Sinclair Lewis's Elmer Gantry: A Study of the Fundamentalist-Modernist Controversy

Sinclair Lewis's Elmer Gantry (1927) is a novel famous for its eponymous anti-hero. It received widespread criticism upon its release from America's clergy and their congregations for its characterization of Elmer himself and for its associated representation of his religious practices and...

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Bibliographic Details
Main Author: Bembridge, Steven (Author)
Format: Electronic Article
Language:English
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Published: Johns Hopkins University Press 2023
In: Christianity & literature
Year: 2023, Volume: 72, Issue: 1, Pages: 34-52
IxTheo Classification:CD Christianity and Culture
KAH Church history 1648-1913; modern history
KAJ Church history 1914-; recent history
KBQ North America
Further subjects:B Sinclair Lewis
B Fundamentalism
B Naturalism
B Evangelicalism
B Liberalism
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Summary:Sinclair Lewis's Elmer Gantry (1927) is a novel famous for its eponymous anti-hero. It received widespread criticism upon its release from America's clergy and their congregations for its characterization of Elmer himself and for its associated representation of his religious practices and beliefs. Indeed, this critical reception of Elmer Gantry has almost become a codified interpretation of the novel. This interpretation, however, is incorrect. Elmer Gantry is not a novel that ridicules Christianity. Drawing from the battle between theological conservatism and liberalism, it reveals the complexity of American belief at the turn of the twentieth century in surprisingly sensitive ways.
ISSN:2056-5666
Contains:Enthalten in: Christianity & literature
Persistent identifiers:DOI: 10.1353/chy.2023.0002