Intertextuality In Ragtime - 1466 Words

Intertextuality The elements of literature and culture are completely intertwined, and intertextuality useful in revealing the literature’s complexity in this given relation. Though it must also be remembered that intertextuality does not always have literary references, It use can be implemented to reflect a period of history. This study aims to reveal and present the intertextual relations that Ragtime presents to America’s history during the early 20th century. The aim of this segment will be to show the use of intertextuality to reveal Doctorow’s intention in citing historical characters and events history within Ragtime, juxtaposing them with the fictitious world of the story. First and foremost, Ragtime’s intertextual material and†¦show more content†¦This family represents the ease and comfort in the lives of people who gained their position through what is known as ‘the Progressive era’. During this time in history, a development of social aw areness in the need for reform was a major phenomenon and as a result, the years between 1900 to the beginning of the First World War came to be known as the Progressive Era. (Henretta 2006, p. 597). This issue of reform became a strong within America at the time of Ragtime’s creation, after the issues of the 1980’s influenced America to distance themselves from these growing tensions. However, Doctorow calls into question the nature of the prosperity attributed to the era with his portrayal of the two remaining families of Ragtime who are presented as being mostly neglected by historians. This is emphasized by the novels narrator, who reflects on white upper-middle class American families’ attitudes of the neglected and marginalized members of American society, where early on in the novel he states: â€Å"There were no Negroes. There were no immigrants† (Doctorow 1976, pp.11-12). In turn it is the lives of two marginalized groups including both immigrant s and Negros represented by the two other families in the story in which Doctorow intends to highlight and represent in the forefront to the reader. The immigrants are