{"product_id":"the-financier-theodore-dreiser-9780252035043","title":"The Financier: The Critical Edition","description":"\u003cp\u003eFirst published in 1912, Theodore Dreiser's third novel, \u003ci\u003eThe Financier, \u003c\/i\u003e captures the ruthlessness and sparkle of the Gilded Age alongside the charismatic amorality of the power brokers and bankers of the mid-nineteenth century. This volume is the first modern edition of \u003ci\u003eThe Financier\u003c\/i\u003e to draw on the uncorrected page proofs of the original 1912 version, which established Dreiser as a master of the American business novel. The novel was the first volume of Dreiser's Trilogy of Desire, also known as the Cowperwood Trilogy, which includes \u003ci\u003eThe Titan\u003c\/i\u003e (1914) and \u003ci\u003eThe Stoic\u003c\/i\u003e (1947).\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eDreiser laboriously researched the business practices and personal exploits of real-life robber baron Charles Yerkes to narrate Frank Algernon Cowperwood's early career in \u003ci\u003eThe Financier, \u003c\/i\u003e which explores the unscrupulous world of finance from the Civil War through the panic incited by the 1871 Chicago fire. In 1927, the monumental novel reappeared in a radically revised version for which Dreiser, notorious for lengthy novels, agreed to cut more than two hundred and seventy pages. This revised version became the most familiar, reprinted by publishers and studied by scholars for decades.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eFor this new edition, Roark Mulligan meticulously reviewed earlier versions of the novel and its publication history, including the last-minute removal of paragraphs, pages, and even whole chapters from the 1912 edition, cuts based mainly on the advice of H. L. Mencken. The restored text better matches Dreiser's original vision for the work. More than three hundred additional pages not available to modern readers--including those cut from the 1927 edition and more than seventy hastily removed from the manuscript just days before publication in 1912--more effectively establish characterization and motivation. Restored passages dedicated to the internal thoughts of major and minor characters bring a softer dimension to a novel primarily celebrated for its realistic attention to the cold external world of finance.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cp\u003eMulligan's historical commentary reveals new insights into Dreiser's creative practices and how his business knowledge shaped \u003ci\u003eThe Financier.\u003c\/i\u003e This supplemental material considers the novel's place within the tradition of American business novels and its reflections on the scandalous business practices of the robber baron era.\u003c\/p\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eAuthor:\u003c\/b\u003e Theodore Dreiser\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-10:\u003c\/b\u003e 0252035046\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eISBN-13:\u003c\/b\u003e 9780252035043\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublisher:\u003c\/b\u003e University of Illinois Press\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eLanguage:\u003c\/b\u003e English\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePublished:\u003c\/b\u003e 05\/01\/2010\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003ePages:\u003c\/b\u003e 672\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eFormat:\u003c\/b\u003e Hardcover\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eWeight:\u003c\/b\u003e 2.38lbs\u003cbr\u003e\u003cb\u003eSize:\u003c\/b\u003e 9.30h x 6.10w x 1.80d","brand":"Theodore Dreiser","offers":[{"title":"Hardcover","offer_id":46140674081023,"sku":"9780252035043","price":95.0,"currency_code":"USD","in_stock":true}],"thumbnail_url":"\/\/cdn.shopify.com\/s\/files\/1\/0662\/2982\/9887\/files\/img_eb99b240-7ee3-492a-b85a-803d919260ce.jpg?v=1726596709","url":"https:\/\/www.whiterainbookhouse.com\/products\/the-financier-theodore-dreiser-9780252035043","provider":"WR Book House","version":"1.0","type":"link"}