American Literature vs British Literature

<<John Ronald Reuel Tolkien >> :- I think he became popular outside the academic circles because of "The Lord of the Rings" movie trilogy, how many people have read "The Hobbit" (the prelude to "the lord of the Rings") or even "The Silmarillion."

Tolkien was a great scholar, author and grammarian (he even invented a language) but writing books wasn't his occupation. While working at the Oxford English Dictionary (the organization), among others, he initiated the entries "wasp" and "walrus."
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tolkien

But how many people would have known him without watching "The LOTR" trilogy.

Just as everyone will remember C.S Lewis if someone mentions "The Chronicles of Narnia," I think these days, movies help a lot in book sales. I am trying to point out those authors that stood (and still standing) the test of popularity without the aid of hollywood.

"Anyway, I'm just going to mention ONE here and now, and he's a local Edinburgh bloke"

Damien, I've read all IR's books except Rebus’ Scotland, which makes me quite a fan, but am disappointed by his use of words and grammar which stem from well outside the Kingdom of Fife: you described him as an Edinburgh bloke, but he invariably calls blokes "guys", uses the horrible "gotten", and even (several times) has used "fit" as the past tense of the verb "to fit" instead of "fitted".

I can understand (while deploring) certain editions being changed, but these have occurred in editions sold in the UK and Commonwealth.

>> but he invariably calls blokes "guys", uses the horrible "gotten", and even (several times) has used "fit" as the past tense of the verb "to fit" instead of "fitted". <<

Goodness me! What a disaster and a disgrace. Let's hope his writing in future becomes less affected by cultures foreign to the Commonwealth. I'm sure her majesty finds this practice most horribilis.

That's HM, rebel.

<<Today my teacher told me that we use an article 'the' before 'Shakespeare' because he is not an ordinary poet.>>

I think you mean the word "bard". Bard is a word for a poet or singer. Whenever you see a reference to "The Bard" (capitalized and with a "the") then you know it is a specific reference to Shakespeare.

Hmm, hm.

If Adam wants to claim T.S. Eliot, then I think Americans get to claim Vladimir Nabakov. Anyway, here are some of the great American authors of the twentieth century...

John Steinbeck
F. Scott Fitzgerald
Arthur Miller
Ernest Hemingway
Kurt Vonnegut, Jr.
William Faulkner
Ray Bradbury
Edward Bellamy
Ralph Ellison
Gertrude Stein
Joseph Heller
Edith Wharton
Philip Roth
Richard Wright
Norman Mailer
Alice Walker
Sinclair Lewis
Theodore Dreiser
Shirley Ann Grau
Thornton Wilder
Raymond Chandler
Upton Sinclair
Allen Ginsberg
Truman Capote
J.D. Salinger
Jack Kerouac
John Dos Passos
Harper Lee
Tennessee Williams
Dashiell Hammett
Toni Morrison
Flannery O'Connor
T.C. Boyle
Sherwood Anderson
William Saroyan
James Jones
Hamlin Garland
Tom Wolfe
Frank Norris
Ezra Pound
Isaac Asimov
Eugene O'Neill

I screwed up on the J K Rowling link...soz

http://www.rampantscotland.com/famous/bldev_famrowling.htm

I'm not sure why Rankin uses that style, Thommo...maybe he wants to appeal to American readers, which apparently he does, hence the change in editions for the market outside the UK. True, it's alienspeak not only across the Firth Bridge in the Kingdom of Fife but all over this country, except for the use of guys. Guys is universal, here in Scotland as well as the rest of the UK. But blokes is just as common....in fact, more so generally I would reckon when referring to males.

I've heard Rankin speak on both TV and radio (Scottish stations) and he never speaks the way he writes sometimes. He is an Edinburgh bloke - carle, chiel, guy, chap, geezer, fellow..whatever...now, through and through, as he lives here.

Regarding T S Eliot: Strictly speaking, Adam for once was not being over nationalistic.....Eliot was born in St Louis, Missouri, USA, but became a naturalised Briton in 1927 at the age of 39.

<< William Faulkner >> :- Was always going to be on my list, its a wonder why no one mentioned his name earlier. "As I Lay Dying," - I've read a lot of commentaries on the book, but I've not done the actual reading (as I'm not the greatest fan of American literature).

To Dude Who Knows (whatever that name is meant to epitomize):

I'll be glad if you, or someone else expatiates on your list, I do not think I'm in the right position to make comments on that list, that should be done by someone with a sufficient knowledge of American literature.

Stan, Tolkein was extrememly popular in the 60's. Many older people read the books back then, and many of us younger ones read them as children. It's probably only those in their 20's who don't realize what a phenomenon he was long before the movies came out.

<<Regarding T S Eliot: Strictly speaking, Adam for once was not being over nationalistic.....Eliot was born in St Louis, Missouri, USA, but became a naturalised Briton in 1927 at the age of 39.>>

I never suggested that Adam was being overly nationalistic (in this case), and was well aware of Eliot's history. You never saw me state that he was wrong to claim T.S. Eliot for Great Britain. What I said was that if Adam was going to count Eliot as a Briton, then I think Nabakov (a naturalized US citizen) ought to count as an American, and not a Russian. Anyway, it was my way of pointing out that T.S. Eliot's nationality was not a simple subject. I suppose that everyone here agrees that Alfred Hitchcock was an American director?

And Stan my man, you're missing out. I don't know how someone can profess not to be a fan of something as broad as American literature, but you ought to make an effort to familiarize yourself with it before making a judgement, even if it's only personal. Anyway, I'd be happy to offer any further information on American authors, but I don't know what it is you seek.

This list surely must be wrong when it lists
"The Great Gatsby" by F. Scott Fitzgerald and "Lolita" by Vladimir Nabokov as two of the greates t books of the 20th century. Although well-known movies and/or cultural phenomenas, I doubt they are read by anyone today.

Since when did the greatest books have to be the most popular? Regardless, I think they are more popular than you realize.

Sometimes novels remain "great books" because they were an important innovation for their time, and provided an influence or framework for later authors.

I never had to read it. I did have to suffer through "The Scarlet Letter" and "Moby Dick", though.