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angrysoba · 5th August 2012, 08:32 AM

Two things inspired me to conduct this poll. One of them was the recent death of acclaimed novelist Gore Vidal and the other was picking up and very much enjoying Saul Bellow's The Adventures of Augie March.

The term Great American Novel ^TM to me refers to a novel that somehow perfectly encapsulates the American experience of life ^TM. The very difficulty in pinning down what that means is exactly what makes the search for such an experience, through the medium of the novel, something akin to the literary search for the Holy Grail.

But, I really think that the "body of work" of an author may end up being more important than a single novel and that is why I am asking, in this thread, who is the Great American Novelist!

Now, it has been variously argued that Herman Melville or Mark Twain wrote the Great American Novels and in the case of the latter I can perfectly understand why. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn could never have existed outside of the United States and it seems really did grapple with the meaning of being American. As for Melville, I don't know whether Moby Dick is as quintessentially American as, say, Bartleby the Scrivener. My own favourite of his is Billy Budd which suggests a more universal theme than American.

I have included many authors that I have never read at all such as William Faulkner, John Irving and Thomas Pynchon. If anyone can make some impassioned pleas for their importance then I will be very interested.

As for me, I will vote for Joseph Heller. No, not for "Catch 22" but for his follow-up book "Something Happened". To me this was the book that truly showed him putting his finger on the pulse of what it meant to be American just after WWII. The protagonist lives an unhappy life in which he is raising his nuclear family in all the ways that he thinks he should but finding the task frustrating and fraught with difficulty from his wife and kids and co-workers. He behaves badly and knows it but feels somehow compelled to continue this way and he describes everything so well that you feel for him even when you know his inner-most thoughts are terrible. In some ways, maybe he is not just a Great American Novelist but a Great Universal Novelist and yet "Something Happened" is a book that made me think I understood a lot more about America.

Skeptic Ginger · 5th August 2012, 08:40 AM

A'hem.... You missed a few women authors.

Louisa May Alcott
Pearl S Buck
Barbara Kingsolver
Emily Dickinson
Sylvia Plath
Joyce Carol Oates
Margaret Mitchell

angrysoba · 5th August 2012, 08:44 AM

Originally Posted by Skeptic Ginger

A'hem.... You missed a few women authors.

I know. I missed lots of authors. Which ones should I have included?

Skeptic Ginger · 5th August 2012, 08:58 AM

Originally Posted by angrysoba

I know. I missed lots of authors. Which ones should I have included?

See my edit.

I know you can't list all the great writers, but seriously, one woman?

angrysoba · 5th August 2012, 09:10 AM

Originally Posted by Skeptic Ginger

See my edit.

I know you can't list all the great writers, but seriously, one woman?

I'm sorry. I didn't mean it.

Well, I was going to add Louisa May Alcott and I was going to add Toni Morrison.

I was not going to add Sylvia Plath because I know nothing about her except her poems. Was "The Bell Jar" really a "Great American Novel"?

I thought about Margeret Atwood because I really enjoyed her writing but then I realized she was Canadian!

Anyway, I know, I know, I know that these things can be done better, and I know I could have put more thought into this. But, I guess, I failed. I failed womankind! I failed humankind! But most of all, and what the cosmos really cares so much about because of its disordered priorities, I failed MYSELF!

But just out of interest, who would you have voted for given the chance?

Damien Evans · 5th August 2012, 09:35 AM

The only possible answer is Mark Twain.

Resume · 5th August 2012, 09:46 AM

For me, because of Huck Finn, it has to be Twain.

Then I looked in my bookcases:

Sherwood Anderson, Willa Cather, Jim Harrison, Thomas McGuane, John Barth . . .

Harder than it seems.

TragicMonkey · 5th August 2012, 09:49 AM

Pearl Buck. Her work is almost forgotten these days, except for The Good Earth, which is nowhere near her best stuff.

angrysoba · 5th August 2012, 09:51 AM

What's funny (for me) is that I nearly forgot Mark Twain.

calebprime · 5th August 2012, 10:04 AM

_Infinite Jest_ -- David Foster Wallace. As American as addiction and recovery.

