Henry Green at the Limits of Modernism

Although Henry Green has been recognised by James Wood, David Lodge and John Updike as one of the most innovative writers of his time, his significant achievement remains largely neglected. Henry Green at the Limits of Modernism provides a theoretically sophisticated and historically nuanced reading of Greens novels and makes the case for Greens importance in reconsiderations of modernism, late modernism and post-war realism. This work is the most ambitious reassessment of Greens oeuvre to date and thus critical reading for scholars interested in modernism, late modernism, and the evolution of British post-war fiction. Arguing against the predominant view of Greens fiction as an autonomous literary construction, the work connects Green to a number of social and literary contexts, resulting in fresh readings of his novels and also a greater accessibility to an author long considered oblique and elusive. With significant investigations of Greens connection to his literary generation, his multifaceted and formally innovative handling of social class, his negotiations of narrative authority and authorship, and the importance of disability studies to understanding Greens fiction, this study charts the complex trajectories of Greens fiction against both social and literary contexts. The work also moves beyond the narrow confines of British literature to explore Greens connections to broader trends in European literature.