Overview

John le Carré and the Cold War explores the historical contexts and political implications of le Carré’s major Cold-War novels. The first in-depth study of le Carré this century, this book analyses his work in light of key topics in 20th-century history, including containment of Communism, decolonization, the Berlin Wall, the Cuban missile crisis, the Cambridge spy-ring, the Vietnam War, the 70s oil crisis and Thatcherism. Examining The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1963), Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1974), Smiley’s People (1979) and other novels, this book offers an illuminating picture of Cold-War Britain, while situating le Carré’s work alongside that of George Orwell, Graham Greene and Ian Fleming. Providing a valuable contribution to contemporary understandings of both British spy fiction and post-war fiction, Toby Manning challenges the critical consensus to reveal a considerably less radical writer than is conventionally presented.

Full Product Details

Author:   Dr Toby Manning (University of Birmingham, UK)
Publisher:   Bloomsbury Publishing PLC
Imprint:   Bloomsbury Academic
Weight:   0.363kg
ISBN:  

9781350122161

ISBN 10:   1350122165
Pages:   256
Publication Date:   19 September 2019
Audience:   College/higher education ,  Tertiary & Higher Education
Format:   Paperback
Publisher's Status:   Active
Availability:   Manufactured on demand  
We will order this item for you from a manufactured on demand supplier.

Table of Contents

Dedication Acknowledgements Introduction: `A Nation's Political Health' The enemy The state The nation Cold-War consensus to critical consensus Chapter 1. 'Murderers and Spies': The Communist Threat and Call for the Dead `Mass philosophy': The Cold-War enemy 'A symbol of nothing at all': The British state `Deep love of England': Imagining the nation `Who was then the gentleman?': Nation, state and enemy Chapter 2. `Breeze Blocks and Barbed Wire': The Berlin Wall and The Spy Who Came in from the Cold 'Party Terms': The communist enemy `Not quite a gentleman': Leamas and the classless British nation 'We are defensive': English empiricism, ideology and the British state Chapter 3. `Looking at His Own Reflection': The Establishment and The Looking Glass War 'A sort of Cuba situation': Reflections of the enemy 'Government hirings': The Department, the Circus and the British state `The mystery of England': The nation and class Chapter 4. `Holding the World Together': The Cambridge Spies and Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy `The imminent collapse of the nation': England and the establishment `Russians taken over the government': The infiltrated British state `Fanaticism' and `mindless treason': Enemy characterization `Haydon's crooked deathmask': State, nation and enemy Chapter 5. `All One Vanishing World': The Honourable Schoolboy, Colonialism and Communism `Her colonial grip': Britain, the Empire and the special relationship `A spreading plague': Communism and Southeast Asia Chapter 6. 'Only People': Humanism, Populism, the Second Cold War and Smiley's People 'Deniable blessing': Smiley and the British state 'British to the core': Smiley's tour of the nation 'The danger is absolute : Karla and communism 'Half-angels' and 'half-devils': Smiley, Karla and the Cold War Conclusion: `Man, Not the Mass' The enemy The state The nation Appendix I: Plot Synopses Bibliography Index

Reviews

An analysis inspired by venerated figures of 20th-century Marxist literary criticism. This reappraisal of the popular novelist’s oeuvre incorporates a fan’s enthusiasm with the literary scholar’s eye for ideological complexity. Summing Up: Recommended. * CHOICE * John le Carre and the Cold War is highly informative and loaded with historical context. * Times Literary Supplement * Manning’s study proves to be an important contribution to le Carré scholarship and to criticism of espionage ?ction as a whole. Its signi?cance lies also in laying the foundations for future research. * Literature & History * An important contribution to work on spy fiction and its contexts. * Rosie White, Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Literature, Theory and Popular Culture, Northumbria University, UK * Confidently in command of his materials, Toby Manning has produced a carefully compiled dossier on the historical and political valence of Le Carre’s central fiction. His finely nuanced interpretations radiate with an authority indicative of a keen grasp of the literary imagination and a judicious depth of learning. * Alan Wald, H. Chandler Davis Collegiate Professor Emeritus, University of Michigan, USA *

John le Carre and the Cold War is highly informative and loaded with historical context. * Times Literary Supplement * An important contribution to work on spy fiction and its contexts. * Rosie White, Senior Lecturer in Contemporary Literature, Theory and Popular Culture, Northumbria University, UK * Confidently in command of his materials, Toby Manning has produced a carefully compiled dossier on the historical and political valence of Le Carre's central fiction. His finely nuanced interpretations radiate with an authority indicative of a keen grasp of the literary imagination and a judicious depth of learning. * Alan Wald, H. Chandler Davis Collegiate Professor Emeritus, University of Michigan, USA *

Author Information

Toby Manning has taught at Queen Mary University, Brunel University and the University of Birmingham, UK. A former journalist, he is also the author of The Rough Guide to Pink Floyd (2006).

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