"Be Interesting but Tell the Truth at All Times": Katherine Burton's Fictional-Narrative Approach to Biographical Writing
Katherine Kurz Burton was a twentieth-century Catholic laywoman, popular biographer and periodical columnist. Although she was well-known and widely read in her day, she has been largely forgotten in ours. This paper is part of a larger project in which I will reintroduce American Catholic historian...
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| Format: | Electronic Article |
| Language: | English |
| Check availability: | HBZ Gateway |
| Journals Online & Print: | Drawer...
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| Fernleihe: | Fernleihe für die Fachinformationsdienste |
| Published: |
American Catholic Historical Society
[2020]
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| In: |
American catholic studies
Year: 2020, Volume: 131, Issue: 1, Pages: 57-78 |
| IxTheo Classification: | CD Christianity and Culture KAJ Church history 1914-; recent history KBQ North America KDB Roman Catholic Church |
| Online Access: |
Volltext (Verlag) Volltext (doi) |
| Summary: | Katherine Kurz Burton was a twentieth-century Catholic laywoman, popular biographer and periodical columnist. Although she was well-known and widely read in her day, she has been largely forgotten in ours. This paper is part of a larger project in which I will reintroduce American Catholic historians to the life and works of Katherine Burton. In this specific article, I provide an answer as to why Burton biographies were staple reading material in her day. I suggest that Burton's popularity was due in part to her unique biographical writing method, which I refer to as her "fictional-narrative approach." My examination of her method is divided into two different parts based on a phrase that Burton herself used to describe her writing: "Be interesting but tell the truth at all times." Burton was also well-known because her writing exemplified mid-twentieth century Catholic literature's goal of making the faith accessible and appealing to those in and outside the church. Although it becomes clear in this paper why Burton was widely read in her time, in my conclusion, I also provide reasons why her "fictional-narrative approach" could be beneficial today. |
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| ISSN: | 2161-8534 |
| Contains: | Enthalten in: American catholic studies
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| Persistent identifiers: | DOI: 10.1353/acs.2020.0012 |