Yet he shunned the debate team because he viewed as obscene the notion of digging statistics about immigrationout of dusty spotted books in the dusty. Beginning of a dialog window, including tabbed navigation to register an account or sign in to an existing account. But he found the sentiments in the tract useful in his sermon, and the thirty dimes he spent for lovely photographs of burlesque ladies. I expected a comic book story and dated prose i got, instead.
The author sinclair lewis wrote the novel elmer gantry in 1927 telling us a story about a young guy named elmer who, like most of the teens enjoys to go out, party drinksmoke and. Books like elmer gantry by sinclair lewis suggested. In our books change series, historians of religion consider books that have changed us or have themselves been changed. Goodreads members who liked elmer gantry also liked. Dec 04, 2007 this is so well set out it is a satire that will never age. The book was published in multiple languages including french, consists of 352 pages and is available in paperback format. Everyday low prices and free delivery on eligible orders. Free download or read online elmer gantry pdf epub book. Elmer gantry by lewis, sinclair and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at.
Our weekly feature then and now harnesses the expertise of american religious historians who care about the cities of god and the cities of humans. Personally i liked all three of these, but the first, babbitt the most. Download it once and read it on your kindle device, pc, phones or tablets. Now therefore, tatnai, governor beyond the river, shetharboznai, and your companions the apharsachites, which are beyond the river, be ye far from thence, an injunction. Elmer gantry is set before the days of radio and television evangelism, but sinclair lewis certainly saw them and megachurches coming. The wouldbe censors were left fuming, but they did not stop. The author sinclair lewis wrote the novel elmer gantry in 1927 telling us a story about a. Elmer gantry by sinclair lewis and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. Elmer gantry is the third of what seems to me to be a second trilogy. Welcome,you are looking at books for reading, the elmer gantry, you will able to read or download in pdf or epub books and notice some of author may have lock the live reading for some of country. Although the actual time period is dated, the plot is. Sinclair lewis elmer gantry is a great book because it has credibility, a timeless theme, and it has the necessary action.
The two make a successful onstage pair, and their chemistry extends to romance. Stretch the story of elmer gantry 1996, cd discogs. If you like elmer gantry you might like similar books babbitt, look homeward, angel, main street, you cant go home again, tobacco road. Elmer gantry was a labor of love for brooks, who had dreamed of filming lewiss novel for more than a decade and spent two years writing the script, which won the oscar for best adapted screenplay. After seeing advanced sheets of the book, stidger attempted to distance himself from the elmer gantry character and tried to discredit it by announcing that lewis was drunk the entire time he wrote elmer gantry. Elmer gantrys titular character is a boozing womanizer who, as a college student, learns the intoxication of holding an audience with his closed hand in his public speaking class. Discover the latest buzzworthy books, from mysteries and romance to humor and. The book has been awarded with audie award for literary fiction. Vintage double weight photograph from the set of the 1960 film.
Sinclair lewiss elmer gantry v wallace stegners the spectator bird. Its satire, or elmer gantrys can be applied to all things where cash and power is concerned. Elmer gantry is a novel that presents aspects of the religious activity of america in fundamentalist and evangelistic circles and the attitudes of the 1920s public toward it. This tale is told in what feels like could be two books, maybe two and quarter. Elmer gantry should elmer gantry be considered an icon in. Adapted by director richard brooks, the film is based on the 1927 novel of the same name by sinclair lewis and stars burt lancaster, jean simmons, arthur kennedy, shirley jones and patti page. Elmer gantry is a 1960 american drama film about a con man and a female evangelist selling religion to smalltown america. Pdf elmer gantry book by sinclair lewis free download. A fasttalking traveling salesman with a charming, loquacious manner convinces a sincere evangelist that he can be an effective preacher for her cause. Elmer gantry download ebook pdf, epub, tuebl, mobi. This book elmer gantry is a novel written by sinclair lewis. Sep 22, 2014 in the end, the censorship efforts backfired. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading elmer gantry. This was the apogee of his literary career, and in the period from ann vickers 1933 to the posthumously published world so wide 1951 lewis wrote ten novels that.
