The Dean of American Letters
Subtitle: the late career of William Dean Howells
By: John W. Crowley.
Publisher: University of Massachusetts Press
Published: 1999
Place of publication: Amherst
Language: eng
Number of pages: 146
Subjects: Howells, William Dean, 1837-1920 -- Last years.; Novelists, American -- 19th century -- Biography.; Critics -- United States -- Biography.
Genres: Biography.
Description: "The final volume of John W. Crowley's trilogy of works on William Dean Howells, this book focuses on the much neglected last decades of the author's life. It was during this period that Howells, already well known as a writer, became a kind of cultural icon, the so-called "Dean of American Letters.""--BOOK JACKET.

"In the end, Crowley sees Howells's rise to prominence as an early manifestation of the commodification of culture that came to dominate American letters during the twentieth century. At the same time, he succeeds in conveying the humane virtues that Howells never relinquished - his graciousness, his humility, and his geniality."--BOOK JACKET.
Notes: Includes bibliographical references (p. [111]-137) and index.