Description
The second half of the novel takes Adele back to her ghetto origins as she explores an alternative model of philanthropy by opening a restaurant that combines the communitarian ideals of Old World shtetl tradition with the contingencies of New World capitalism. Within the context of this radical message, Yezierska revisits the themes that have made her work famous, confronting complex questions of ethnic identity, assimilation, and female self-realization.
Katherine Stubbs's introduction provides a comprehensive and compelling historical, social, and literary context for this extraordinary novel and discusses the critical reaction to its publication in light of Yezierska's biography and the once much-publicized and mythologized version of her life story. Unavailable for over sixty years, Arrogant Beggar will be enjoyed by general readers of fiction and be of crucial importance for feminist critics, students of ethnic literature. It will also prove an exciting and richly rewarding text for students and scholars of Jewish studies, immigrant literature, women's writing, American history, and working-class fiction.
About the Author
Anzia Yezierska (1880?-1970) is the author of many books, including the novels Bread Givers (1925), Hungry Hearts (1920), and Salome of the Tenements (1923). Katherine Stubbs is Assistant Professor of English at Colby College.
Reviews
"While Yezierska's writing stands in sharp contrast to the quantity of fiction by middle- and upper-class white women writers so prevalent in the late nineteenth century and early twentieth, what is particularly interesting about Arrogant Beggar is that it focuses more directly on class than do most of her novels. Katherine Stubbs's introduction is comprehensive, helpful, beautifully written, and convincing-a model of scholarship and insight."-Linda Wagner-Martin, University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill
Book Information
ISBN 9780822317494
Author Anzia Yezierska
Format Paperback
Page Count 192
Imprint Duke University Press
Publisher Duke University Press
Weight(grams) 227g