Fictions of British Decadence: High Art, Popular Writing and the Fin De Siècle (Palgrave Studies in Nineteenth-Century Writing and Culture)

__Fictions of British Decadence__ is a fresh account of the emergence, development, and legacy of fiction written in the era of Oscar Wilde. It examines a broad range of texts by a diverse array of Decadent writers, from familiar figures such as Ernest Dowson and John Davidson to lesser-known innovators such as Arthur Machen and M.P. Shiel. MacLeod fills a large gap in understanding the movement that helped negotiate transition from the Victorian triple-decker to experimental Modernist fiction. Cover......Page 1 Contents......Page 8 Preface and Acknowledgements......Page 10 The French origins of British Decadence......Page 12 Decadence in Britain......Page 13 Mythologizing British Decadence......Page 18 The 'tragic generation'......Page 19 Decadence as high art......Page 21 Class myths of Decadence: bohemians and aristocratic dandies......Page 23 Demythologizing British Decadence......Page 24 Reading British Decadence à rebours......Page 27 Fictions of British Decadence......Page 29 1 The Mystified Class Origins of Decadence......Page 32 Professionals vs capitalists in the mid-Victorian period......Page 34 The emergence of the Decadent sensibility......Page 37 2 Decadent Positionings: Decadence and the Literary Field......Page 49 The battle for cultural authority in the fin-de-siècle literary field......Page 50 'Other' Decadent role models: George Meredith and Robert Louis Stevenson......Page 58 Paving the way for Decadence: publishers of Decadence......Page 61 3 The Birth of the Decadent in Fiction, 1884–89......Page 68 Aestheticism, Naturalism, and the emergence of Decadence......Page 69 The Decadent Aesthete, aestheticized Naturalism, and Vernon Lee's Miss Brown......Page 71 George Moore's ur-texts of Decadence: Confessions of a Young Man and Mike Fletcher......Page 77 4 Writing Against Decadence, 1890–97......Page 89 'Delighting in dirtiness and confessing its delight': the reception of The Picture of Dorian Gray......Page 90 Women writing against Decadence......Page 94 Marie Corelli's Wormwood: a counter-Decadent discourse?......Page 96 The Beth Book and the 'Grand' stand against Decadence......Page 101 5 Decadent Fiction Before the Keynotes Series......Page 110 Robert Hichens's 'The Collaborators': a model for Decadent literary production......Page 112 A real-life collaboration: Ernest Dowson and Arthur Moore's Comedy of Masks......Page 115 Collaboration or interference? John Davidson's North Wall......Page 121 6 'Keynotes' of Decadence, 1894–95......Page 127 Defining the keynotes of Decadence: Perfecting the counter-Decadent discourse......Page 128 Arthur Machen's Great God Pan and Decadent pan(ic)......Page 130 Transcending genre: high/low collaboration in M. P. Shiel's Prince Zaleski......Page 139 The swan song of Decadence: Arthur Machen's Hill of Dreams......Page 146 Decadence, Decadents and the literary field in the shadow of the Wilde trials......Page 149 Decadence and the Edwardian and Modernist literary fields......Page 155 8 The Afterlife of the Decadents or, Life After Decadence......Page 160 Ernest Dowson (1867–1900): The 'Dowson legend' as 'fiction of Decadence'......Page 161 John Davidson (1857–1909): a Decadent malgré lui......Page 165 Arthur Machen (1863–1947): the difficult Decadent......Page 170 M. P. Shiel (1865–1947): the mediating Decadent......Page 175 Notes......Page 182 References......Page 212 B......Page 226 D......Page 227 G......Page 228 K......Page 229 M......Page 230 P......Page 231 S......Page 232 Z......Page 233 'fictions Of British Decadence' Explores The Emergence, Development And Legacy Of Fiction Written In The Era Of Oscar Wilde. Macleod Examines How 'decadent Writers' Helped Negotiate The Transition From Victorian To Modernist Fiction. Introduction. The French Origins Of British Decadence ; Decadence In Britain ; Mythologizing British Decadence ; The 'tragic Generation' ; Decadence As High Art ; Class Myths Of Decadence: Bohemians And Aristocratic Dandies ; Demythologizing British Decadence ; Reading British Decadence à Rebours ; Fictions Of British Decadence -- The Mystified Class Origins Of Decadence. Professionals Vs. Capitalists In The Mid-victorian Period ; The Emergence Of The Decadent Sensibility -- Decadent Positioning: Decadence And The Literary Field. The Battle For Cultural Authority In The Fin-de-siècle Literary Field ; 'other' Decadent Role Models: George Meredith And Robert Louis Stevenson ; Paving The Way For Decadence: Publishers Of Decadence -- The Birth Of The Decadent In Fiction, 1884-89. Aestheticism, Naturalism, And The Emergence Of Decadence ; The Decadent Aesthete, Aestheticized Naturalism, And Vernon Lee's Miss Brown ; George Moore's Ur-texts Of Decadence: Confessions Of A Young Man And Mike Fletcher -- Writing Against Decadence, 1890-97. 'delighting In Dirtiness And Confessing Its Delight': The Reception Of The Picture Of Dorian Gray ; Women Writing Against Decadence ; Marie Corelli's Wormwood: A Counter-decadent Discourse? ; The Beth Book And The 'grand' Stand Against Decadence. Decadent Fiction Before The Keynotes Series. Robert Hichens's 'the Collaborators': A Model For Decadent Literary Production ; A Real-life Collaboration: Ernest Dowson And Arthur Moore's Comedy Of Masks ; Collaboration Or Interference? John Davidson's North Wall -- 'keynotes' Of Decadence, 1894-95. Defining The Keynotes Of Decadence: Perfecting The Counter-decadent Discourse ; Arthur Machen's Great God Pan And Decadent Pan(ic) ; Transcending Genre: High/low Collaboration In M.p. Shiel's Prince Zaleski -- Decadence In The Shadow If The Wilde Trials And Beyond. The Swan Song Of Decadence: Arthur Machen's Hill Of Dreams ; Decadence, Decadents And The Literary Field In The Shadow Of The Wilde Trials ; Decadence And The Edwardian And Modernist Literary Fields -- The Afterlife Of The Decadents Or, Life After Decadence. Ernest Dowson (1867-1900): The 'dowson Legend' As 'fiction Of Decadence' ; John Davidson (1857-1909): A Decadent Malgré Lui ; Arthur Machen (1863-1947): The Difficult Decadent ; M.p. Shiel (1865-1947): The Mediating Decadent. Kirsten Macleod. Includes Bibliographical References (p. 201-214) And Index. Fictions of British Decadence is a fresh account of the emergence, development, and legacy of fiction written in the era of Oscar Wilde. It examines a broad range of texts by a diverse array of Decadent writers, from familiar faces such as Ernest Dowson and John Davidson, to lesser-known innovators such as Arthur Machen and M.P. Shiel. New research illuminates the relationship between the Decadents and such popular writers as George Moore, Vernon Lee (Violet Paget), Marie Corelli, and Sarah Grand. This research also challenges myths about the Decadents. It describes how this so-called 'tragic generation' pursued their artistic aspirations in the literary marketplace, created an art form that was more popular than avant-garde, sought both literary and commercial success, and negotiated the transition from the Victorian triple-decker to experimental Modernist fiction. MacLeod fills a large gap in our knowledge of a pivotal but misunderstood literary and cultural movement Presents an account of the emergence, development and legacy of fiction written in the era of Oscar Wilde. This work examines a range of texts by a diverse array of Decadent writers, from familiar figures such as Ernest Dowson and John Davidson to lesser-known innovators such as, Arthur Machen and MP Shiel