Corridor offers a series of conceptually provocative readings that illuminate a hidden and surprising relationship between architectural space and modern American fiction. By paying close attention to fictional descriptions of some of modernity’s least remarkable structures; such as plumbing; ductwork; and airshafts; Kate Marshall discovers a rich network of connections between corridors and novels; one that also sheds new light on the nature of modern media.The corridor is the dominant organizational structure in modern architecture; yet its various functions are taken for granted; and it tends to disappear from view. But; as Marshall shows; even the most banal structures become strangely visible in the noisy communication systems of American fiction. By examining the link between modernist novels and corridors; Marshall demonstrates the ways architectural elements act as media. In a fresh look at the late naturalist fiction of the 1920s; ’30s; and ’40s; she leads the reader through the fetus-clogged sewers of Manhattan Transfer to the corpse-choked furnaces of Native Son and reveals how these invisible spaces have a fascinating history in organizing the structure of modern persons. Portraying media as not only objects but processes; Marshall develops a new idiom for Americanist literary criticism; one that explains how media studies can inform our understanding of modernist literature.
#2191482 in eBooks 2013-01-15 2013-02-22File Name: B00EYY5EMC
Review
1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. Wondrous; lovely; fun and very; very entertaining - a great tome on one of the best bands everBy Niklas PivicA quote from the start:"Within weeks; CB was more popular than ET. As soon as night descended on the valleys; entire networks of teenagers began transmitting messages to one another; using codenames to protect their identities from the police. The police; meanwhile; would be stationed on the other end of town; listening in from their vans. As far as they could fathom; an underground criminal network had come to town; it would be some weeks before they realised it was just a bunch of kids. Meanwhile; the codenames grew ever more mysterious: Gruff became known as lsquo;Goblinrsquo;; while the weediest kid in school renamed himself lsquo;The Black Stallionrsquo;. It was communication chaos ndash; a kind of primitive social network ndash; and the more it continued; the more an interesting side effect emerged: since all the coded language had been inspired by truckers in American movies; a weird hybrid language began to develop that was part Hollywood bandit-speak; part Welsh tongue."This is one excerpt from how the Furries worked; and how they allowed shoots and outbursts of inspiration to guide them; and their creative process.This story is not really rambunctious; neither in disarray; SFA was - and is - a group of highly clever; funny and well-tuned musicians who go where they may. Feet doused in psychedelia; their inspiration is everything and accidents; and this shows in their music. And how theyre not afraid - unlike most lock-jawed pop stars - to say what they mean; be it about the royal family; corporations or very large animals."At the Super Furriesrsquo; next London gig; at the Monarch in Camden Town; it wasnrsquo;t journalists that made up the audience; it was publishers; record labels; fans ndash; and McGee. lsquo;Nice work; lads;rsquo; he said after the show; patting Gruff warmly on the back; lsquo;but you might want to try singing in English next time!rsquo; Gruff laughed nervously; keeping it to himself that they had in fact sung in English throughout."Thankfully; theres a lot of Pete Fowler - their main designer of all things graphic - in here:"A month later; Pete was driving through the car park of a Bethesda music festival where SFA were due to headline. It was a sunny afternoon; and he smiled as he drove. Then he hit the brakes. The car skidded. He blinked a few times and got out of the vehicle ndash; walking carefully sideways with his head tilted towards the sky. Up there; from behind some tall trees; a fifty-foot monster was slowly moving into view: a huge red bear with demonic eyes strapped behind a Zorro mask; its polyester belly gently but powerfully breathing in the sun. The monsterrsquo;s creator took a few moments to take this in ndash; then paused for a quiet laugh. His painting had travelled