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New Sincerity in American Literature

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New Sincerity in American Literature University of Rhode Island DigitalCommons@URI Open Access Dissertations 2018 THE NEW SINCERITY IN AMERICAN LITERATURE Matthew J. Balliro University of Rhode Island, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/oa_diss Recommended Citation Balliro, Matthew J., "THE NEW SINCERITY IN AMERICAN LITERATURE" (2018). Open Access Dissertations. Paper 771. https://digitalcommons.uri.edu/oa_diss/771 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by DigitalCommons@URI. It has been accepted for inclusion in Open Access Dissertations by an authorized administrator of DigitalCommons@URI. For more information, please contact [email protected]. THE NEW SINCERITY IN AMERICAN LITERATURE BY MATTHEW J. BALLIRO A DISSERTATION SUBMITTED IN PARTIAL FULFILLMENT OF THE REQUIREMENTS FOR THE DEGREE OF DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY IN ENGLISH UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 2018 DOCTOR OF PHILOSOPHY DISSERTATION OF Matthew J. Billaro APPROVED: Dissertation Committee: Major Professor Naomi Mandel Ryan Trimm Robert Widdell Nasser H. Zawia DEAN OF THE GRADUATE SCHOOL UNIVERSITY OF RHODE ISLAND 2018 Abstract The New Sincerity is a provocative mode of literary interpretation that focuses intensely on coherent connections that texts can build with readers who are primed to seek out narratives and literary works that rest on clear and stable relationships between dialectics of interior/exterior, self/others, and meaning/expression. Studies on The New Sincerity so far have focused on how it should be situated against dominant literary movements such as postmodernism. My dissertation aims for a more positive definition, unfolding the most essential details of The New Sincerity in three parts: by exploring the intellectual history of the term “sincerity” and related ideas (such as authenticity); by establishing the historical context that created the conditions that led to The New Sincerity’s genesis in the 1990s; and by tracing the different forms reading with The New Sincerity can take by analyzing a diverse body of literary texts. The works of literature I examine come from a very brief span in the final decade of the twentieth century, but there are innumerable avenues for future research and study that can expand the study of The New Sincerity. Acknowledgements This project would not have been possible without the long-lasting support I have received from the members of my graduate committee. I first would like to recognize my major professor, Naomi Mandel, who has stood by my project and me for years; her guidance has helped me become a more thoughtful scholar and a patient learner. The rest of my committee has dedicated an incredible amount of time and energy to seeing my work through to its completion, and for that I would like to thank Ryan Trimm, Rob Widell, and Jeremiah Dyehouse. I would also like to thank the rest of the URI English faculty—past and present—for helping me achieve my academic goals, especially David Faflik and Gina Valentino. I want to offer the sincerest of thanks to the staff of the English Department that has provided me with assistance throughout my years at URI. I especially want to give recognition to Michelle Caraccia, who has been with me every step of the way—I was very lucky to have her on my side for each major moment and decision over the years. I also want to recognize Dawn Cute and Kara Lewis, both of whom we miss dearly. I would like to thank my parents—Jean and John Balliro, and Maureen and Joe Supitkowsky—without whom I wouldn’t be anywhere, much less at the end of such a journey. Mom and Dad have been my champions and my bedrock of support for my entire life, and Mo and Joe have logged more hours, driven more miles, and given more of themselves than anyone conceivably could; I will never be able to thank them enough. Every other member of my family, extended and iii otherwise, has been instrumental in making this possible, especially my brothers and sisters—John, Dan, Mary, Courtney, Brandon, Jessica, and Stephen—Auntie Tía (Patricia Dolan), and my other dear friends—there are too many to name. I thank them all. I am confident that my work would not have reached this point without the daily inspiration I receive from my children. Bridget, Matthew, and James, thank you for telling me—in your own ways—that I could do it. iv Dedication You once wrote to me, “You’re brilliant. You are.” Through ups and downs and the good and the not-so-good, I haven’t always agreed with this 100%, but in the same message you also wrote, “I, obviously, know you can do it and I am always right.” If there are two things I’ve consistently been able to hold on to, the first is that, yes, every single turn our lives have taken has proven that you are right about everything—especially these important things. And second, I know that without your support, your love, and your believing in me, none of this could have ever been possible. This work is for my partner, my wife, and my best friend, Shannon. Of course. v Table of Contents Abstract ................................................................................................................................................ ii Acknowledgements ...................................................................................................................... iii Dedication ........................................................................................................................................... v Table of Contents ............................................................................................................................ vi Introduction - Sincerity, Authenticity, and The New Sincerity .................................... 1 Chapter 1 – What Is (Has) The New Sincerity (Been)? ................................................ 25 Chapter 2 – “The space between two heartbeats”: David Foster Wallace’s Infinite Jest and The New Sincerity ....................................................................................... 53 Chapter 3 – “I knew then what it must have been like”: The New Sincerity and Empathy in Junot Díaz’s Drown .............................................................................................. 83 Chapter 4 - “If they didn’t see it, they didn’t see it”: Balancing The New Sincerity in Tropic of Orange ................................................................................................ 118 Conclusion – What’s Next for The New Sincerity? ...................................................... 145 Bibliography ................................................................................................................................ 154 vi Introduction - Sincerity, Authenticity, and The New Sincerity The New Sincerity is a mode of interpretation defined by an intense focus on identifying and fostering coherent connections between readers and literary texts; it is often associated with clear and stable relationships between dialectics of interior/exterior, self/others, and meaning/expression. In the critical work that exists on the topic thus far, the impulses behind The New Sincerity have primarily been directed towards what a text means, or—more complexly— interpreting how an author or text navigates innumerable layers of artifice and performativity in order to pass along an earnest message, idea, feeling, or value to their audience; these studies have placed The New Sincerity in opposition to irony or any other mode of expression that purposely obfuscates meaning. However, this is not the only form that The New Sincerity can take, and the next step in scholarship on the topic—which my project takes as its primary purpose—is a foundational move that has not yet been undertaken at great length: to elucidate the multifaceted roots of The New Sincerity in order to ground it intellectually, historically, and textually. In service to that end, this dissertation will make three primary moves: first, I will explore the complex intellectual history of the many forms “sincerity” has taken from the early modern period through the end of the twentieth century, a collection of disparate ideas that each have a bit of influence; second, I will unpack the historical and social contexts that helped develop the attitudes and anxieties which sought a new interpretive model; and third—the deepest and most expansive piece of the puzzle—to examine works of literature from the 1 period when The New Sincerity in American literature came together most clearly, the 1990s, in order to demonstrate how they condition and guide a particular mode of reading that emphasizes the text’s connection with the reader as a bulwark against fragmentation and detachment. This introduction will focus on the first of these moves, while the remaining chapters will take on the heavy lifting of historicizing The New Sincerity and tracing its development through a diverse body of literary works. In deciding where to begin a review of the intellectual history of “sincerity,” perhaps the simplest place to start is the dictionary. The OED includes four different senses for the word “sincere,” with each one of those (save the third) having multiple sub-senses; the word “sincerity” includes two senses, each with multiple sub-senses. There are obsolete and rare senses scattered between them. This is all to say that the history of the word “sincerity” is as complex as the different ways it has been deployed in literary and cultural studies, and before moving forward with defining The New Sincerity in literary-cultural
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