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Representations of Money in American Literature, 1896-1944

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Representations of Money in American Literature, 1896-1944 FACE VALUE: REPRESENTATIONS OF MONEY IN AMERICAN LITERATURE, 1896-1944 A thesis submitted to The University of Manchester for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in the Faculty of Humanities 2012 LAURA ELIZABETH BEKERIS KEY School of Arts, Histories and Cultures/English and American Studies Laura E. B. Key Contents Abstract 3 Declaration 4 Copyright Statement 4 Acknowledgements 5 About the Author 6 Introduction 7 Chapter 1: “The Effect of the Work was Two-Thirds the Game”: Exterior Presentation and Interior Reality in Robert Herrick’s The Common Lot 48 Chapter 2: “Remembering Right”: Gertrude Stein’s Three Lives and the Development of Early Modernism 96 Chapter 3: Boom and Bust: F. Scott Fitzgerald and Money Management 138 Chapter 4: The Dominant Dollar: John Dos Passos’ U.S.A. 189 Conclusion 238 Bibliography 253 Word Count: 84,770. 2 Laura E. B. Key Abstract “Face Value: Representations of Money in American Literature, 1896-1944” A thesis presented for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy Laura Elizabeth Bekeris Key, The University of Manchester, 31st July, 2012 This thesis analyses the significance of socio-historical conceptions of money in relation to the development of American literary modernism from 1896 to 1944. Taking as its starting point Jean-Joseph Goux’s contention that there was a correlation between the end of gold-backed money in France and the birth of French modernist literature, this study considers how far this claim is tenable in the American case. In 1896, the key debate surrounding the presidential election was over whether money should be backed by gold or silver specie, which became a major public issue. Faith in the gold standard was challenged, raising the possibility that the source of monetary value was negotiable. Subsequent policy changes, financial panics, the Depression and the World Wars all affected public conceptions of money, until the Bretton Woods Agreement instituted an international gold standard supported by the gold-backed U.S. dollar in 1944, effectively re-establishing a firm relationship between gold and money. Since the 1990s, New Economic Criticism has sought to understand the ways in which money and literature converge throughout history. Although several studies of money and American literary realism have been undertaken, the relationship between money and American literary modernism specifically has largely been overlooked in scholarship. Analysing the works of Robert Herrick, Gertrude Stein, F. Scott Fitzgerald and John Dos Passos, this thesis contends that a certain strand of American modernism developed as a series of reflections upon the relationship between money, value and realistic representation, in which the limitations of realism are exposed. Calling for a re-historicisation of the relationship between money and literature, this study argues that particular socio-historical moments in the story of American money emphasised the fluidity of money, sending social conceptions of value into flux in a society in which money functioned as the general equivalent by which all values were measured. These moments when accepted face values were called into question offered American writers the language and structure by which to consider and challenge the limitations of existing literary forms by comparing money with literature. Both paper money and literature, forms of representation which function via the inscription of words upon paper, contain an inherent duality; they have both a material value, in terms of their composition from paper and ink, and a deeper capacity to represent a certain value in the society in which they circulate. Modernism is concerned with such a duality, emphasising the materiality of the text and exposing the text’s status as a representation that can never equal the reality that it represents. The authors discussed here confronted the discrepancy between written language as a reflection of the real world and words as material constructs in themselves through the metaphor of money, manifesting in both textual theme and structure, where the boundaries of realist representation are broken down via the use of unconventional forms. Utilising the method of close textual analysis and situating the texts examined within the wider socio-historical contexts of which they were born, the thesis focuses upon four different moments in the story of U.S. money and literature. This historically contingent approach facilitates the argument that these literary texts function as sites at which to examine and come to terms with contemporaneous social issues, helping to broaden both the purpose and structure of American literature in the early-twentieth century. 