My parents—João and Alice Garcia—believed in me and tolerated my nonsense when I was probably deserving of neither their faith nor their indulgence, and from earliest childhood fostered a fascination with languages and a love of intellectual pursuits. They are two of the smartest, kindest, hardest working people I know, and any achievement I can claim is a testament to their love. Despite my more advanced years, I consider my brother Kevin a role model. His work ethic and wisdom are truly something to behold, and his blunt advice has never led me astray. Finally, I must give special thanks to Ashley Montgomery (and Dylan!), whose love has pulled me through a difficult year and a half of dissertating. She’s put up with unreasonable work schedules, ruined weekends, mood swings, bizarre sleep patterns, and a host of other traits that may have sent a lesser partner running. She’s been patient enough to get me through, but impatient enough to encourage me to finish, and for that I will be forever happily in her debt. I love you, babe. v CURRICULUM VITAE Brian João Garcia Education Doctor of Philosophy in English, University of California, Irvine; 2015 Doctoral Dissertation Committee: Steven Mailloux (chair), Michael Clark, Rodrigo Lazo, and Jack Miles Master of Arts in English, University of California, Irvine; 2009 Bachelor of Arts in English, California State University, Fullerton; 2006 Teaching Orange Coast College, Fall 2014 to present. Freshman Composition (English 100) – Fall 2014, Spring 2015 Critical Reasoning, Reading, and Writing Through Literature (English 101) – Fall 2014, Spring 2015 University of California at Irvine, Fall 2008 to Summer 2014. Critical Reading and Rhetoric (WR 39B) – Fall 2008, Winter 2009, Fall 2013, Winter 2014 Writing 139W – Fall 2012, Spring 2013 Introduction to World Religions: TA for Prof. Joseph McKenna – Winter 2013 Humanities Core Course Program: Teaching Associate – Fall 2011-Spring 2012 Hip-Hop Culture (Film and Media 399): TA for Prof. Sohail Daulatzai – Spring 2011 History of Literary Theory and Criticism (E100): TA for Prof. Michael Clark – Fall 2010 Comic and Tragic Vision (E28B) – Winter 2010 Realism and Romance (E28C) – Fall 2009, Spring 2010 Argument and Research (WR