Basis for the 1960 film starring burt lancaster and jean simmons, and directed by richard brooks. Books like elmer gantry by sinclair lewis suggested reading sinclair lewis this study guide consists of approximately 22 pages of chapter summaries, quotes, character analysis, themes, and more everything you need to sharpen your knowledge of elmer gantry. In 1930, following elmer gantry 1927 and dodsworth 1929, sinclair lewis became the first american author to be awarded the nobel prize for distinction in world literature. One of lewis most popular novels, and one that created an uproar among the religious evangelical communities that it satirizes. He was renowned as an american novelist, playwright and short story. Elmer gantry has been called the greatest, most vital, and most penetrating study of hypocrisy that has been written since the works of voltaire goodreads 3. Like elmer, american today as then is still one thing one the surface, and an entirely different beast running riot just below. Elmer gantry, published in 1927, was so much more complex, so much more biting and chilling in its description of the worst parts of the american psyche, so much more timeless, than i ever imagined it would be. Elmer gantry is a conniving, hipocrite much like many of the fundamental evangelists who are still doing the rounds today.
Universally recognized as a landmark in american literature, elmer gantry scandalized readers when it was first published, causing sinclair lewis to be invited to a jail cell in new hampshire and. Before sinclair lewis completed elmer gantry, methodist minister william big bill stidger boasted that he was the person after whom the book s main character would be patterned. When hedonistic but charming con man elmer gantry meets the beautiful sister sharon falconer, a roadside revivalist, he feigns piousness to join her act as a passionate preacher. Elmer gantry, the traveling evangelist who loved whiskey, women and wealth, was conceived by sinclair lewis in a bestselling 1927 novel and continues to resonate with modern audiences. About sinclair lewis 18851951 the author was born as harry sinclair lewis in 1885 in sauk centre, minnesota. Just before the 4th of july, i finished elmer gantry. Bookplate with keats quote, the poetry of earth is never dead, on front endpaper. Within six weeks, elmer gantry had sold more than 175,000 copies. It was published in various languages including french. I read all sinclair lewis books in czehc translations. It was all inspired, every word, no matter what scoffers like jim said. Years later, groups like the catholic legion of decency and the new england watch and ward society still targeted smutty novels.
The three novels are babbitt, arrowsmith, and elmer gantry. A broadway play by patrick kearney opened on 7 august 1928 at the playhouse theatre, where it ran for 48 performances. This second trilogy of novels are all satires of various aspects of american life in business, medicine, and religion. Elmer gantry burt lancaster, a drunken, dishonest street preacher allegedly patterned on billy sunday, wrangles a job with the travelling tent ministry conducted by sister sharon falconer jean. Its like asking who else but henry fonda could have played tom joad. This site is like a library, use search box in the widget to get ebook that you want. Therefore it need a free signup process to obtain the book. The little man treated elmer like a large damp dog, and elmer licked his shoes and followed. Elmer gantry, is initially attracted by booze and easy money though he eventually. Elmer gantry, is initially attracted by booze and easy money though he eventually renounces tobacco and alcohol and chasing women. Both the show and their relationship are threatened, however, when one of gantry s exlovers decides that she has a score to settle with.
Elmer gantry is a good example of how books and book markets change. Elmer gantry by sinclair lewis, first edition abebooks. There was a film by the same name starring bert lancaster and jean symonds but this only went as far as the death of sharon falconer, played by symonds. The first edition of the novel was published in 1927, and was written by sinclair lewis. Elmer gantry sinclair lewis first edition, rare, signed books. Elmer gantry richard brooks, sinclair lewis, jean simmons. Not particularly academic, he is a strapping football gladiator who goes in for fighting, drinking and girls. In my opinion, elmer gantry is sinclair lewis finest novel, and thats saying a lot. Find books like elmer gantry from the worlds largest community of readers. That sums up sinclair lewis 1927 satire of scandalous.
