Social and Socialist Commitment in the Works of Three American Authors

The ideological battles fought between communist and capitalist states during most of the 20th century led to a tendentious evaluation of novels of social protest. Today, the undisputed triumph of capitalism presents us with the opportunity to gain a more objective understanding of their role in American literature. This book emphasizes the representational value of three novels that can provide us with valuable information about the social, cultural, racial, and national variables that led so many toward socialism. It does this by tracing the evolution of socialism and its relationship to social responsibility in the works of Richard Wright, Jose M. Arguedas, and Jose Donoso. Students interested in these authors would benefit from the analysis provided here, as would academic professionals looking to better understand how race, culture, and politics helped to shape literary trends in the Americas during the last half of the 20th century. That being said, this is not an academic book in that it does not preclude non-academics from understanding and enjoying a birds eye view of the changing influence of socialism on art and culture in the Americas.