Huge and incredibly well-written, although excessive. (But so was _Moby Dick_)

Well worth the effort. It's even changed my life, ever so slightly.

paiute · 5th August 2012, 10:07 AM

Upton Sinclair. His Lanny Budd series is one enjoyable way to relive the events of the early part of the last century.

angrysoba · 5th August 2012, 10:17 AM

Originally Posted by calebprime

_Infinite Jest_ -- David Foster Wallace. As American as addiction and recovery.

Huge and incredibly well-written, although excessive. (But so was _Moby Dick_)

Well worth the effort. It's even changed my life, ever so slightly.

Originally Posted by paiute

Upton Sinclair. His Lanny Budd series is one enjoyable way to relive the events of the early part of the last century.

Goodness me! I know this poll is going to get so smoked by the professionals around here. You guys certainly know how to smoke a poll!

Garrette · 5th August 2012, 10:35 AM

I haven't read nearly all of them, but I find it nearly impossible to say anyone besides Mark Twain; The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is not only phenomenally well written and insightful, but its subject matter went to the heart of the American experience.

My close second was Melville; the older I get the more I appreciate Moby Dick and Melville's short stories and poetry. His Battle Pieces poems are flawed technically but remain all encompassing in grandeur and even beauty. From "The House Top":

No sleep. The sultriness pervades the air
And binds the brain -- A dense oppression, such
As tawny tigers feel in matted shades
Vexing their blood and making apt for ravage.

angrysoba · 5th August 2012, 10:38 AM

Originally Posted by Skeptic Ginger

See my edit.

I know you can't list all the great writers, but seriously, one woman?

I don't mean to be rude or wrong but could you tell me which women should have shunted which men out of the rankings?

If anyone has a better list I'd like to see it.

Aepervius · 5th August 2012, 11:03 AM

HP Lovecraft , is not in your list.
Utter fail

:P.

Skeptic Ginger · 5th August 2012, 11:20 AM

Originally Posted by angrysoba

... I was not going to add Sylvia Plath because I know nothing about her except her poems. Was "The Bell Jar" really a "Great American Novel"?

And yet you added Stephen King?

Originally Posted by angrysoba

But just out of interest, who would you have voted for given the chance?

Kingsolver is my current favorite. Out of your poll it was a tie between Steinbeck, Hemingway and Twain. But I voted for Stowe in protest.

My son is a huge fan of Pynchon.

angrysoba · 5th August 2012, 11:21 AM

Originally Posted by Aepervius

HP Lovecraft , is not in your list.
Utter fail

:P.

Oh for goodness sakes! Will people get over the fact that there are only 20 options in a poll and everyone has a (humourously titled to reflect muy famous big-heartedness) Planet X that I provided and yet no one has used.

I think that some people have complained about the lack of certain authors that they never would have voted for anyway. Seems weird to me but knock yourselves out being awkward if you wish.

Aepervius · 5th August 2012, 11:28 AM

Originally Posted by angrysoba

Oh for goodness sakes! Will people get over the fact that there are only 20 options in a poll and everyone has a (humourously titled to reflect muy famous big-heartedness) Planet X that I provided and yet no one has used.

I think that some people have complained about the lack of certain authors that they never would have voted for anyway. Seems weird to me but knock yourselves out being awkward if you wish.

I made the post in mirth, the rgeat Cthulhu be my witness, but between you and me it all depends on how you define "greatest". If for example you define it by well known, I am betting that HP Lovecrat or Edgar Alan poe would be better known than some of the name on your list.

Soooooo I vote for planet x

.

angrysoba · 5th August 2012, 11:30 AM

Hey, wait a second! I am not asking about who happens to be American and happens to have written great novels. I am specifically asking who has written Great American Novels and who has said something profound about the "American condition". For this reason, certain writers probably wouldn't make the grade because they are not really writing about being American but just writing about stuff.

