Lecture notes on imitation of life cmlt 214 spring 2009. From the turn of the 20th century until the supreme court ruled in loving v. But both women suffer heartbreak caused by their daughters. The manuscripts of almost all of hursts books, including her most famous works such as humoresque, back street, lummox, imitation of life, and anatomy of me. Based on a bestselling novel by fannie hurst, sirks film was the second adaptation of the book, and it strays much farther from the source material than the more straightforward 1934 screen version. Edna ferbers and fannie hursts fiction, 19101935 a dissertation presented by kathryn ruth bloom to. The first of two film version of fannie hursts novel, 1934s imitation of life chronicles the friendship between two womenone white claudette colbert, one black louise beavers. What links here related changes upload file special pages permanent link. The sapphic aesthetic of equivocality in fannie hursts lonely parade. The homoerotics of bad taste in fannie hursts imitation of life. On the other hand, it is a film that draws attention to the visual. In her heyday, hurst was a contributor to the saturday evening post, the century magazine, and cosmopolitan magazine, and was featured in annual editions of the best american short story. Works are also sometimes recast from their original genre for a film. For your reference, we provided these imitation of life quotes with page numbers using the following version of the book.
Back street 1931 is one of her two bestremembered novels among the many that she wrote. Imitation of life kindle edition by fannie hurst, daniel itzkovitz. Freely adapted from a 1933 fannie hurst bestseller which had already been filmed in 1934, it tells the story of two single mothers, a. Ielts academic essay writing answers band 9, ilias odyssee, and. Fannie hurst wrote it and a major part of the inspiration was hursts relationship with zora neale hurston which sets up some fascinating situations relating to the harlem renaissance, two very different significant writers of the midtwentieth century, etc. It was the only hollywood film of the 1930s to view race as a serious issue. Imitation of life was originally a popular but unremarkable romantic potboiler novel by fannie hurst. Lora meredith, a white widow who dreams of being on broadway, has a chance encounter with annie johnson, a black single mother. Imitation of life is a popular 1933 novel by fannie hurst that was adapted into two successful.
Not many people know that the actual inspiration for fannie hursts novel imitation of life came from a road trip to canada that the author took with her friend zora neale hurston, the acclaimed black shortstory writer and folklorist who wrote mules and men 1935, a nonfiction study of black culture in florida, and jonahs gourd vine. In the early 1920s, fannie hursts enormous popularity made her the highestpaid writer in america. Hurst was socially and politically active and a close friend of. She was one of the most widely read female authors of the 20th century, and for a time in the 1920s she was.
Imitation of life the novel was published in 1933 and was a bestseller. I had learned about fannie hurst at the national portrait gallery in washington, dc. Fannie hurst s imitation of life traces the friendship developed between two single women one african american employee and one caucasian employer and chronicles the women raising their daughters and the complicated emotional relationships they have with them from childhood to adulthood. I was given an assignment to submit an essay discussing douglas sirks 1959 melodrama, imitation of life in a career women in film course i took some time ago. Imitation of life book by fannie hurst thriftbooks. Her works were also made into films including back street 1931 and imitation of life 1933. Buy a cheap copy of imitation of life book by fannie hurst. A remake of the 1934 imitation of life, the film also stars en. The screenplay by william hurlbut, based on fannie hursts 1933 novel of the same name, was augmented by eight additional uncredited writers, including preston sturges and finley peter dunne.
Both versions were taken from the 1933 best seller by fannie hurst. Imitation of life is a popular 1933 novel by fannie hurst that was adapted into two successful films for universal pictures. Fannie hursts 1933 imitation of life is quintessential mass market chick lit. Imitation of life analysis kiersten stephens november 5. Based on the novel imitation of life by fannie hurst new york, 1933. Fannie hursts novel imitation of life, published the same year as yarros. Her novels and stories were translated into a dozen languages. This research examines the psychological and emotional effects depicted in the 1959 film of fannie hursts imitation of life with sections of toni morrisons. Fannie hursts literary career is well documented in the works series, which includes manuscripts of novels, short stories, articles, columns, plays, radio scripts, scenarios, and other creative material. While its narrative reveals how problematic the representation and depiction of people of color was in 1934, this film. Imitation of life 1959 film melodrama comes in many variations, but director douglas sirks style of domestic melodrama is marked by stylized interiors and use of mirrors, where the role of photography is crucial, with exquisite use of primary colors and camera angles to. A wonderer in search of herself, can be found in subseries a. The work that has been made and remade the most is her novel imitation of life, originally published in 1933.
