A Study on Dreiser’s The “Genius”

With Special Reference to Part Three Entitled “Revolt”

Abstract

The “Genius”, written by Theodore Dreiser, is generally regarded as the worst among his eight full-length novels. The novel’s protagonist Eugene is modeled after Dreiser himself. Dreiser’s handling of the material, which was too personal for objective treatment, is thought to be one of the main reasons for its poor reputation. The 1910 version of The “Genius” has a happy ending in which Eugene’s love for his ideal woman Suzanne is realized, but in the novel published in 1915 they are no longer together. Eugene’s affair with her leads to his downfall, and he blames himself for the death of his wife Angela, who loses her life after giving birth to their daughter via C-section. Eugene and Suzanne reunite in New York, but they say nothing to each other. In contrast to Angela’s tragic life, at the end of the novel Eugene makes a comeback as a painter, finding solace in living with his daughter. This paper focuses on the novel’s third part entitled “Revolt”, and attempts to discuss the ending of the novel as well as the story development of Eugene’s love with Suzanne, thus leading the reader to a better appreciation of the novel.