Anyway, whatever, carry on.

angrysoba · 5th August 2012, 11:41 AM

Yeah, I am glad someone voted for Hemingway.

bruto · 5th August 2012, 11:52 AM

I think it's almost impossible to pin this down, and it depends on what criteria you use, and it's not necessarily one's favorite author, but I'm going to tentatively second Hemingway. I've probably read more of other authors and in some way liked them more. But I think Hemingway more than most others is responsible for creating a blunt and conversational style of writing and expression that has become the American standard. It is still usually possible to identify an American writer when you see his or her work, and although many have contributed to this, Hemingway stands out as having done it really on purpose. Of course I could be wrong, and it would not take a huge argument on someone's part for me to switch my vote to Steinbeck.

I have read and loved lots of authors from all over the place over the years, but must say that the best American authors have produced a style that makes almost everything else seem a bit clumsy and laborious by comparison.

angrysoba · 5th August 2012, 12:09 PM

I forgot to put Norman Mailer on the fuggin list.

TragicMonkey · 5th August 2012, 12:34 PM

Jane Smiley and Judith Guest. I don't like them as much as Pearl Buck (who did win a Nobel Prize in Literature, remember) but they're damn good. And yes, it's a coincidence that they happen to be women. I've been looking at my bookshelves and it seems that for American writers, my favorites tend to be women. For foreign authors, they tend to be men.

If we can count WH Hudson on the basis of his parents being American, I'd include him on the list as well, but he's become fairly obscure in the last few decades despite being a big deal in the past.

UNLoVedRebel · 5th August 2012, 04:17 PM

Originally Posted by Aepervius

HP Lovecraft , is not in your list.
Utter fail

:P.

He also forgot L. Ron Hubbard.

Skeptic Ginger · 5th August 2012, 05:30 PM

Originally Posted by UNLoVedRebel

He also forgot L. Ron Hubbard.

Battlefield Earth is one of my favorite books in spite of Travolta totally mucking up the movie version.

angrysoba · 5th August 2012, 07:22 PM

Originally Posted by TragicMonkey

Jane Smiley and Judith Guest. I don't like them as much as Pearl Buck (who did win a Nobel Prize in Literature, remember) but they're damn good. And yes, it's a coincidence that they happen to be women. I've been looking at my bookshelves and it seems that for American writers, my favorites tend to be women. For foreign authors, they tend to be men.

If we can count WH Hudson on the basis of his parents being American, I'd include him on the list as well, but he's become fairly obscure in the last few decades despite being a big deal in the past.

Actually, although I said I didn't include Atwood on the basis that she is Canadian, it is true that Nabokov is Russian and Saul Bellow was born in Canada to Russian immigrants. Yet, their novels have something quintessentially American about them, hence their inclusion.

TragicMonkey · 5th August 2012, 07:30 PM

Thought of another one I'd add to my own list. Chaim Potok. I know heavily religious writing won't be a popular thing in this place, but whether you believe in/agree with the religion or not he's still a great writer.

angrysoba · 5th August 2012, 07:36 PM

Originally Posted by TragicMonkey

Thought of another one I'd add to my own list. Chaim Potok. I know heavily religious writing won't be a popular thing in this place, but whether you believe in/agree with the religion or not he's still a great writer.

Would you have voted for him?

angrysoba · 5th August 2012, 07:40 PM

Originally Posted by Skeptic Ginger

And yet you added Stephen King?

Some of King's novels set in the Fifties do seem to conform to the right criteria for GAN.

Originally Posted by Skeptic Ginger

Kingsolver is my current favorite. Out of your poll it was a tie between Steinbeck, Hemingway and Twain. But I voted for Stowe in protest.

My son is a huge fan of Pynchon.

Well, I am glad Stowe got a vote but I am not sure why you are asking me to include women authors when all of your favourites are men?

Actually, I looked up the term "Great American Novel" on Wikipedia and none of the books suggested are written by women. None of them!

paulhutch · 5th August 2012, 08:21 PM

I had a hard time deciding between Twain and Steinbeck. To me Huck Finn is the greatest American novel but, most of the rest of Twain's work that I'd consider of the same caliber are not novels but rather short stories, essays and non-fiction.

