Tales of the "Fatherson": The Son's Rejection and Renewal of the Father in American Narrative (SKU: AG-P-216)
Futurehealth Plenary Talk by Al Collins
I will discuss an archetypal pattern in American fiction and film, that of the son who rebels against his father, often shaming or even killing the old man but potentially also redeeming the father and giving him new life. In Nicholas Ray's 1950s cult film classic, "Rebel without a Cause" and in Mark Twain's great novel, "The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn" we see this archetype fully realized, but its structure can be found in most American fiction (as well as American religion, philosophy, and other aspects of culture).