Stephen Crane.

Cleveland, OH The World Publishing Company: Meridian Books, 1962. Paperback First Edition Thus (1962). First published in hardcover1950 by William Sloane Associates. First Edition Thus (1962). Very Good- in Wraps: shows indications of careful use: mild rubbing and faint soiling to the wrapper covers, which show a crease top to bottom near the outside edge of the front panel and sunning to the bright yellow background field of the backstrip (the black-lettered author's name remains bold and clearly legible, but the white-lettered title is much obscured); a small, rather faint stain to the head of the backstrip and top edge of the text block at the head; the binding is square and secure; the text is clean. Free of creased or dog-eared pages in the text. Free of underlining, hi-lighting, notations, or marginalia. Free of ownership names, dates, addresses, notations, inscriptions, stamps, or labels. A structurally sound, tightly bound copy, showing moderate wear and several cosmetic flaws. NOT a Remainder, Book-Club, or Ex-Library. 12mo. (7.15 x 4.25 x 0.75 inches). xvii, 347 pages. Language: English. Weight: 10.3 ounces. First published in hardcover1950 by William Sloane Associates. Mass Market Paperback. This was poet Berryman's doctoral thesis. It remains a milestone study on Crane, and in American literature studies generally for its acute insights. It stands up quite well to most Crane studies since; though more facts may have emerged, they do not greatly alter the essential portrait. To get at the core of the creative genius it really takes another genius.Crane wrote two short novel masterpieces, Maggie and the Red Badge of Courage, and several of the best stories in modern English to date in a short span of about 8 years. Berryman deftly mixes biography with literary criticism of these works in a sound scholarly way unfortunately no longer fashionable. Berryman offers a deep meditation on Crane's mercurial personality, which Berryman characterizes as a "volcanic" natural talent from whom words flowed like lava. Berryman believes Crane was likely to have dwarfed most other American novelists had he lived and produced beyond his mere 30 years. Berryman, even without his subsequent poetic output, was an important critic, and this book also serves as the proper starting point to his own double career.