Of Steinbeck's work nearly all of it was in novel form and IMHO Grapes of Wrath is the second greatest American novel. Once I took into account East of Eden, Of Mice & Men, Cannery Row, and others, I had to vote for Steinbeck because of the quantity of great novels.

angrysoba · 5th August 2012, 08:31 PM

Originally Posted by paulhutch

I had a hard time deciding between Twain and Steinbeck. To me Huck Finn is the greatest American novel but, most of the rest of Twain's work that I'd consider of the same caliber are not novels but rather short stories, essays and non-fiction.

Of Steinbeck's work nearly all of it was in novel form and IMHO Grapes of Wrath is the second greatest American novel. Once I took into account East of Eden, Of Mice & Men, Cannery Row, and others, I had to vote for Steinbeck because of the quantity of great novels.

Nice post. Thanks!

TragicMonkey · 6th August 2012, 05:26 AM

Originally Posted by angrysoba

Would you have voted for him?

I'd put him in as third, after Pearl Buck and Jane Smiley.

Herman Melville	0	0%
William Faulkner	0	0%
Harriet Beecher Stowe	1	2.94%
John Steinbeck	2	5.88%
F. Scott Fitzgerald	1	2.94%
Ernest Hemingway	1	2.94%
Joseph Heller	1	2.94%
Saul Bellow	0	0%
Kurt Vonnegut	4	11.76%
John Irving	1	2.94%
John Updike	0	0%
Philip Roth	0	0%
James Baldwin	0	0%
Mark Twain	18	52.94%
J. D Salinger	0	0%
Gore Vidal	1	2.94%
Vladimir Nabokov	1	2.94%
Stephen King	1	2.94%
Thomas Pynchon	0	0%
Mr Sammler's Planet X	2	5.88%
Voters: 34. You may not vote on this poll

5th August 2012, 08:32 AM	#1
angrysoba Philosopher Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Osaka, Japan Posts: 8,886	The Great American Novelist Two things inspired me to conduct this poll. One of them was the recent death of acclaimed novelist Gore Vidal and the other was picking up and very much enjoying Saul Bellow's The Adventures of Augie March. The term Great American Novel ^TM to me refers to a novel that somehow perfectly encapsulates the American experience of life ^TM. The very difficulty in pinning down what that means is exactly what makes the search for such an experience, through the medium of the novel, something akin to the literary search for the Holy Grail. But, I really think that the "body of work" of an author may end up being more important than a single novel and that is why I am asking, in this thread, who is the Great American Novelist! Now, it has been variously argued that Herman Melville or Mark Twain wrote the Great American Novels and in the case of the latter I can perfectly understand why. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn could never have existed outside of the United States and it seems really did grapple with the meaning of being American. As for Melville, I don't know whether Moby Dick is as quintessentially American as, say, Bartleby the Scrivener. My own favourite of his is Billy Budd which suggests a more universal theme than American. I have included many authors that I have never read at all such as William Faulkner, John Irving and Thomas Pynchon. If anyone can make some impassioned pleas for their importance then I will be very interested. As for me, I will vote for Joseph Heller. No, not for "Catch 22" but for his follow-up book "Something Happened". To me this was the book that truly showed him putting his finger on the pulse of what it meant to be American just after WWII. The protagonist lives an unhappy life in which he is raising his nuclear family in all the ways that he thinks he should but finding the task frustrating and fraught with difficulty from his wife and kids and co-workers. He behaves badly and knows it but feels somehow compelled to continue this way and he describes everything so well that you feel for him even when you know his inner-most thoughts are terrible. In some ways, maybe he is not just a Great American Novelist but a Great Universal Novelist and yet "Something Happened" is a book that made me think I understood a lot more about America.

