The Homeless of 'Ironweed' : Blossoms on the Crag

The Homeless Of Ironweed Is Both A Meditation On Kennedy's Remarkable Novel And A Literary And Cultural Analysis. Benedict Giamo's Explorations Of The Social Conditions, Cultural Meanings, And Literary Representations Of Classic And Contemporary Homelessness In America And Abroad Inform His Understanding Of The Literary Merit And Social Resonance Of Ironweed. Throughout Giamo Remains Grounded In A Close Reading Of The Novel. He Moves With Great Relevance From Dante To Kenneth Burke, From Sartre To Robert Jay Lifton, To Locate Meaning And Value In The Lives Of Kennedy's Characters; By Extension, With Intelligence And Compassion, He Regards The Lives Of The Homeless Who Wander Through Our Streets And Shefters Today. By Benedict Giamo. Includes Bibliographical References (p.143-166). "The Homeless of "Ironweed " is both a meditation on Kennedy's remarkable novel and a literary and cultural analysis. Benedict Giamo's explorations of the social conditions, cultural meanings, and literary representations of classic and contemporary homelessness in America and abroad inform his understanding of the literary merit and social resonance of Ironweed."--BOOK JACKET. "Throughout Giamo remains grounded in a close reading of the novel. He moves with great relevance from Dante to Kenneth Burke, from Sartre to Robert Jay Lifton, to locate meaning and value in the lives of Kennedy's characters; by extension, with intelligence and compassion, he regards the lives of the homeless who wander through our streets and shefters today."--BOOK JACKET Giamo (American studies, U. of Notre Dame) evaluates William Kennedy's 1983 novel Ironweed . His reading is divided into chapters which are built around the novel's central motifs, and uses alternately lyrical and expositional styles to explore the social conditions, cultural meanings, and literary representations of classic and contemporary homelessness in America and abroad. Annotation c. by Book News, Inc., Portland, Or.