Sherwood Anderson's "Small Town" Culture Preliminary Study

Sherwood Anderson's writing period is between 1919 and 1929, this period in America literature usually focus on the people's life who lived at the different social height. In this period, most literature writers expresses frightens that people link to others or the society, especially human's spirit hazard. As the represent writers in this period, Anderson have been discovered the reality in the living, awarded of American's spirit longing, and illustrated his concerned on individuals. In his novel, Anderson describes a number of people who have some common features to express individuals feeling and yearning. By himself, Anderson is fond of traditional society. Facing to the development of modern society, he wants to return to tradition.The paper bases on Winesburg, Ohio(1919)and The Triumph of the Egg: A Book of Impressions from American Life in Tales and Poems(1921).First the paper elaborate the social environment change's influence to Winesburg which created by Anderson. The usually life in the small town faced fast development of industry and urban, and the challenge of new thoughts bringing by scientific; especially the doubt to the traditional belief. In the same time, war brings more suffering disorders to the small town life. Anderson show several symbolism things and scene to demonstrate the progress that grotesques discover and retain truth. The grotesques is a group of people who suffer lonely,like imagination and feel disappointment.Second, the paper analyzed the social and Puritanism reasons that influence Winesburg's exist, and Anderson'consideration to life and human. Winesburg is Anderson's invention, it also the creation by American social development. Winesburg is difficult to avoid several social features built by history conditions, simultaneously; it also nurtured characters with different personality. Third, the paper is an assumption to the tradition of writing small town life in American literature. Small town life style is an important part to American social life, it also a far away from modern life's style. As a represent by writing small town life, Anderson acceptant forerunners, and also guide successors, his position is very significant.Last, the paper gives a conclusion: Anderson makes an effort to reconcile the traditional life with the modern time's advancement. Taking love and value's comprehension, Anderson has a go to find the path of self-salvage. This kind of reconcile can make grotesques suitable for modern society's development well, and it also can draw different human-nature together in modern society.