Adapted by director richard brooks, the film is based on the 1927 novel of the same name by sinclair lewis and stars burt lancaster, jean simmons, arthur kennedy, shirley jones and patti page elmer gantry was nominated for five academy awards in 1961, including best. Elmer gantry is an intensely unspiritual young man at college in the 1920s. He had, in fact, got everything from church and sunday school, except, perhaps, any longing whatever for decency and kindness and reason. In 1930 he became the first american to win the nobel prize for literature. In my copy of elmer gantry, one sentence is underlined six times. It turned out to be one of the greatest novels i have ever read. He never said anything important, and he always said it sonorously. See more ideas about elmer gantry, sinclair lewis and old time religion. In elmer gantry, elmer himself is less a character than a contrivance, an easy target who in our age might be a tv personality to serve his ambition to have an ever bigger christian pulpit leading to what becomes, late in the book, his ultimate goal. I first read it some years ago during the height of the televangelist scandals, and while the turnofthecentury vernacular seemed a bit quaint, the story itself was as fresh as the daily headlinesso topical that for a while there i regarded lewis as something of a prophet. Elmer gantry, whose gifts of persuasion might have been used to better purpose, was born to be a senator, we learn on the novels first page. In the decade that followed, lewis published four other acclaimed novels of social criticismbabbitt 1922, arrowsmith 1925, elmer gantry 1927, and dodsworth 1929. This onepage guide includes a plot summary and brief analysis of elmer gantry by sinclair lewis.
Universally recognized as a landmark in american literature, elmer gantry. Elmer gantry is the portrait of a silvertongued evangelist who rises to power within his church, yet lives a life of hypocrisy, sensuality, and ruthless selfindulgence. Elmer gantry sinclair lewis first edition royal books. Click download or read online button to get elmer gantry book now. If you are a seller for this product, would you like to suggest updates through seller. The author sinclair lewis wrote the novel elmer gantry in 1927 telling us a story about a young guy named elmer who, like most of the teens enjoys to go out, party drinksmoke and spend time with a lot of girls. Published in 1926, elmer gantry is a classic fiction novel by sinclair lewis. Supersummary, a modern alternative to sparknotes and cliffsnotes, offers highquality study guides that feature detailed chapter summaries and analysis of major themes, characters, quotes, and essay topics. Hed take the first text he turned to and talk on that.
As for characterization, the main character is a louse and youre not meant to like him, but ive never read a more compelling and spoton portrayal of hypocritical delusion and cognitive dissonance. He also knew that jim, as quarter, was far more the soul of the team than himself as tackle and captain. With burt lancaster, jean simmons, arthur kennedy, dean jagger. Unfortunately, elmer gantry is not a staple of american literature. Elmer gantry book hillsborough county public library. Director richard brooks gets up close to direct burt lancaster as lancaster holds jean simmons. If it available for your country it will shown as book reader and user fully subscribe will benefit by having full access to. Elmer gantry never knew who set him thirty dimes, wrapped in a tract about holiness, nor why.
The title character starts out as a greedy, shallow, philandering baptist minister, turns to evangelism, and eventually becomes the leader of a large methodist congregation. Gantry burt lancaster drops into the revival tent for his first experience of the phenomenal sister sharon falconer jean simmons in elmer gantry, 1960, from the sinclair lewis novel. First edition, first issue, with gantry misspelled cantry on the books backstrip. Books like elmer gantry by sinclair lewis suggested reading. Elmer gantry and millions of other books are available for amazon kindle. This second trilogy of novels are all satires of various aspects. Elmer gantry is a satirical novel written by sinclair lewis in 1926 that presents aspects of the religious activity of america in fundamentalist and evangelistic circles and the attitudes of the 1920s public toward it. A vulgar and licentious college football captain becomes a messenger of god as a suave evangelist preacher. Elmer gantry is a great read for anyone frustrated by america today. The main characters of this fiction, classics story are. When i am playing in a town and it looks like there is not going to be much of a house. The film also scored oscar nominations for best picture and for andre previns score.
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