The McSweeney's Group: Modernist Roots and Contemporary Permutations in Little Magazines

Authors

Charles J. CrespoFollow

Document Type

Thesis

Degree

Master of Arts (MA)

Major/Program

English

First Advisor's Name

Nathaniel Cadle

First Advisor's Committee Title

Committee Chair

Second Advisor's Name

Heather Blatt

Third Advisor's Name

Michael P. Gillespie

Keywords

Timothy McSweeney's Quarterly Concern, The Believer, n+1, McSweeney's, Periodical Studies, Little Magazines, Modernist Magazines, Dave Eggers, Network Theory

Date of Defense

11-15-2013

Abstract

The purpose of this project centered on the influential literary magazine Timothy McSweeney’s Quarterly Concern. Using Bruno Latour’s network theory as well as the methods put forth by Robert Scholes and Clifford Wulfman to study modernist little magazines, I analyzed the influence McSweeney’s has on contemporary little magazines. I traced the connections between McSweeney’s and other paradigmatic examples of little magazines—The Believer and n+1—to show how the McSweeney’s aesthetic and business practice creates a model for more recent publications.

My thesis argued that The Believer continues McSweeney’s aesthetic mission. In contrast, n+1 positioned itself against the McSweeney’s aesthetic, which indirectly created a space within the little magazines for writers, philosophers, and artists to debate the prevailing aesthetic theories of the contemporary period. The creation of this space connects these contemporary magazines back to modernist little magazines, thereby validating my decision to use the methods of Scholes and Wulfman.

Identifier

FI13120418

Recommended Citation

Crespo, Charles J., "The McSweeney's Group: Modernist Roots and Contemporary Permutations in Little Magazines" (2013). FIU Electronic Theses and Dissertations. 985.
https://digitalcommons.fiu.edu/etd/985