5th August 2012, 08:40 AM	#2
Skeptic Ginger formerly skeptigirl Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Shifting through paradigms Posts: 40,799	A'hem.... You missed a few women authors. Louisa May Alcott Pearl S Buck Barbara Kingsolver Emily Dickinson Sylvia Plath Joyce Carol Oates Margaret Mitchell
	__________________ (Tired of continuing to hear the "Democrat Party" repeatedly I've decided to adopt the name, ~~Pubbie Party, Repubs~~ "Republics" and Republic Party in response.) Last edited by Skeptic Ginger; 5th August 2012 at 08:56 AM.*

5th August 2012, 08:58 AM	#4
Skeptic Ginger formerly skeptigirl Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Shifting through paradigms Posts: 40,799	Originally Posted by angrysoba I know. I missed lots of authors. Which ones should I have included? See my edit. I know you can't list all the great writers, but seriously, one woman?
	__________________ (*Tired of continuing to hear the "Democrat Party" repeatedly I've decided to adopt the name, ~~Pubbie Party, Repubs~~ "Republics" and Republic Party in response.)

5th August 2012, 09:35 AM	#6
Damien Evans Up The Irons Tagger Join Date: May 2007 Location: Melbourne, Australia Posts: 25,505	The only possible answer is Mark Twain.
	__________________ WHAT CAN THE HARVEST HOPE FOR, IF NOT THE CARE OF THE REAPER MAN? - Death

5th August 2012, 08:44 AM	#3
angrysoba Philosopher Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Osaka, Japan Posts: 8,886	Originally Posted by Skeptic Ginger A'hem.... You missed a few women authors. I know. I missed lots of authors. Which ones should I have included?

5th August 2012, 09:10 AM	#5
angrysoba Philosopher Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Osaka, Japan Posts: 8,886	Originally Posted by Skeptic Ginger See my edit. I know you can't list all the great writers, but seriously, one woman? I'm sorry. I didn't mean it. Well, I was going to add Louisa May Alcott and I was going to add Toni Morrison. I was not going to add Sylvia Plath because I know nothing about her except her poems. Was "The Bell Jar" really a "Great American Novel"? I thought about Margeret Atwood because I really enjoyed her writing but then I realized she was Canadian! Anyway, I know, I know, I know that these things can be done better, and I know I could have put more thought into this. But, I guess, I failed. I failed womankind! I failed humankind! But most of all, and what the cosmos really cares so much about because of its disordered priorities, I failed MYSELF! But just out of interest, who would you have voted for given the chance?

5th August 2012, 09:46 AM	#7
Resume Philosopher Join Date: Apr 2010 Posts: 8,135	For me, because of Huck Finn, it has to be Twain. Then I looked in my bookcases: Sherwood Anderson, Willa Cather, Jim Harrison, Thomas McGuane, John Barth . . . Harder than it seems.
Resume Philosopher Join Date: Apr 2010 Posts: 8,135	Last edited by Resume; 5th August 2012 at 09:49 AM.

5th August 2012, 09:49 AM	#8
TragicMonkey Poisoned Waffles Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Monkey Posts: 30,285	Pearl Buck. Her work is almost forgotten these days, except for The Good Earth, which is nowhere near her best stuff.
	__________________ One cannot expect wisdom to flow from a pumpkin.

5th August 2012, 09:51 AM	#9
angrysoba Philosopher Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Osaka, Japan Posts: 8,886	What's funny (for me) is that I nearly forgot Mark Twain.

5th August 2012, 10:04 AM	#10
calebprime Somewhat Elitist Parasite Join Date: Jul 2006 Posts: 7,764	_Infinite Jest_ -- David Foster Wallace. As American as addiction and recovery. Huge and incredibly well-written, although excessive. (But so was _Moby Dick_) Well worth the effort. It's even changed my life, ever so slightly.
	__________________ Mr. DeBakey's free, but he's a little bit conciliatory.

