The Critical Reception of John Irving

This thesis discusses the critical reception of best selling novelist John Irving in America. It looks at the development in reviews, both in scholarly and popular press, from his first novel 'Setting Free the Bears' (1968) to 'Until I Find You' (2005)

John Irving, Female Sexuality, and the Victorian Feminine Ideal

In an interview about The Cider House Rules, John Irving states, It is never the social or political message that interests me in a novel (qtd. in Herel, para. 18). However, in book reviews, jacket blurbs, literary criticism, and Irving\u27s own writing, readers and critics and Irving often assert that he is a neo-Victorian novelist, and the Victorians were a notoriously political bunch. Though Irving does not admit to the political nature of his writing, the way he treats feminist politics in his fiction has drawn particular notice by the media, who often label him as a feminist writer. Deeper investigation into the female characters in three of his novels—The World According to Garp, The Hotel New Hampshire, and The Cider House Rules—illuminates lrving\u27s literary juxtaposition between traditional Victorianist and modem feminist. Like the archetypal Victorian fallen women, Ellen James, Franny Berry, Melony, and Rose Rose, are sexually and physically abused by men. However, where the Victorian fallen woman would face societal excommunication, these characters exact revenge on their attackers, eventually reclaiming their sexuality and control over their own lives. Investigating the various conformities and incongruities between lrving\u27s versions of liberal feminism, and radical feminism suggests that though Irving modernizes the Victorian woman for his updated 19th century narratives, he is less successful as a male author portraying feminism. He favors a liberal brand of feminism he views as intellectual but non-threatening over radical feminism that he sees as seeking political gain, paralleling his anxieties about political writing. If Irving wants to write about feminism well, he must acknowledge that he is contributing to a political conversation and take responsibility for the political baggage that comes with the territory

John Irving, Female Sexuality, and the Victorian Feminine Ideal

In an interview about The Cider House Rules, John Irving states, It is never the social or political message that interests me in a novel (qtd. in Herel, para. 18). However, in book reviews, jacket blurbs, literary criticism, and Irving\u27s own writing, readers and critics and Irving often assert that he is a neo-Victorian novelist, and the Victorians were a notoriously political bunch. Though Irving does not admit to the political nature of his writing, the way he treats feminist politics in his fiction has drawn particular notice by the media, who often label him as a feminist writer. Deeper investigation into the female characters in three of his novels—The World According to Garp, The Hotel New Hampshire, and The Cider House Rules—illuminates lrving\u27s literary juxtaposition between traditional Victorianist and modem feminist. Like the archetypal Victorian fallen women, Ellen James, Franny Berry, Melony, and Rose Rose, are sexually and physically abused by men. However, where the Victorian fallen woman would face societal excommunication, these characters exact revenge on their attackers, eventually reclaiming their sexuality and control over their own lives. Investigating the various conformities and incongruities between lrving\u27s versions of liberal feminism, and radical feminism suggests that though Irving modernizes the Victorian woman for his updated 19th century narratives, he is less successful as a male author portraying feminism. He favors a liberal brand of feminism he views as intellectual but non-threatening over radical feminism that he sees as seeking political gain, paralleling his anxieties about political writing. If Irving wants to write about feminism well, he must acknowledge that he is contributing to a political conversation and take responsibility for the political baggage that comes with the territory

Washington University Record, December 3, 1981

https://digitalcommons.wustl.edu/record/1218/thumbnail.jp

Prospectus, February 24, 1982

SCHEDULE CONFLICT CANCELS PARKLAND APPEARANCE: SECRETARY OF STATE JIM EDGAR OFFERS VIEWS ON PROBLEMS AND D.W.I. LAW CHANGES; News In Brief; New D.W.I. law explained in detail; Heavy snows cost college $27,500 for salt, help; Letters To The Editor: New vice-president voices opinons, Dean says thanks, Student Government; StuGo votes yes on TV; State police design PFR program; Ripley receives Yaxley award; P.C. Happenings...: Exhibit features sculptures, Camerata to perform concert, Panel discusses adoption, Learn to handle stress, Pick up first aid cards, PACT presents \u27Coping with Miscarriage\u27; Smile, children!: S.A.D.H.A. to celebrate dental health with activities; Counseling Center provides help; Need help with tax returns?; 41 schools display artwork in show; Crabs need love, too; Pittsburgh comes to Champaign; Pat Larson: buoyant leader; Melting show causes erosion; I wish I may, I wish I might...: Students view starry sky; Disabled people no longer shut off from using PLATO; Irving\u27s latest: rehash of \u27Garp\u27; ODW doesn\u27t fulfill crowd expectation; Classifieds; Speaker to discuss diagnosing; Oscar contender a \u27no-miss\u27 movie; Now\u27s your chance to pick film favorites; Tom Jones to perform in March; Jam trio\u27s latest has more meaning; Ozzy tickets refunded; Cobras end season with another win; Lady Cobras undefeated, rolling on trail of successhttps://spark.parkland.edu/prospectus_1982/1027/thumbnail.jp

Mirror - Vol. 05, No. 21 - March 4, 1982

The Mirror (sometimes called the Fairfield Mirror) is the official student newspaper of Fairfield University, and is published weekly during the academic year (September - May). It runs from 1977 - the present; current issues are available online.https://digitalcommons.fairfield.edu/archives-mirror/1104/thumbnail.jp

Dark Apprenticeships: The Novels of John Irving

What explains readers’ continued fascination with the novels of John Irving? How does Irving blend storytelling inspired by the likes of Charles Dickens and Thomas Hardy with the harsh realities of the 20th and 21st centuries? Is such a thing even possible, or only a fool’s errand? Dark Apprenticeships explores Irving’s evolution as a significant American author, his overall contribution, and key motifs in his writing – which range from examinations of the art of storytelling itself, to the seemingly eternal war of the sexes, the horror of crimes intentionally or unintentionally perpetrated against children, and the unsung hardships faced by minorities of all kinds, all the while upholding the key tenets of the Bildungsroman: growth and hope. By examining in-depth five essential novels – The World According to Garp, The Hotel New Hampshire, The Cider House Rules, A Widow for One Year, and Until I Find You – it presents a unique portrait of the author, his personal growth, and his rightful place in the tradition of the Bildungsroman or apprenticeship novel