User:Marissacarey13/Xingu (Short Story by Edith Wharton)/Bibliography

Plot summary

Xingu is a short story by Edith Wharton ridicules the pretensions of the American Upper class, particularly their intellectualism and cultural pretentiousness. The story centers around a group of wealthy women, also known as the "indomitable huntresses of erudition," who gather for a literary luncheon hosted by the self-important and condescending Mrs.Ballinger. It is a story about the indigenous people of Brazil who live by the Xingu River. It is a narrative of people with cultural similarities despite their ethnic differences. They are a tribe consisting of fifteen representatives and all four of Brazil's language groups, but they share the same belief systems, rituals, and ceremonies.

Major characters

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Bibliography

• Brivic, Shelly. "The Lacanian phallus and the lesbian one in Wharton's 'Xingu'." Journal of Modern Literature, vol. 35, no. 2, winter 2012, pp. 25+. Gale Academic OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A286392292/AONE?u=nysl_ca&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=fb94f6ff.
  • • In Shelly Brivic's article, "The Lacanian Phallus and the Lesbian One in Wharton's 'Xingu'", she applies Lacanian psychoanalysis to Edith Wharton's short story "Xingu." Her article aims to explore how concepts of power, knowledge, and gender, particularly through the Lacanian theory of the phallus, intersect with the lesbian subtext in the story. Brivic examines how Wharton destabilizes traditional masculine authority by positioning women, particularly through coded lesbian relationships, as challengers to patriarchal structures of intellectual dominance. The article provides a feminist reading, emphasizing how Wharton critiques her time's male-dominated literary and social spheres.

• Saunders, Judith P. “Poetic Justice and Edith Wharton’s ‘Xingu’: An Evolutionary Psychological Approach.” Evolutionary Studies in Imaginative Culture, vol. 1, no. 1, 2017, pp. 173–180, https://doi.org/10.26613/esic.1.1.24.
  • • Saunders' article, “Poetic Justice and Edith Wharton’s ‘Xingu’: An Evolutionary Psychological Approach,” uses psychology to analyze Wharton’s short story Xingu. This article's purpose is to traverse how the social dynamics and behaviors of the characters in the story reflect evolutionary principles, such as competition for status and in-group conformity. Saunders examines how the characters' psychological traits, shaped by evolutionary forces, drive their social encounters, especially their pretensions to intellectual superiority. The article's main point of focus is to show how Xinguhumorously illustrates human tendencies toward status-seeking and self-deception, providing "poetic justice" when the characters are exposed for their ignorance. This approach integrates literary analysis with evolutionary biology to offer insights into the behavior of Wharton’s characters.

• Killoran, Helen. “Xingu: Edith Wharton Instructs Literary Critics.” Studies in American Humor, vol. 3, no. 3, 1996, pp. 1-13. American Humor Studies Association, https://www.jstor.org/stable/42573330.
  • • In Helen Killoran's article “Xingu: Edith Wharton Instructs Literary Critics”, she examines Wharton’s short story as a satirical critique of literary critics and intellectual pretension. The purpose of this article is to explore how Wharton uses humor to mock the superficiality and elitism of self-proclaimed intellectuals, particularly within literary and social circles. Killoran argues that Xingu serves as a didactic commentary on the role of literary critics, exposing their lack of genuine knowledge and insight. It is through this lens, that the article highlights Wharton's own views on literary criticism and the dangers of valuing social status over intellectual substance.

• Funston, Judith E. “Xingu: Edith Wharton's Velvet Gauntlet.” Studies in American Fiction, vol. 12, no. 2, Autumn 1984, pp. 227-234. Johns Hopkins University Press, https://doi.org/10.1353/saf.1984.0026.
  • • Judith E. Funston's article “Xingu: Edith Wharton's Velvet Gauntlet”, examines the short story Xingu as a subtle yet sharp critique of societal norms and intellectual pretensions, focusing on two things, the role of women in social and literary circles. The purpose of Funston’s article is to analyze how Wharton uses irony and wit, symbolized by the "velvet gauntlet," to challenge the power dynamics within elite social gatherings, particularly those dominated by women. Funston argues that Wharton critiques the false sophistication and intellectual vanity of the characters while also offering a broader commentary on gender and social status. With the use of the metaphor of the gauntlet, Wharton’s critique is seen as both elegant and forceful, which suggests a complex interplay between surface gentility and underlying intellectual aggression.

• Zunshine, Lisa. “Theory of Mind as a Pedagogical Tool.” Interdisciplinary Literary Studies, vol. 16, no. 1, 2014, pp. 89-109. Penn State University Press, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5325/intelitestud.16.1.0089.
  • • In her article “Theory of Mind as a Pedagogical Tool,” Lisa Zunshine discusses how the concept of Theory of Mind, the ability to understand that people have their own thoughts, feelings, and intentions can be used to improve literary education. Zunshine's main goal in this article is to show that when students learn to analyze the mental states and social interactions of characters in literature can enhance their understanding of complex narratives and improve their empathy and critical thinking. Zunshine advocates for combining cognitive science and literary studies, suggesting that the Theory of Mind can deepen students' engagement with texts by helping them recognize and interpret characters' psychological motivations and perspectives. Overall Zunshine shows the importance of Theory of Mind in promoting richer discussions in classrooms.

References

Brivic, Shelly. "The Lacanian phallus and the lesbian one in Wharton's 'Xingu'." Journal of Modern Literature, vol. 35, no. 2, winter 2012, pp. 25+. Gale Academic OneFile, link.gale.com/apps/doc/A286392292/AONE?u=nysl_ca&sid=bookmark-AONE&xid=fb94f6ff.

Funston, Judith E. “Xingu: Edith Wharton's Velvet Gauntlet.” Studies in American Fiction, vol. 12, no. 2, Autumn 1984, pp. 227-234. Johns Hopkins University Press, https://doi.org/10.1353/saf.1984.0026.

Killoran, Helen. “Xingu: Edith Wharton Instructs Literary Critics.” Studies in American Humor, vol. 3, no. 3, 1996, pp. 1-13. American Humor Studies Association, https://www.jstor.org/stable/42573330.

Saunders, Judith P. “Poetic Justice and Edith Wharton’s ‘Xingu’: An Evolutionary Psychological Approach.” Evolutionary Studies in Imaginative Culture, vol. 1, no. 1, 2017, pp. 173–180, https://doi.org/10.26613/esic.1.1.24.

Zunshine, Lisa. “Theory of Mind as a Pedagogical Tool.” Interdisciplinary Literary Studies, vol. 16, no. 1, 2014, pp. 89-109. Penn State University Press, https://www.jstor.org/stable/10.5325/intelitestud.16.1.0089.

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