5th August 2012, 10:07 AM	#11
paiute Graduate Poster Join Date: Mar 2004 Location: Smack in the middle of a de Broglie wavelength. Posts: 1,147	Upton Sinclair. His Lanny Budd series is one enjoyable way to relive the events of the early part of the last century.
	__________________ A Novel and Efficient Synthesis of Cadaverine Organic chemistry, vengeful ghosts, and high explosives. What could possibly go wrong? Now free for download! http://www.scribd.com/doc/36568510/A...-of-Cadaverine

5th August 2012, 10:17 AM	#12
angrysoba Philosopher Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Osaka, Japan Posts: 8,886	Originally Posted by calebprime _Infinite Jest_ -- David Foster Wallace. As American as addiction and recovery. Huge and incredibly well-written, although excessive. (But so was _Moby Dick_) Well worth the effort. It's even changed my life, ever so slightly. Originally Posted by paiute Upton Sinclair. His Lanny Budd series is one enjoyable way to relive the events of the early part of the last century. Goodness me! I know this poll is going to get so smoked by the professionals around here. You guys certainly know how to smoke a poll!

5th August 2012, 10:35 AM	#13
Garrette Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Aug 2001 Posts: 10,637	I haven't read nearly all of them, but I find it nearly impossible to say anyone besides Mark Twain; The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn is not only phenomenally well written and insightful, but its subject matter went to the heart of the American experience. My close second was Melville; the older I get the more I appreciate Moby Dick and Melville's short stories and poetry. His Battle Pieces poems are flawed technically but remain all encompassing in grandeur and even beauty. From "The House Top": No sleep. The sultriness pervades the air And binds the brain -- A dense oppression, such As tawny tigers feel in matted shades Vexing their blood and making apt for ravage.
	__________________ My kids still love me.

5th August 2012, 10:38 AM	#14
angrysoba Philosopher Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Osaka, Japan Posts: 8,886	Originally Posted by Skeptic Ginger See my edit. I know you can't list all the great writers, but seriously, one woman? I don't mean to be rude or wrong but could you tell me which women should have shunted which men out of the rankings? If anyone has a better list I'd like to see it.

5th August 2012, 11:03 AM	#15
Aepervius Philosopher Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Bierland. I mean , germany. Posts: 7,888	HP Lovecraft , is not in your list. Utter fail :P.
	__________________ Omnes Blessant Ultima necat "I want, and this is my last and most dear wish, I want that the last of the king be strangled with the guts of the last priest" (Jean Meslier / 1664-1729 / Testament) A very early french atheist, a catholic priest in life.

5th August 2012, 11:20 AM	#16
Skeptic Ginger formerly skeptigirl Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Shifting through paradigms Posts: 40,799	Originally Posted by angrysoba ... I was not going to add Sylvia Plath because I know nothing about her except her poems. Was "The Bell Jar" really a "Great American Novel"? And yet you added Stephen King? Originally Posted by angrysoba But just out of interest, who would you have voted for given the chance? Kingsolver is my current favorite. Out of your poll it was a tie between Steinbeck, Hemingway and Twain. But I voted for Stowe in protest. My son is a huge fan of Pynchon.
	__________________ (*Tired of continuing to hear the "Democrat Party" repeatedly I've decided to adopt the name, ~~Pubbie Party, Repubs~~ "Republics" and Republic Party in response.)

5th August 2012, 11:21 AM	#17
angrysoba Philosopher Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Osaka, Japan Posts: 8,886	Originally Posted by Aepervius HP Lovecraft , is not in your list. Utter fail :P. Oh for goodness sakes! Will people get over the fact that there are only 20 options in a poll and everyone has a (humourously titled to reflect muy famous big-heartedness) Planet X that I provided and yet no one has used. I think that some people have complained about the lack of certain authors that they never would have voted for anyway. Seems weird to me but knock yourselves out being awkward if you wish.
	Last edited by angrysoba; 5th August 2012 at 11:23 AM. Reason: ETA: I added this gooddddamiit: "(humourously titled to reflect muy famous big-heartedness)"

