Written by 12 American authors, including William Dean Howells, Henry James, and Mary E. Wilkins Freeman, and published in 1908, this novel centers on the romantic attachmentsand detachmentsof the young daughter of the Talbert family. Out of this unpromising plot an engaging story emerges when Freeman transforms the old-maid aunt into a liberated woman and makes her the rival of the younger niece. Writing successive chapters, each author playfully creates problems for the next, and much of the fun lies in watching the writers extricate themselves from one trap and then set another. The Whole Family is an intriguing period piece, an illuminating example of differing conceptions of narrative, and enjoyable to read.
One of the most fascinating experiments in American literature resulted in "The Whole Family, " a collaborative venture between such luminaries as Henry James, William Dean Howells, Mary E. Wilkins Freeman, and Elizabeth Stuart Phelps. 12 illustrations.
Inhaltsverzeichnis
Illustrations iv
Foreward v
Introduction: The Whole Story Behind xi
The Whole Family / Alfred Bendixen
1 The Father / William Dean Howells 3
2 The Old-Maid Aunt / Mary E. Wilkins Freeman 30
3 The Grandmother / Mary Heaton Vorse 60
4 The Daughter in Law / Mary Stewart Cutting 80
5 The School Girl / Elizabeth Jordan 101
6 The Son-In-Law / John Kendrick Bangs 124
7 The Married Son / Henry James 144
8 The Married Daughter / Elizabeth Stewart Phelps 185
9 The Mother / Edith Wyatt 219
10 The School Boy / Mary Raymond Shipman Andrews 240
11 Peggy / Alice Brown 264
12 The Friend of the Family / Henry Van Dyke 293
Appendix 317
