The Cambridge companion to Don DeLillo /
edited by John N. Duvall.
- Cambridge, UK ; New York : Cambridge University Press, 2008.
- xii, 203 p. ; 24 cm.
- Cambridge companions to literature .
With the publication of his seminal novel White Noise, Don DeLillo was elevated into the pantheon of great American writers. His novels are admired and studied for their narrative technique, political themes, and their prophetic commentary on the cultural crises affecting contemporary America. In an age dominated by the image, DeLillo's fiction encourages the reader to think historically about such matters as the Cold War, the assassination of President Kennedy, threats to the environment, and terrorism. This Companion charts the shape of DeLillo's career, his relation to twentieth-century aesthetics, and his major themes. It also provides in-depth assessments of his best-known novels, White Noise, Libra, and Underworld, which have become required reading not only for students of American literature, but for all interested in the history and the future of American culture.
Includes bibliographical references (p. 193-198) and index.
Power of history and the persistence of mystery / DeLillo and modernism / DeLillo, postmodernism, postmodernity / DeLillo and media culture / DeLillo's apocalyptic satires / DeLillo and the political thriller / White noise / Libra / Underworld / DeLillo and masculinity / DeLillo's Dedalian artists / DeLillo and the power of language / DeLillo and mystery / Writing amid the ruins : 9/11 and Cosmopolis / John N. Duvall -- Philip Nel -- Peter Knight -- Peter Boxall -- Joseph Dewey -- Tim Engles -- Stacy Olster -- Jeremy Green -- Patrick O'Donnell -- Ruth Helyer -- Mark Osteen -- David Cowart -- John A. McClure -- Joseph M. Conte.