3 Laura E. B. Key Declaration No portion of the work referred to in the thesis has been submitted in support of an application for another degree or qualification of this or any other university or other institute of learning. Copyright Statement i. The author of this thesis (including any appendices and/or schedules to this thesis) owns certain copyright or related rights in it (the “Copyright”) and s/he has given The University of Manchester certain rights to use such Copyright, including for administrative purposes. ii. Copies of this thesis, either in full or in extracts and whether in hard or electronic copy, may be made only in accordance with the Copyright, Designs and Patents Act 1988 (as amended) and regulations issued under it or, where appropriate, in accordance with licensing agreements which the University has from time to time. This page must form part of any such copies made. iii. The ownership of certain Copyright, patents, designs, trade marks and other intellectual property (the “Intellectual Property”) and any reproductions of copyright works in the thesis, for example graphs and tables (“Reproductions”), which may be described in this thesis, may not be owned by the author and may be owned by third parties. Such Intellectual Property and Reproductions cannot and must not be made available for use without the prior written permission of the owner(s) of the relevant Intellectual Property and/or Reproductions. iv. Further information on the conditions under which disclosure, publication and commercialisation of this thesis, the Copyright and any Intellectual Property and/or Reproductions described in it may take place is available in the University IP Policy (see http://documents.manchester.ac.uk/DocuInfo.aspx?DocID=487), in any relevant Thesis restriction declarations deposited in the University Library, The University Library’s regulations (see http://www.manchester.ac.uk/library/aboutus/regulations) and in The University’s policy on Presentation of Theses. 4 Laura E. B. Key Acknowledgements I must begin by acknowledging the inspirational American Studies department at Keele University; in particular, Prof. Ian Bell, Prof. Oliver Harris and Dr. Tim Lustig, without whose enthusiasm and interest in my work I might never have pursued postgraduate study. At Manchester, the strong and supportive English and American Studies department has allowed me to develop not only my skills as a researcher but also my teaching and learning skills, providing a rich academic environment in which to study. To the whole department I extend my thanks. To my supervisor, Dr. Peter Knight, who has supported my research tirelessly, providing constant feedback and even continuing to supervise my project during his sabbatical year, I will forever be indebted. The opportunities that you gave me to become a Research Assistant and Project Assistant during my PhD study have broadened my employment experience and also afforded me the ability to study full time. Thank you. To Dr. Monica Pearl and Dr. Michael Bibler, thank you for completing a really engaged and helpful supervisory team, providing me with valuable feedback and advice for which I will always be grateful. To my family and friends, who have followed me on this four year journey of highs and lows, thank you for all the support and interest that you have shown in my work – maybe some of you will even read it one day. To my mother, Reet Järvik, you have been a constant support – both emotional and financial – and champion of my academic studies. My eternal gratitude goes to you for always encouraging me and for agreeing valiantly to proofread this mammoth piece of work. Thank you. And finally, to my husband, Christopher Key. You have been there through the ups and downs and I can honestly say that without your emotional support I would have struggled to complete this project. I am so pleased to have reached this stage of the academic journey and will be forever grateful to you for always listening. This thesis is dedicated to you. 5 Laura E. B. Key About the Author Laura Elizabeth Bekeris Key gained a First Class BA (Hons) in English and American Literatures from Keele University in 2007, where she was also awarded the Charles Swann Prize for Literature. Her AHRC-funded MA in English and American Studies was awarded by The University of Manchester in 2008, the same institution at which she has studied for her PhD in the English and American Studies department. Laura’s main research interests are the development of American literary modernism and the interaction between social discourses of money and the literary text. Laura hopes to publish a series of articles based on her thesis and, eventually, a monograph on representations of money in American literature. 6 Laura E. B. Key Introduction Literary modernism is a genre that is notoriously difficult to define, existing in multifarious forms that resist straightforward categorisation. Despite this problem of definition, the overarching commonality between modernist texts perhaps recognised most often in modernist scholarship is the breakdown of conventional literary form, challenging the relationship between the text and the world beyond.1 In contrast with the realist text, which purports to represent the real world as closely as possible via its content, the modernist text seeks to offer something new, exploring textual materiality and considering the internal workings of the text aside from its relationship to reality.
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