From Wall Street to Main Street : Tracing the Shadows of the Financial Crisis From 2007 to 2009 in US-American Fiction

Since the financial crisis cannot be explained by looking at the 'numbers' alone, Judith Schulz investigates the diverse facets of the economic system, including the emotional response and motivations of the actors. It is precisely in this context that fiction can fill in the gaps in the understanding of the financial crisis and its cultural context. Schulz analyses works of Don DeLillo, Jess Walter and Martha McPhee to explore the complex and multifaceted interaction between culture and the economy. These authors shed light on the impact of neoliberal economic policies and create a dialogue on the highly controversial questions related to the financial crisis. They point to the contradictions and paradoxes within American culture and show that there is a need to renegotiate issues of national identity and the American Dream. Contents Theorizing and Fictionalizing the Financial Crisis Capitalism and Control Culture and Consumption Crisis and Complexity Target Groups Researchers and students of American Studies, Literary and Cultural Studies Journalists and practitioners in the fields of literature and culture About the Author< While working on this book, Judith Schulz held the position of Marketing and Communications Manager at Mannheim Business School and participated in a PhD program at the University of Mannheim. In 2016, Schulz launched her own business as marketing and PR consultant Acknowledgments 5 Contents 7 1 Introduction 8 2 Part One: Theorizing the Financial Crisis 33 2.1 Capitalism & Control: The Financial Crisis and the Conflict between Freedom and Authority 34 2.2 Culture & Consumption: Understanding the Financial Crisis as a Cultural Crisis 47 2.3 Crisis & Complexity: Fiction as a Mediator 88 3 Part Two: Fictionalizing the Financial Crisis 99 3.1 Cosmopolis and the Rule of the ‘Super-rich:’ Foreshadowing the Financial Crisis 99 3.2 Dear Money: Gender, Risk Behavior and the Financial Crisis 133 3.3 The Financial Lives of the Poets: Depicting the American Debt and Consumer Culture 168 4 Conclusion 205 5 Bibliography 222 Front Matter....Pages I-VII Introduction....Pages 1-25 Part One: Theorizing the Financial Crisis....Pages 27-92 Part Two: Fictionalizing the Financial Crisis....Pages 93-198 Conclusion....Pages 199-215 Back Matter....Pages 217-233