Just as he had rewritten classical and biblical myths in

and

and Shakespeare’s

in his

, John Updike sought to rewrite Nathaniel Hawthorne’s masterpiece

in the light of contemporary American life and religious values. The result was his “

Trilogy”, consisting of

(1985),

(1986) and

(1988).

In the first novel in the trilogy, Updike sought “to show how radically American attitudes have changed in regard to adulterous clergy. … As any bishop can tell you, modern clergymen tend to be quite unapologetic about where their bodies take them” (quoted in Greiner, 1989: 483-484). One of Updike’s most critically neglected works, A Month of Sundays is the diary

849 words

Citation: Gomez-Galisteo, M. Carmen. "A Month of Sundays". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 28 September 2009 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=7050, accessed 24 November 2024.]

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