Through a careful examination of the work of the canonical nineteenth-century novelists, Mike Davis traces conspiracies and conspiratorial fantasy from one narrative site to another.
Contents:
Introduction : the Gothic logic of paranoia
Wieland's transformations : the problem of closure in the "opening" American novel
"Hidden significance" : the Marble faun as post script to Seven gables
Rhetorical razors : "lurking significance" in the "vexatious coincidence" of Benito Cereno
Literary cloaks, practical jokes, and the esophagus hoax : concealment, conspiracy, and the contrivance of history in Twain.
Through a careful examination of the work of the canonical nineteenth-century novelists, Mike Davis traces conspiracies and conspiratorial fantasy from one narrative site to another.