Franklin Evans (Annotated)
Enriched Edition. A Tale of the Times (Temperance Novel)By Walt Whitman
Length6h 55m
About this audiobook
Franklin Evans; or, The Inebriate is Walt Whitman's 1842 temperance novel, a work of popular reform fiction far removed from the expansive free verse that later made him canonical. Following a young man's descent through alcohol, seduction, urban temptation, and moral ruin, the book combines melodrama, sentimental pathos, and didactic social warning. Its episodic structure and sensational incidents place it within antebellum temperance literature, yet its attention to city life and social vulnerability anticipates Whitman's later fascination with democratic experience. Whitman wrote Franklin Evans while still a young journalist and editor in New York, immersed in the reform movements, print culture, and moral controversies of the 1840s. Though he later dismissed the novel, it reflects his early apprenticeship in mass readership, social observation, and rhetorical persuasion. The work reveals a writer negotiating between commercial necessity, reformist expectation, and emerging literary ambition before the revolutionary self-fashioning of Leaves of Grass. Readers should approach Franklin Evans not as Whitman's masterpiece, but as an illuminating document of his formation. It will reward those interested in nineteenth-century American reform literature, the temperance movement, and the surprising beginnings of a major poet.
This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience.
- A succinct Introduction situates the work's timeless appeal and themes.
- The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists.
- A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the era's events and influences that shaped the writing.
- An Author Biography reveals milestones in the author's life, illuminating the personal insights behind the text.
- A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings.
- Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the work's messages, connecting them to modern life.
- Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.
- Interactive footnotes clarify unusual references, historical allusions, and archaic phrases for an effortless, more informed read.
Audiobook details
Rating★★★ 3.4 (588)
Includes Goodreads, LibraryThing, StoryGraph, Amazon
GenreLiterary Classics
Length6 hrs 55 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateMay 2, 2020
LanguageEnglish
Table of contents
1The Complete Poetry of Walt Whitman (Annotated)
18Chapter XII
2Introduction
19Chapter XIII
3Synopsis
20Chapter XIV
4Historical Context
21Chapter XV
5Author Biography
22Chapter XVI
Show all chaptersShow less
6Introductory
23Chapter XVII
7Chapter I
24Chapter XVIII
8Chapter II
25Chapter XIX
9Chapter III
26Chapter XX
10Chapter IV
27Chapter XXI
11Chapter V
28Chapter XXII
12Chapter VI
29Chapter XXIII
13Chapter VII
30Chapter XXIV
14Chapter VIII
31Chapter XXV
15Chapter IX
32Analysis
16Chapter X
33Reflection
17Chapter XI
34Memorable Quotes
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