further than just the album cover; it had morphed into reality. It had all started at one of John Andrewsrsquo; notorious pub meetings. lsquo;OK; chaps; wersquo;ve two grand in the bank ndash; those Oasis albums have been selling very nicely indeed ndash; and itrsquo;s time to whip up a marketing campaign for Radiator. Letrsquo;s have a look at the cover then!rsquo; Gruff handed John the artwork; which depicted a cartoon bear strolling through a city with a drink in his hand. The bear was looking at his reflection in a shop window; which depicted an evil version of himself; with pointed ears; lizard eyes and a skull logo on his cola cup. lsquo;Nice artwork hellip; very nice!rsquo; said John. lsquo;So what did you want to do with the bears again?rsquo; lsquo;Well;rsquo; said Bunf; slurping on a margarita; lsquo;the idea is that we have life-sized versions of the good and evil bears on stage with us; during the tour. What do you think?rsquo; lsquo;I donrsquo;t see why not;rsquo; said John; stroking his chin. lsquo;Perhaps they could even be inflatable balloons. Tell you what;rsquo; he said getting up; lsquo;give me twenty-four hours and Irsquo;ll let you know. Now Irsquo;ve got to get out of here. Anyone else for another margarita before I go?rsquo; * The next day; John called Furry HQ in Cardiff. lsquo;Good news; guys: we can afford the bears!rsquo; Gruff held the phone away and relayed the news to the band; who let out a small cheer. John continued. lsquo;And in fact it was curious; because as I was talking to the inflatables company; they mentioned that it would cost exactly the same price for an eight-foot balloon as it would be for a fifty-foot balloon! Can you believe it? Naturally I told her that hellip; er hellip;rsquo; John noticed that the line had gone quiet. lsquo;Gruff?rsquo; There was mumbling in the background. Mumbling; followed by another small cheer. Gruff returned to the call. lsquo;John?rsquo; said the singer. lsquo;I think wersquo;ll take the large bears.rsquo;"I think its lovely to read excerpts from a point in time when a) there were some great; mid-level record companies that endowed bands with cash and b) allowed weird things to happen; cue Mr. Alan McGee:"lsquo;Hello; the British ambassador speaking;rsquo; he piped up in a precise; BBC accent. lsquo;Itrsquo;s reception; sentilde;or. There is a creative director on the phone from England. He says he wants to speak with you about the political situation.rsquo; lsquo;Well; I suppose yoursquo;d better put him on.rsquo; There was a click. lsquo;Hello; the British ambassador speaking.rsquo; Brian immediately went into speech mode; explaining how he worked for a Sony-backed record label who wanted to shoot in Colombia. The video would be a celebration of their culture; promoting tourism and casting the country in a positive light. lsquo;But;rsquo; he added; lsquo;Irsquo;ve been told therersquo;s a civil war breaking out?rsquo; There was a pause. lsquo;Just a minute; Brian;rsquo; said the ambassador; putting down the receiver and leaning out the window. He paused; listened for a few seconds; then returned to the phone. lsquo;Everything looks jolly fine to me!rsquo;"All in all; the Furries did a lot of things; a lot of more things; in fact; than what the above let on; and developed far beyond a noisy psych-band. Its the Beach Boys of the modern ages; people. Get in it.This book is written kind of the way Jon Ronson writes; especially where "Frank" is concerned; its a simple read; extremely entertaining and loads of fun. And it contains a long list of translations from Welsh to English; which was a boon for me! SFA OK.0 of 0 people found the following review helpful. HELPS PASS THE TIME... AND A GOOD ADD TO ANY SFA COLLECTIONBy DaphneIt was entertaining and somewhat informative.. SFA is my favorite band of all time so it was a must to read. I enjoyed envisioning the history of the band but in the end this book wont hook you for its narrative or style...Not a literary masterpiece but a good addition to any SFA collection.1 of 1 people found the following review helpful. A must have for any furry fanBy NonieMausRise of The Super Furry Animals is a well written romp through the formation and growth of one of the best bands in existence. Chock full of behind the scenes anecdotes; it is an amusing and enlightening read that will be enjoyable for fans and newcomers alike.