James Gould Cozzens

James MacDonald (University of Exeter)

Ed. by Cristina Sandru, The Literary Encyclopedia
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 3.2.4: American (US) Writing and Culture: Postwar and Contemporary, 1945-present.
Vol. editors: Sofia Ahlberg (Uppsala University), Patrick Chura (University of Akron), Emory Elliott (University of California, Riverside), Dale Enggass (University of Utah), Christopher Hugh Gair (University of Glasgow), Matthew Hofer (University of New Mexico), Stephen E. Meats (Pittsburg State University), Kerry Myler (Birmingham Newman University), Justin Parks (UiT - The Arctic University of Norway), Nick Selby (University of East Anglia)

Dates

Born 19 Aug 1903
Died 9 Aug 1978
Activity 1923-1968

Places

Born in United States
Active in United States

Activities

Primary

Novelist
Story-writer
Teacher/ Professor

Resources

Cozzens' Works

Save to Bookshelf

It is difficult to write in praise of James Gould Cozzens in a post-modern era that venerates so much of what Cozzens held so actively in contempt. He had little regard for modernist masters such as Hemingway and Faulkner, whose work characterised so much of their age. If one listens to Cozzens's pronouncements, both literary and political, one might associate him most with the bestselling novelists of his time and deem him unworthy of serious consideration altogether. And yet his 40-year career defies such easy categorisation. Biographer Matthew J. Bruccoli characterised him as “the least-read major novelist in the United States”. It is an apt description. Cozzens's style is opaque, and his approach anti-sensationalist. His most frequent theme is the professional man in crisis; but…

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2116 words

Citation: MacDonald, James. "James Gould Cozzens". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 13 June 2008 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/speople.php?rec=true&UID=1051, accessed 22 November 2024.]