The Jeremiad in American Science Fiction Literature, 1890-1970

University of Wisconsin Milwaukee UWM Digital Commons Theses and Dissertations May 2019 The eJ remiad in American Science Fiction Literature, 1890-1970 Matthew chneideS r University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee Follow this and additional works at: https://dc.uwm.edu/etd Part of the American Literature Commons, English Language and Literature Commons, and the United States History Commons Recommended Citation Schneider, Matthew, "The eJ remiad in American Science Fiction Literature, 1890-1970" (2019). Theses and Dissertations. 2119. https://dc.uwm.edu/etd/2119 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by UWM Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in Theses and Dissertations by an authorized administrator of UWM Digital Commons. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE JEREMIAD IN AMERICAN SCIENCE FICTION LITERATURE, 1890-1970 by Matthew J. Schneider A Dissertation Submitted in Partial Fulfillment of the Requirements for the Degree of Doctor of Philosophy in English at The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee May 2019 ABSTRACT THE JEREMIAD IN AMERICAN SCIENCE FICTION LITERATURE, 1890-1970 by Matthew J. Schneider The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee, 2019 Under the Supervision of Professor Peter V. Sands Scholarship on the form of sermon known as the American jeremiad—a prophetic warning of national decline and the terms of promised renewal for a select remnant—draws heavily on the work of Perry Miller and Sacvan Bercovitch. A wealth of scholarship has critiqued Bercovitch’s formulation of the jeremiad, which he argues is a rhetorical form that holds sway in American culture by forcing political discourse to hold onto an “America” as its frame of reference. But most interlocutors still work with the jeremiad primarily in American studies or in terms of national discourse. Rooted in the legacy of Puritan rhetoric, the jeremiad is most commonly used to frame discussion of political speech or literary texts that grapple with national identity. The jeremiad is also firmly entrenched in science-fiction literature, and some attempts have been made to assay its function in that genre. But studies of the jeremiad in science-fictional literature tend toward framing those works, too, in terms of national discourse, even though science-fictional literature typically relies on tropes and strategies that are far beyond the ability of nationality to contain. "ii In this dissertation, I argue that the jeremiad in science-fictional American literature works against the framework of national identity. Though the texts draw on contemporary political discourses that are often specifically American, their engagements with the jeremiad lead them beyond the imaginary of the United States. Instead, by examining specific science-fictional approaches to the concepts of time and space, race, technocracy, and images of exodus, I demonstrate that these texts consistently urge readers to imagine political belonging outside the framework of national culture. After examining the science-fictional approaches to these concepts and how we can best understand them in terms of the jeremiad, I put them together to show that, even in an American literary context, the American jeremiad militates against cohesion, generating different vectors of political action within and without the American paradigm. "iii © Copyright by Matthew J. Schneider, 2019 All Rights Reserved "iv A is for Adventure may we always be on one B is for Bastian our beloved son E is for Ellen wise, patient, and true F is for Friends especially (you know who you are) you! "v TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS vii Introduction. Imagining Prophecy—The Jeremiad in American Science Fiction 1 Chapter One. Imagining Class: Ignatius Donnelly’s Caesar’s Column and Jack London’s The Iron Heel, 1890-1910 31 Chapter Two. Imagining Racial Difference: W. E. B. Du Bois’s “The Comet” and George Schuyler’s Black No More, 1910-1935 95 Chapter Three. Imagining Technocracy: E. E. “Doc” Smith’s Lensmen and Isaac Asimov’s Foundation, 1935-1955 157 Chapter Four. Imagining Exodus: Ayn Rand’s Atlas Shrugged and Walter M. Miller, Jr.’s A Canticle for Leibowitz, 1955-1960 216 Conclusion. Imagining the Science-Fictional Jeremiad 271 Works Cited 283 Matthew Schneider - Curriculum Vitae 311 "vi ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS The work that went into this dissertation is the labor of many able, willing, and— above all—generous hands. My committee has done so much so give shape and substance to it. First and foremost, my mentor, Peter Sands, has shepherded me through this project with grace and wisdom, and I continue marvel at how he always seems to ask exactly the right questions. Annie McClanahan offered incredible support and incisive feedback on this project, even from half a continent away. Jason Puskar, in whose nineteenth-century American lit seminar this project was initially conceived, has been a great