Books by Elizabeth (Professor Renker

Examines the works of a diverse range of realist poets to redefine the significance of poetry to the genre of realism during the postbellum period in American literature.

Elizabeth Renker uncovers the complex historical process through which American literature overcame its image of inferiority to become an important academic field. Renker's revisionary analysis is an important contribution to the intellectual history of the United States and will be of interest to anyone studying, teaching or researching American literature.