The Business of the Novel:
Economics, Aesthetics and the Case of Middlemarch
Simon R Frost
Literary Texts and the Popular Marketplace
978 1 84893 194 7: 234x156mm: £60.00/$99.00
978 1 84893 195 4
This study shows how aesthetics and economics have been combined in a great work of literature. Widely acknowledged as one of the great English novels, Middlemarch was published at a time which saw the emergence of a commodity-based culture. Frost examines the history of Middlemarch’s composition and publication within the context of Victorian demand, then goes on to consider the interpretation, reception and consumption of the book. Reader experience and rival publications are explored alongside a ‘commodity reading’ of the novel. The study will be of value to scholars of book history, economics and material culture.
Sample pages
Readership
The History of the Book, Literature and Economics
Contents
Introduction
Part I: Supply
1 Coordination of Economic and Aesthetic Practices
2 Coordination of Economic and Aesthetic Discourses
Part II: Demand
3 End-Users and Readers
4 Shoppers
Part III: Commodity Reading
5 Contextual Wants
6 A Commodity Reading of Middlemarch
Part IV: Business besides Aesthetics
7 Good for the Audience
8 Rival Books and Products
Conclusion
Reviews
'it was quite eye-opening for me to read Simon Frost’s new academic study, The Business of the Novel: Economics, Aesthetics and the Case of Middlemarch. Frost examines the history of the composition of this tome, and its consumption—including Middlemarch ketchup and Middlemarch matchboxes!'
– Tabish Khair, livemint.com
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