BONUS EPISODE: "First at Farce: Structures of Feeling in The Gilded Age" by Nathan Wolff (2024 Quarry Farm Symposium Keynote)

The American Vandal

As Nathan Wolff himself puts it, his recent keynote address at the 2024 Quarry Farm Fall Symposium is "very much in dialogue with The American Vandal." In this talk, Wolff not only summarizes Mark Twain and Charles Dudley Warner's "The Gilded Age" (1873), but further interpolates it with concepts like Lauren Berlant's cruel optimism, György Lukács's historical novel, and Raymond Williams's structures of feeling, all of which have been cited frequently in our "A Tale of Today" series. While this episode departs from the usual format of this podcast, listeners to the current season will undoubtedly see the synergy between recent episodes and Wolff's excellent keynote. Cast (in order of appearance): Matt Seybold, Nathan Wolff Soundtrack: DownRiver Collective Narration: Nathan Osgood & SNR Audio For more about this episode, including a complete bibliography, please visit MarkTwainStudies.com/FirstAsFarce, or subscribe to Matt Seybold's newsletter at TheAmericanVandal.substack.com If you would prefer to watch Nathan Wolff speak, the keynote is also available via our YouTube Channel.