5th August 2012, 11:28 AM	#18
Aepervius Philosopher Join Date: Aug 2003 Location: Bierland. I mean , germany. Posts: 7,888	Originally Posted by angrysoba Oh for goodness sakes! Will people get over the fact that there are only 20 options in a poll and everyone has a (humourously titled to reflect muy famous big-heartedness) Planet X that I provided and yet no one has used. I think that some people have complained about the lack of certain authors that they never would have voted for anyway. Seems weird to me but knock yourselves out being awkward if you wish. I made the post in mirth, the rgeat Cthulhu be my witness, but between you and me it all depends on how you define "greatest". If for example you define it by well known, I am betting that HP Lovecrat or Edgar Alan poe would be better known than some of the name on your list. Soooooo I vote for planet x .
	__________________ Omnes Blessant Ultima necat "I want, and this is my last and most dear wish, I want that the last of the king be strangled with the guts of the last priest" (Jean Meslier / 1664-1729 / Testament) A very early french atheist, a catholic priest in life.

5th August 2012, 11:30 AM	#19
angrysoba Philosopher Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Osaka, Japan Posts: 8,886	Hey, wait a second! I am not asking about who happens to be American and happens to have written great novels. I am specifically asking who has written Great American Novels and who has said something profound about the "American condition". For this reason, certain writers probably wouldn't make the grade because they are not really writing about being American but just writing about stuff. Anyway, whatever, carry on.

5th August 2012, 11:41 AM	#20
angrysoba Philosopher Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Osaka, Japan Posts: 8,886	Yeah, I am glad someone voted for Hemingway.

5th August 2012, 11:52 AM	#21
bruto Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Jun 2005 Location: way way north of Diddy Wah Diddy Posts: 11,257	I think it's almost impossible to pin this down, and it depends on what criteria you use, and it's not necessarily one's favorite author, but I'm going to tentatively second Hemingway. I've probably read more of other authors and in some way liked them more. But I think Hemingway more than most others is responsible for creating a blunt and conversational style of writing and expression that has become the American standard. It is still usually possible to identify an American writer when you see his or her work, and although many have contributed to this, Hemingway stands out as having done it really on purpose. Of course I could be wrong, and it would not take a huge argument on someone's part for me to switch my vote to Steinbeck. I have read and loved lots of authors from all over the place over the years, but must say that the best American authors have produced a style that makes almost everything else seem a bit clumsy and laborious by comparison.
	__________________ "Sir, I have found you an argument; but I am not obliged to find you an understanding.(Samuel Johnson) The gods are less for their love of praise....(Wendell Berry)

5th August 2012, 12:09 PM	#22
angrysoba Philosopher Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Osaka, Japan Posts: 8,886	I forgot to put Norman Mailer on the fuggin list.

5th August 2012, 12:34 PM	#23
TragicMonkey Poisoned Waffles Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Monkey Posts: 30,285	Jane Smiley and Judith Guest. I don't like them as much as Pearl Buck (who did win a Nobel Prize in Literature, remember) but they're damn good. And yes, it's a coincidence that they happen to be women. I've been looking at my bookshelves and it seems that for American writers, my favorites tend to be women. For foreign authors, they tend to be men. If we can count WH Hudson on the basis of his parents being American, I'd include him on the list as well, but he's become fairly obscure in the last few decades despite being a big deal in the past.
	__________________ One cannot expect wisdom to flow from a pumpkin.

5th August 2012, 04:17 PM	#24
UNLoVedRebel Hard Knocks Doctorate Join Date: Sep 2008 Location: School of Hard Knocks Posts: 5,513	Originally Posted by Aepervius HP Lovecraft , is not in your list. Utter fail :P. He also forgot L. Ron Hubbard.
	__________________ "All the Officialiers here typically have rancid alien avatars or else some kind of violent military-type avatar. Once again affirming my contention that 9/11 Officialiers are the most violent, murderous, group of people in the United States. Both statistically confirmed, but also anecdotally affirmed in almost every case of active pro-Officialers." - FloydGoethe

5th August 2012, 05:30 PM	#25
Skeptic Ginger formerly skeptigirl Join Date: Feb 2005 Location: Shifting through paradigms Posts: 40,799	Originally Posted by UNLoVedRebel He also forgot L. Ron Hubbard. Battlefield Earth is one of my favorite books in spite of Travolta totally mucking up the movie version.
	__________________ (*Tired of continuing to hear the "Democrat Party" repeatedly I've decided to adopt the name, ~~Pubbie Party, Repubs~~ "Republics" and Republic Party in response.)

