EN355 Modern & Contemporary American Fiction

From the abstract: "A review of the book "A Visit From the Goon Squad," by Jennifer Egan is presented."

From the abstract: "Consisting of thirteen interrelated vignettes, A Visit from the Goon Squad has an unconventional narrative structure which presents a problem for readers to solve. How exactly are readers supposed to go about piecing together the various stories, sketches, and vignettes (which move backward and forward in time) into a cohesive account of events? In response to these concerns, this essay offers a reading of Egan's novel that relies upon Freud's concept of Nachträglichkeit, arguing that only through understanding this psychoanalytic concept of "afterwardsness" that readers are able to reconstruct the events of the novel into a coherent narrative. Moreover, this essay contends that using the critical lens of psychoanalysis helps readers to understand the novel's characters and their motivation."

From the abstract: "This article examines the passing of the rock ideology: the system of distinctions and stratifications whereby popular music was classified and argued over in terms of its cultural value and authenticity. It does this by analyzing parallel representations of the music industry in two contemporary novels: Jonathan Franzen's Freedom (2010) and Jennifer Egan's A Visit from the Goon Squad (2010). Both novels suggest that rock culture and the ideology underpinning it are finally nearing their end or, what amounts to much the same thing, have undergone such a radical transformation in recent years as to be unrecognizable."

From the abstract: "An interview with author Jennifer Egan is presented. Topics discussed during the interview include her book "A Visit from the Goon Squad," the impetus of her quest in researching the history of her novel, the characters of the book like Anna, and the factors which trigger her in writing its story line."