Tom Lutz, "1925: A Literary Encyclopedia" (Rare Bird Books, 2025)

Jul 6, 2025

Tom Lutz, Distinguished Professor Emeritus at UC Riverside and author of '1925: A Literary Encyclopedia,' delves into the vibrant literary landscape of 1925, a peak moment for literature. He explores the era's cultural significance, highlighting discussions on violence, gender, and identity through works like Hemingway's. The conversation also touches on the peculiar fad of flagpole sitting, the influence of consumer culture on identity, and how immigration narratives reflected societal tensions. Lutz connects these topics to broader themes of art, politics, and modernity.

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INSIGHT

1925: Literature's Peak Year

The year 1925 was a high water mark for literature's cultural centrality in the U.S.\n- It produced an extraordinary number of classic literary texts that shaped future culture.

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Violence Explored in 1925 Literature

Violence in 1925 literature reflects social tensions from war to gender relations.\n- Hemingway's In Our Time explores symbolic and real violence across varied settings.

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Flagpole Sitting as Radical Individualism

Flagpole sitting symbolized radical individualism and cultural spectacle in 1925 America.\n- Its popularity reflected the era's fascination with heroic, strenuous individual feats.

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Exploring 1925: A Journey Through Literature and Identity

01:50 • 10min

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The Curious Culture of Flagpole Sitting in the 1920s

12:12 • 3min

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The Significance of Surface in 1925 Consumer Culture

14:47 • 5min

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Literary Reflections on 1925

19:56 • 7min

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Literary Voices of 1925: Immigration and Identity

26:39 • 19min

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Marxist Literary Contributions of 1925

45:41 • 2min

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Cultural Renaissance of 1925

Langston Hughes' 'The Weary Blues' is a poetry collection that captures the African-American experience through jazz and blues rhythms. Hughes's poems explore themes of identity, struggle, and resilience within the black community. His innovative use of musical forms and vernacular language brings a unique voice to American literature. The collection is a significant contribution to the Harlem Renaissance and a powerful expression of the cultural and emotional landscape of the era.

The Constant Nymph

Margaret Kennedy

The Professor's House

An American Tragedy is a novel by Theodore Dreiser, published in 1925, which tells the story of Clyde Griffiths, a young man driven by ambition and desire for wealth and status. The novel is based on the real-life murder case of Grace Brown by Chester Gillette and explores themes of the American Dream, class, and moral ambiguity. It is a detailed social panorama that critiques the societal pressures leading to individual downfall.

The New Negro

Elaine Locke

Alain Locke's "The New Negro" is a seminal anthology that showcases the burgeoning artistic and intellectual movement of the Harlem Renaissance. It features essays, poems, and stories by prominent Black writers and artists, reflecting the diverse voices and perspectives of the era. The anthology highlights the cultural richness and creativity of the Black community, challenging prevailing stereotypes and promoting a sense of Black pride and self-determination. Locke's introduction provides a framework for understanding the significance of the Harlem Renaissance as a cultural and political awakening. The anthology remains a powerful testament to the enduring legacy of Black artistic and intellectual achievement.

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes

Anita Loos

Gentlemen Prefer Blondes is a comic novel by Anita Loos, published in 1925. It follows the adventures of Lorelei Lee, a charming blonde flapper, as she navigates her way through the Roaring Twenties, entertaining suitors across Europe before returning home to marry a millionaire. The book is a witty social satire of the Jazz Age, praised for its humor and timeless appeal.

Mein Kampf

Adolf Hitler

Mein Kampf, written by Adolf Hitler while he was imprisoned following the failed Beer Hall Putsch in 1923, is a two-volume work that combines autobiography and political treatise. The book details Hitler's early life, his experiences during World War I, and his increasing antisemitism and militarism. It outlines his vision for Germany, including the need for Lebensraum (living space) in Eastern Europe, and his racist and anti-Semitic views. The work became the central text of National Socialism and a blueprint for Hitler's policies, including aggressive foreign policy and the persecution of Jews and other minority groups.

The great Gatsby

F. Scott Fitzgerald

Published in 1925, 'The Great Gatsby' is a tragic love story, a mystery, and a social commentary on American life during the Jazz Age. The novel is narrated by Nick Carraway, who moves to Long Island and becomes entangled in the lives of his wealthy and mysterious neighbor, Jay Gatsby, and Gatsby's obsession to win back his first love, Daisy Buchanan. The story delves into themes of honesty, the temptations of wealth, and the struggle to escape the past, ultimately reflecting on the disintegration of the American Dream.

Making Americans

Stories of Historic Struggles, New Ideas, and Inspiration in Immigrant Education

Jessica Lander

In *Making Americans*, Jessica Lander weaves together historical struggles, new ideas, and inspiring stories to create a vision for educating immigrant students in the U.S. The book highlights barriers faced by immigrant students and shares stories of those who have overcome them, offering insights for educators and policymakers.

In Our Time

Ernest Hemingway

'In Our Time' is a collection of short stories by Ernest Hemingway, characterized by its fragmented structure and stark, minimalist prose. The stories explore themes of war, trauma, and the disillusionment of the post-World War I generation. Interspersed among the stories are brief, vignette-like chapters that depict scenes of violence and death. The collection introduces recurring characters like Nick Adams, offering glimpses into his experiences and development. Hemingway's use of precise language and his focus on sensory details create a powerful and emotionally resonant reading experience. The collection is a landmark in modernist literature, influencing generations of writers with its innovative style and its unflinching portrayal of human experience.

The year 1925 was arguably the peak of literature's centrality. There were more magazines, more journals, more reviews, more book news, and more book gossip than ever before or since. Literature's rivals for cultural attention were on the rise-film was becoming a more significant part of people's media diet, radio was just taking off, television technologies were advancing--but literature was still king. Even mediocre books got dozens of reviews, and the reviews were (most often) thoughtful and intellectually engaged. The belief that literary writing was an essential and consequential business was nearly universal. Modernist ferment continued to excite discussion while the pulp revolution in genre fiction--detective stories, science fiction, Westerns, romance--was booming. These popular books, even if sometimes condescended to, were also given thoughtful review attention.

This encyclopedia was written as we approached the 100th anniversary of the annus mirabilis. In what follows, we can see the seeds of virtually every aspect of our cultural life, from art, literature, theater, and music to physics, philosophy, social science, and political discourse. The fear of environmental degradation, the corruption in our politics, the competing claims of utopianism and dystopia, the bitterly divided views on science, mass media, art, nature, justice, generations, community, freedom, sexuality, race, immigration--all can be seen in their budding or full-blown gore and glory in 1925. We have come far and not very far at all.

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