The American Novel in the 1940s and 1950s with Mark Schenker [Zoom]

Mark Schenker of Yale College offers the third installment of his American Novel lecture series at Wilton Library, turning to a varied quartet of mid-20th-century classics. This series will be offered via Zoom with a bonus: the final session will be in-person in the Brubeck Room [as well as on Zoom] with a short reception after the lecture to chat with Mark and each other at the series conclusion.

If the pre-adolescent was the primary model of the child in American and British fiction of the 19th century, the adolescent and young adult were the focus of much American fiction of the 1940s and 1950s. One could hardly find two more different books focusing on young Americans growing up in challenging circumstances than Native Son and A Tree Grows in Brooklyn. And the themes of alienation and rebellion are given original and realistic treatments in two post-WWII examinations of the tensions between loneliness and community, between culture and counterculture. Attendees are not expected to read or reread all or even any of the novels, but a familiarity with them will, of course, make the lectures more meaningful.

Here are the novels for each week: Oct. 6 — Native Son; Oct. 13 — A Tree Grows in Brooklyn; Oct. 20 — The Catcher in the Rye; Oct. 27 — On the Road. There is no charge for the program. This lecture series is made possible with the support of the Literary Series in Memory of Amy Quigley.

Advance registration is required. Register online or call 203.762.6334. You will automatically be registered for all four sessions in the series. Email Michael Bellacosa with any questions.