Tell About the South

Tell About the South examines the emergence of Southern literary criticism and cultural analysis in the early-to-mid 20th century. The book focuses on writers and critics who sought to interpret and explain the American South to both outsiders and Southerners themselves. Hobson traces the development of Southern self-examination through key figures like Howard Odum, John Donald Wade, Allen Tate, and others who wrote between 1920 and 1960. The work documents how these writers responded to external criticisms of the South while wrestling with issues of regional identity, race relations, and social change. The core narrative follows the shift from defensive apologetics to more critical and analytical approaches in Southern cultural commentary. Hobson examines both published works and personal correspondence to construct this intellectual history. This study illuminates broader questions about regional identity and self-awareness in American culture. The tensions between tradition and progress, insider and outsider perspectives, and memory versus reality emerge as central themes throughout the work.

Readers describe this book as a detailed examination of Southern literary criticism, though several note it can be dense and academic in tone. Positives cited by readers: - Thorough research and documentation of key Southern writers/critics - In-depth analysis of how Southern identity evolved in literature - Clear chronological organization - Useful insights for academic research Common criticisms: - Writing style is dry and requires focused reading - Too much attention to lesser-known critics - Academic jargon makes it inaccessible for casual readers - Some repetition between chapters Review data: Goodreads: 3.8/5 (12 ratings) - "Comprehensive but requires patience" - Goodreads reviewer - "Invaluable resource for serious scholars" - Goodreads reviewer Amazon: 4/5 (4 ratings) - "Well-researched but dense reading" - Amazon reviewer - "Best suited for academic purposes" - Amazon reviewer Most reviews come from academic settings, with limited general reader feedback available online.

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🔖 Author Fred Hobson pioneered the study of "Southern literary criticism" as a distinct academic field through this groundbreaking 1983 work. 📚 The book's title comes from Quentin Compson's famous line in William Faulkner's Absalom, Absalom!: "Tell about the South. What's it like there. What do they do there. Why do they live there. Why do they live at all." 🎓 Hobson examines how Southern writers and critics between 1920-1970 struggled to explain and defend their region to outsiders while also critically examining its flaws and contradictions. ✍️ The work profiles several influential but often overlooked Southern literary critics, including Donald Davidson, John Crowe Ransom, and Allen Tate - members of the Vanderbilt Agrarians movement. 📖 This book was one of the first to analyze how Southern writers dealt with what W.J. Cash called "the savage ideal" - the region's complex relationship with violence, honor, and masculinity in literature.