John Updike's human comedy

John Updike's human comedy

By Brian Keener

Book Description

This insightful literary analysis reveals how comedy serves as a profound vehicle for exploring human moral development in John Updike's most celebrated works. Brian Keener demonstrates that beneath the surface humor of novels like The Centaur and the complete Rabbit series lies a sophisticated examination of how ordinary people navigate the complexities of ethical growth.

Set against the backdrop of everyday Pennsylvania life in the latter half of the twentieth century, Updike's characters embody the universal struggle toward spiritual and moral maturity. Keener argues that what critics have often overlooked as mere comic relief actually represents the author's deeper understanding of life's inherent contradictions and absurdities.

Through careful examination of farce, burlesque, and irony in Updike's fiction, this study illuminates how characters like George Caldwell and Rabbit Angstrom represent different paths toward fulfilling one's responsibilities to society and family. The analysis draws on Kierkegaard's concept of the ethical sphere, showing how Updike's protagonists must learn through trial and error to embrace their roles as mature human beings.

For readers interested in how literature can illuminate the spiritual dimensions of ordinary life, this book offers a fresh perspective on finding meaning and moral purpose within the comedy of human existence. Keener's work reveals essential insights into how we grow through embracing both the ridiculous and profound aspects of our daily experiences.

Who Is This For?

📖 Reading Level: Short (< 200 pages) (~4 hours)

📄 Length: 148 pages

What You'll Discover

  • ✓ Explore Personnages
  • ✓ Explore Morale dans la litterature
  • ✓ Explore Histoire et critique
  • ✓ Explore Recits humoristiques americains
  • ✓ Explore Humorous stories, history and criticism
  • ✓ Explore Humor
  • ✓ Explore Hommes de la classe moyenne dans la litterature
  • ✓ Explore Characters

Topics Covered

Personnages Morale dans la litterature Histoire et critique Recits humoristiques americains Humorous stories, history and criticism Humor Hommes de la classe moyenne dans la litterature Characters Ethics in literature Ethics Mythology in literature Angstrom, harry (fictitious character) History and criticism Men in literature Angstrom, Harry (Personnage fictif) Updike, john, 1932-2009 Humour Harry Angstrom (Fictitious character) Middle class men in literature Mythologie dans la litterature Morale American Humorous stories Comic, The, in literature Harry Angstrom Comique dans la litterature

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