Downward mobility : the form of capital and the sentimental novel / Katherine Binhammer.

Format:

Book

Author/Creator:

Binhammer, Katherine, 1962- author.

Language:

English

Subjects (All):

English literature--18th century--History and criticism.

English literature.

Capitalism in literature.

Social mobility in literature.

Sentimentalism in literature.

Physical Description:

x, 242 pages : illustrations ; 24 cm

Place of Publication:

Baltimore : Johns Hopkins University Press, [2020]

Summary:

"Binhammer uses the methodologies of contemporary critical finance studies and narrative theory to argue that the myth of downward mobility is as central to the cultural history of capitalism as the myth of upward mobility. By exploring the relationship between economic growth and financial failure, she demonstrates how stories of downward mobility in eighteenth-century sentimental novels are not simple tales about the losers of capitalism but help manage the crises and speculative collapses that are inevitable to capital's circulation"-- Provided by publisher.

Contents:

Fictitious capital and the social history of debt

Leveraging fiction : when debt becomes equity

Narrative exchange : the value of stories within stories

The plot of capital I : Cecilia and risk management

The plot of capital II : Camilla, closure, and the realization of capital.

Notes:

Includes bibliographical references and index.

ISBN:

9781421437606

1421437600

9781421437613

1421437619

OCLC:

1117312144