What is the most quintessential American novel?A novel that screams what America is (or I guess, was believed to be) really about
>>25309179
>>25309182Unironically a good pick, but delete that image
>>25309179The Road
>>25309179son & xon
>>25309179Moby-Dick comes closest to capturing the ideology and philosophy of America, though it may not be the best authentic cultural reflection. Moby-Dick's too grand in scope and universal in theme to be constrained to America thoughbeit, so the most "quintessential" novel is probably like, Huck Finn, Confederacy of Dunces, Catcher in the Rye, kinda Infinite Jest, etc, just in terms of authentically capturing the culture and people of America and America alone.
>>25309270Until recently I thought Herman Melville was British
>>25309309same until I actually read the novel. I always associated it with Dickens, Conrad, et al. for some reason.
>>25309179Almost any Steinbeck qualifies. Also Moby Dick.
I'm American and I hate reading novels about America. America is a non-fiction country.
>>25309395I've seen this pic a bunch but have yet to look up the premise - until now!>In this queer polyamorous m/f romance novella, two metamours realize they have crushes on each other while planning their shared partner's birthday party together. Ernest, a Jewish autistic demiromantic queer fat trans man submissive, and Nora, a Jewish disabled queer fat femme cis woman switch, have to contend with an age gap, a desire not to mess up their lovely polyamorous dynamic as metamours, the fact that Ernest has never been attracted to a cis person before, and the reality that they are romantically attracted to each other, all while planning their dominant's birthday party and trying to do a really good job. dang, this really is Americaalso i googled the author and they killed themselves about a year after this book.
>>25309395>>25309516Xan West, young man.
>>25309182based oblivious freaks
>>25309270Moby Dick is also particularly Yankoidal. I haven't finished it yet but it feels fairly foreign to me as a Southerner and doesn't remind me very much of the midwesterners I've known. Obviously it is still an excellent novel.
>>25309179Moby Dick, without a doubt.>violent man has a confusing revenge fantasy against a cheap source of oil
>>25309712Absalom, Absalom! for southern culture
>>25310279Absalom is then only American novel I put in the same tier as Moby Dick; great pick.Also, it's more productive to look at regional literature given the size of the USA - i.e. Sometimes a Great Notion for the Pacific Northwest culture; Winesburg Ohio for the Midwest (though it's not really a novel so maybe replace it with Mrs Bridge); Death Comes for the Archbishop and/or Blood Meridian for the Southwest.
>>25309179Uncle Tom's Cabin.