5th August 2012, 07:22 PM	#26
angrysoba Philosopher Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Osaka, Japan Posts: 8,886	Originally Posted by TragicMonkey Jane Smiley and Judith Guest. I don't like them as much as Pearl Buck (who did win a Nobel Prize in Literature, remember) but they're damn good. And yes, it's a coincidence that they happen to be women. I've been looking at my bookshelves and it seems that for American writers, my favorites tend to be women. For foreign authors, they tend to be men. If we can count WH Hudson on the basis of his parents being American, I'd include him on the list as well, but he's become fairly obscure in the last few decades despite being a big deal in the past. Actually, although I said I didn't include Atwood on the basis that she is Canadian, it is true that Nabokov is Russian and Saul Bellow was born in Canada to Russian immigrants. Yet, their novels have something quintessentially American about them, hence their inclusion.

5th August 2012, 07:30 PM	#27
TragicMonkey Poisoned Waffles Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Monkey Posts: 30,285	Thought of another one I'd add to my own list. Chaim Potok. I know heavily religious writing won't be a popular thing in this place, but whether you believe in/agree with the religion or not he's still a great writer.
	__________________ One cannot expect wisdom to flow from a pumpkin.

5th August 2012, 07:36 PM	#28
angrysoba Philosopher Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Osaka, Japan Posts: 8,886	Originally Posted by TragicMonkey Thought of another one I'd add to my own list. Chaim Potok. I know heavily religious writing won't be a popular thing in this place, but whether you believe in/agree with the religion or not he's still a great writer. Would you have voted for him?

5th August 2012, 07:40 PM	#29
angrysoba Philosopher Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Osaka, Japan Posts: 8,886	Originally Posted by Skeptic Ginger And yet you added Stephen King? Some of King's novels set in the Fifties do seem to conform to the right criteria for GAN. Originally Posted by Skeptic Ginger Kingsolver is my current favorite. Out of your poll it was a tie between Steinbeck, Hemingway and Twain. But I voted for Stowe in protest. My son is a huge fan of Pynchon. Well, I am glad Stowe got a vote but I am not sure why you are asking me to include women authors when all of your favourites are men? Actually, I looked up the term "Great American Novel" on Wikipedia and none of the books suggested are written by women. None of them!

5th August 2012, 08:21 PM	#30
paulhutch Scholar Join Date: Mar 2010 Location: Blackstone River Valley, MA Posts: 107	I had a hard time deciding between Twain and Steinbeck. To me Huck Finn is the greatest American novel but, most of the rest of Twain's work that I'd consider of the same caliber are not novels but rather short stories, essays and non-fiction. Of Steinbeck's work nearly all of it was in novel form and IMHO Grapes of Wrath is the second greatest American novel. Once I took into account East of Eden, Of Mice & Men, Cannery Row, and others, I had to vote for Steinbeck because of the quantity of great novels.

5th August 2012, 08:31 PM	#31
angrysoba Philosopher Join Date: Dec 2009 Location: Osaka, Japan Posts: 8,886	Originally Posted by paulhutch I had a hard time deciding between Twain and Steinbeck. To me Huck Finn is the greatest American novel but, most of the rest of Twain's work that I'd consider of the same caliber are not novels but rather short stories, essays and non-fiction. Of Steinbeck's work nearly all of it was in novel form and IMHO Grapes of Wrath is the second greatest American novel. Once I took into account East of Eden, Of Mice & Men, Cannery Row, and others, I had to vote for Steinbeck because of the quantity of great novels. Nice post. Thanks!

6th August 2012, 05:26 AM	#32
TragicMonkey Poisoned Waffles Join Date: Jun 2004 Location: Monkey Posts: 30,285	Originally Posted by angrysoba Would you have voted for him? I'd put him in as third, after Pearl Buck and Jane Smiley.
	__________________ One cannot expect wisdom to flow from a pumpkin.