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BVFORMATION TO USERS This manuscript has been reproduced from the microfilm master. UMI films the tect directly fix>m the original or copy submitted. Thus, some thesis and dissertation copies are in typewriter free, while others may be from any type o f computer printer. The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. Broken or indistinct print, colored or poor quality illustrations and photographs, print bleedthrough, substandard margins, and improper alignment can adversely affect reproduction. In the unlikely event that the author did not send UMI a complete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if unauthorized copyright material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. Oversize materials (e.g., maps, drawings, charts) are reproduced by sectioning the original, beginning at the upper left-hand comer and continuing from 1 ^ to right in equal sections with small overlaps. Each original is also photographed in one exposure and is included in reduced form at the back o f the book. Photographs included in the original manuscript have been reproduced xerographically in this copy. Ifigher quality 6” x 9” black and white photographic prints are available for any photographs or illustrations appearing in this copy for an additional charge. Contact UMI directly to order. UMI A Bell & Howell Information Compaiqr 300 North Zeeb Road, Ann Arbor MI 4S106-1346 USA 313/761-4700 800/521-0600 UNIVERSITY OF OKLAHOMA GRADUATE COLLEGE HACKING AWAY WITH AN AX; HENRY MILLER AND MODERNITY A Dissertation SUBMITTED TO THE GRADUATE FACULTY in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy By STEPHEN L STARCK Norman, Oklahoma 1999 UMI Number: 9918759 UMI Microform 9918759 Copyright 1999, by UMI Company. All rights reserved. This microform edition is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States Code. UMI 300 North Zeeb Road Ann Arbor, MI 48103 Copyright by STEPHEN L. STARCK 1999 All Rights Reserved HACKING AWAY WITH AN AX; HENRY MILLER AND MODERNITY A Dissertation APPROVED FOR THE DEPARTMENT OF ENGLISH BY Acknowledgements While working on this project I had the pleasure of discussing it with many people who became friends. Gisela Engel was among the most helpful, as were Rita Casale, Robert Nigro, Katja van der Rakt, and Astrid Wilkens. Thank you. Robin and Carol Starck, Michele Dinsmore, Michael Starck, James and Vicki Von Boeckman were all conspirators in this dissertation, whether they knew it or not. Mostly, they knew it. Thank you. Though my interest in Henry Miller has never been weak or in danger of becoming so, Roger Jackson's dedication to Miller and his works has consistently been an inspiration. He compiled and published the only bibliography of primary sources for Miller that exists. Its comprehensiveness demonstrates Mr. Jackson's commitment to furthering study of Miller. Mr. Jackson has, additionally, published works by Miller that were previously unpublished, as well as new works on Miller. Without Mr Jackson, this dissertation would be considerably less original than it is. Thank you. My dissertation committee—Dr. Pamela Genova, Dr. David Gross, Dr. Catherine Hobbs, Dr. Geary Hobson, and Dr. Henry McDonald— has also provided me much support. I must especially note the contributions of my committee chair. Dr. Gross, and my outside member, from the French Department, Dr. Genova. They both read two previous versions of this project and commented and questioned copiously, substantially helping to guide its development. They also allowed me to attempt to write an "accessible" dissertation. Thank you. Staci von Boeckmann helped me, too, with her knowledge of Marxist theory, her familiarity with other schools of theory, and her often frustrating ability to see a question in every air-tight answer. Additionally, it was her impetus that took me to Germany, where she spent two years doing archival research on her dissertation and where I wrote the greater portion of mine. During the second year there, in Frankfurt am Main, we became part of a small but close circle of people dedicated to mutual support and development, some of whom are listed above. In such a congenial atmosphere, finishing the dissertation became comparatively easy, though it was not, as Henry Miller described life with fourth wife Eve, "like living on velvet." It was, perhaps, just a little bit better. Thank you. This dissertation is dedicated to one who did not make it; Scooter, my companion of eleven and a half years. IV Table of Contents A bstract.................................................................................................................................vii Introduction / Neither Crank nor Littérateur. Henry Miller in a Worn Pair of S hoes....................................................................................................................... 1 The Focus of this Study ....................................................................................... 4 The Role of the A rtist....................................................................................... 10 Miller’s Mission ................................................................................................. 18 Henry Miller: Throwing the Gauntlet ............................................................. 31 Critics of Culture and Miller's Cultural Criticism ........................................... 39 Chapter One / Cities of Disgust and Delight: New York City and P a r is ................ 46 The Developing C ity .......................................................................................... 49 Acknowledging Differences .............................................................................. 56 Defining the City ............................................................................................... 58 Beneficial Aspects to Cities .............................................................................. 62 Mid-Century Paris, America, and City Planning .............................................. 63 Flânerie, Inspiration, and Exile: City Streets and C row ds ........................... 73 The City as Wilderness ..................................................................................... 89 Not the City of Dreams ..................................................................................... 97 Inhabitants of the City: Parks and Leisure Sp a c e ........................................... 109 Miller's Paris and the American South ......................................................... 117 Chapter Two / Cities of Delight and Disgust: the City Spectacle and Consumption ...................................................................................................... 130 What Becomes a Commodity ........................................................................... 133 Commodity Culture and Learning Your Place .............................................. 137 Manipulation and Circulation ........................................................................... 145 The New Dance—Fashion .................................................................................. 150 Consumption as O ptim ism ................................................................................ 156 The Peculiar Character of Advertising ............................................................. 158 Lighting and Spectacle ....................................................................................... 165 The Media Spectacle .......................................................................................... 172 Lands of D isgust................................................................................................. 186 Chapter Three / Out of Step: Miller, Rimbaud, Baudelaire and Disobedience . 190 From Baudelaire to R im baud ........................................................................... 191 Rejecting Bourgeois W ays................................................................................ 195 Money and the Borrowing Instinct .....................................................................206 A Most Depressing Thought.................................................................................214 Damning Praise: George Orwell's Conception of Passive Acceptance in the works of Henry M iller ....................................................................... 237 "I'd Prefer Not To" ...............................................................................................252 What are We Fighting For? .................................................................................260 Chapter Four / Life Never Looked So Bleak: Henry Miller on Progress ..................282 A Short History of Progress..................................................................................287 It's Getting So Much Better All the Time .........................................................292 Miller, Baudelaire, Rimbaud and Progress .........................................................297 Reason to the Nth Degree .................................................................................... 303 Raging Against the Machine..................................................................................308 Rescuing the Individual .........................................................................................316 Consumer Capitalism and Human Evolution ...................................................... 322 The Ultimate

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