Although its a white novel, imitation of life is certainly a part of the. Files are available under licenses specified on their description page. Fannie hurst october 19, 1885 february 23, 1968 was an american novelist and shortstory. A bestseller when first published, fannie hursts 1933 novel, imitation of life 2 has spawned two american adaptations. Her work combined sentimental, romantic themes with social issues of the day, such as womens rights and race relations.
The stories of fannie hurst by fannie hurst, hardcover. The titular lummox of the book is a plain, hefty you woman named bertha, who follows the fickle tastes of wealthy new yorkers on a saga towards finding love and a home of her own to care for. Virginia 1967, numerous southern states passed laws enforcing a onedrop rule, requiring that persons of any. Imitation of life books gateway duke university press. The file of life believes that everyone should receive prompt, quality medical care, especially when it matters most in an emergency. Pdf on jan 1, 1990, jane caputi and others published specifying fannie. Fannie hurst harry ransom center the university of texas at. Additional hurst materials can be found in the vertical files, scrapbook collection.
Fannie hursts novel, imitation of life 1933, was the story of two single mothers, one white and one black, who join forces and become successful businesswomen. Hurst is known for the film adaptations of her works, including imitation of life 1934. The book was made into a hollywood film in 1934 and 1959. The film was based on the novel by fannie hurst with screenwriters eleanor griffith and allan scott. Imitation of life stands as sirks masterpiece and perhaps the greatest hollywood melodrama ever made. In the place of the mother her huge smile was the glowing heart of that furnace into which, sore and weary, bea nightly dragged herself, wanting to be enveloped into the limitless reaches of its warmth. Imitation of life struck a chord in the s, and it continues to resonate powerfully fannie hurst was a major celebrity in the first half of the twentieth century. Use features like bookmarks, note taking and highlighting while reading imitation of life. Cindy helped to craft the title of the exhibition, imitation of life, which is a reference to the douglas sirks 1959 film adaptation of fannie hursts novel that deals with intensely emotional struggles with identity. The vertical city by fannie hurst full text free book. We also have many ebooks and user guide is also related with imitation of life pdf, include. But what makes imitation of life so interesting is the subversive and ironic touches that sirk includes. The exhibition will highlight shermans major photographic series, including the iconic untitled.
National conference of the popular culture associationamerican culture association. File of life emergency medical information medical id card. What links here related changes upload file special pages permanent link page. Director jm stahl first made it into a film in 1934 and by the time sirk brought it to the screen for the second time, the story had been. It has undergone something of a transformation in reputation since scholars have become more interested in the sentimental literature tradition. Kiersten stephens november 5, 2012 wmst film analysis 4 imitation of life the film, imitation of life, was released in 1959 and directed by douglas sirk. Imitation of life kindle edition by hurst, fannie, itzkovitz, daniel. A bestseller in 1933, and subsequently adapted into two beloved and controversial films, imitation of life has played a vital role in ongoing conversations about.
Fannie hursts inspiration in writing her novel imitation of life was a road trip to canada she took with her friend, the black shortstory writer and. Imitation of life tells the story of a white woman bea and a black woman delilah who. Fannie hursts imitation of life traces the friendship developed between two single women one african american employee and one caucasian employer and chronicles the women raising their daughters and the complicated emotional relationships they have with them from childhood to adulthood. Imitation of life by douglas sirk douglas sirk, lana. Since the topic didnt thrill me, i submitted the following essay, which certainly addresses the topic but also includes some, shall we say, melodrama of.
Fannie hurst october 19, 1885 february 23, 1968 was an american novelist and shortstory writer whose works were highly popular during the postworld war i era. Fannie hursts novel imitation of life, produced and released by universal pictures as a vehicle for lana turner. Imitation of life is a 1934 american drama film directed by john m. Please support tcmdb by adding to this information. Stahl, 1934, based on fannie hurst s acclaimed novel, was a defining moment in the history of women in film and a watershed moment for africanamerican casting in hollywood. Brief biography of fannie hurst, american novelist best known for imitation of life. She is the author of seventeen novels and more than 250 short stories, as well as plays, screenplays, memoirs, essays, and articles. The author of numerous bestselling novels, a masterful short story writer, and an outspoken social activist, fannie hurst was a major celebrity in the first half of the twentieth century. Annie becomes the caretaker of loras daughter, susie, while lora pursues her stage career. She conquered the literary scene at the same time the silent movie industry began to emerge as a tremendously profitable and popular form of entertainment. Everyone from doris day and frank sinatra to john garfield and joan crawford starred in those films, and a few of them did more than just entertain, much like fannie hurst herself. Our product is designed to make the difference between life and death by providing absolutely vital information to first responders. Freebooknotes found 7 important quotes from 7 key chapters of imitation of life by fannie hurst.
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