A Death in the Family
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| A Death in the Family | |
 1st edition cover |
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| Author | James Agee |
|---|---|
| Country | United States |
| Language | English |
| Genre(s) | Novel |
| Publisher | McDowell Obolensky |
| Publication date | 1957 |
| Media type | Print (Hardback & Paperback) |
| Pages | 339 pp |
| ISBN | NA |
A Death in the Family is an autobiographical novel by author James Agee, set in LaFollette, Tennessee. He began writing it in 1948, but it was not quite complete when he died in 1955. It was edited and released posthumously in 1957 by editor David McDowell. Agee's widow and children were left with little money after Agee's death and McDowell wanted to help them by publishing the work. The novel won the Pulitzer Prize in 1958.
Contents |
[edit] Plot
The novel is based on the events that occurred to Agee when his father died in a car accident returning from visiting his ill father. The novel also gives a look at life in Knoxville, TN during the early 1920s.
[edit] New version
University of Tennessee professor Michael Lofaro claimed the version printed in 1957 was not the version intended for print by the author. He discussed his work at a conference that was part of the Knoxville James Agee Celebration (April 2005). Lofaro tracked down the author's original manuscripts and notes and has reconstructed a version he says is more authentic. Lofaro's version of the novel, A Death in the Family: A Restoration of the Author's Text, was published in 2007 as part of a 10-volume set, The Collected Works of James Agee (University of Tennessee Press). Lofaro is also the author of Agee Agonistes: Essays on the Life, Legend, and Works of James Agee (2007).
[edit] Differences
According to Lofaro, McDowell altered the original text in a number of ways:
- Removed the original opening, a nightmare scene, and instead started the novel with "Knoxville: Summer of 1915," a previously published short work of Agee's that was not intended as part of the novel.
- Altered the order of the book, which was intended to be chronological.
- Some chapters were removed.
- Some chapters were chopped up.
- Some chapters were moved and presented as flashbacks.
- The number of chapters was changed from 44 short chapters to 20.
[edit] Adaptations
The novel was adapted into a Pulitzer Prize-winning play by Tad Mosel.
The movie, All The Way Home (1963), was filmed in the same neighborhood where Agee grew up in Knoxville. Directed by Alex Segal, it stars Robert Preston, Jean Simmons and Pat Hingle.
[edit] External links
| Awards | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by no award given (1957) Andersonville by MacKinlay Kantor (1956) |
Pulitzer Prize for Fiction 1958 |
Succeeded by The Travels of Jaimie McPheeters by Robert Lewis Taylor |
