Cultural Values in the Southern Sporting Narrative ~ Jacob F. Rivers III

A look at how southern morals and traditions are depicted in writings on hunting and sportJacob F. Rivers's Cultural Values in the Southern Sporting Narrative examines classic southern fiction—along with lesser-known literary works—with an eye to the ways that southern writers such as William Elliott, William Gilmore Simms, and William Faulkner depict hunting and outdoorsmanship. Blending literary history with sociology and cultural criticism, Rivers explores the recurring themes of honor, fair play, and noblesse oblige and illustrates how the sporting genre has reflected the moral consciousness of the American South.Relationships between human beings and animals, as well as the connections between landowners and the soil they claimed as private, have been a key element of southern literature for 150 years. Hunting has provided rich symbolic and philosophical material for writers who celebrate its rituals, its etiquette, and its ability to unite humanity and nature. Rivers examines the