adviser and loyal reader of drafts, continually offering constructive ways to approach this project even when the writing was lacking in both craft and content. I’d also like to thank both Greg Carter and Aims McGuinness for their interest in and support of this project. Dozens of my colleagues have offered critical feedback on aspects of this project over the years, not only pushing me to strive for excellence but modeling provocative writing and sterling scholarship. In particular, I must thank the UWM writing circle that invited me in when I needed the friendship and camaraderie. Bridget Kies, Jeremy Carnes, Allain Daigle, Ali Sperling, Kal Heck, Kris Purzycki, Molly McCourt, Jessica Johnston, Luisa Koo, Eric Herhuth, and Carter Reitman have all been, as the "vii kids say, the best. Chapters in this project have benefitted from the hospitality and critical feedback at the 2015 Midwest Conference on Utopian Studies 2015 and the conference of the 2017 Science Fiction Research Association. I also feel particularly blessed to have been part of the UWM Department of English, where, in my experience, the faculty, staff, and peers somehow manage to practice a difficult blend of kindness and exacting standards that makes it a fertile culture for intellectual inquiry. I’ve also been humbled by the love and support of friends and family beyond the protocols of academe. Jeremy, Kris, Kal, and Geoff Gimse gave me the gift of Dungeons & Dragons and their friendship in a summer when I really needed a lifeline, and my gratitude is eternal. I must also thank the members of the Bastian Committee— Amber, Chris, Kelsey, Brie, Chad, Angie, Jake, and Adam—for letting me take time away from them to work on this thing. Steve and Kirsten Grandchamp in particular have been driving forces behind my work, always being solicitous, encouraging, and dispensing sage wisdom. I think of Steve as an unofficial sixth man in my committee, and I thank him for helping keep me steadied. You are awe-inspiring people, and I’m very grateful to have you as friends and family. My family is too large to name everyone individually who has materially supported me during this time, but they all have been incredibly kind in different ways. I have appreciated Darlene and Larry checking in on me from Ohio. My in-laws have all been my cheerleaders for years—I’ve appreciated all the empathy and care packages "viii from Laura, James, Sam, Julie (and Pumi and Kyle). They did help immensely. Amber, again, I must thank for constantly taking an interest in my esoteric work and forgiving me when I nattered on uncontrollably when she was kind (and foolish) enough to ask specific questions. (And they were always good questions!) Bringing the dissertation to completion is unimaginable without the support of my parents, Tim and Jean, who have taken care of me and my family when I was immersed in reading and writing. Without them helping care for my wife and son, this project would not be done. Thank you, mom and dad. I’m glad I’m your son. As seems to be customary, my penultimate paragraph in the acknowledgements section is reserved for my wife and son. Whenever I read a scholarly monograph, I actually do tend to read the acknowledgements. I’ve had this tendency for years, though it has become a sort of ritual the further along I got in writing my dissertation. That’s because I came to appreciate on the most fundamental level that a scholar’s immediate family, much like the dissertation committee, has a unique status in the composition of this kind of work. They’re not co-authors, quite. But the amount of time, cognitive and emotional energy, and personal investment that goes into a project like this is otherwise unremarked outside of the acknowledgements. My son won’t remember the hours that he watched me scratching illegible script in my notebooks with a book or article PDF opened in front of me; nor will he remember how much time he spent curled up in a playpen or grinning toothlessly at me from his chair or "ix stomping around the desk as I pecked away at a keyboard all afternoon. But he was my familiar, and I was gratified to have him with me. Ellen has worked on this project with me from the beginning—she’s my proofreader, my B.S. detector, my critical sounding board, and ever the erudite conversation partner. All while being a professional dynamo in her own field. I love you both, and I thank you for bringing this project to fruition. However much credit all those wonderful people deserve for helping get this thing done, I do have to reserve some credit for myself: if you happen to catch any errors in fact, judgment, or interpretation anywhere in this manuscript, those belong entirely to me. "x INTRODUCTION. Imagining Prophecy—The Jeremiad in American Science Fiction The Propheteers Prophecy, prophet, prophetic, prophesy—these terms are as endemic to science fiction critical discourse as “spaceship,” “future,” “robot,” or “alien.” Almost invariably, what is meant by such a term is a kind of futurological prognostication.

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