Jennie Gerhardt is a destitute young woman. While working in a hotel in Columbus, Ohio, Jennie meets George Brander, a United State Senator, who becomes infatuated with her. He helps her family and declares his wish to marry her. Jennie, grateful for his benevolence, agrees to sleep with him. He dies before they marry, and Jennie is pregnant. She gives birth to a daughter, Vesta, and moves to Cleveland with her mother. There she meets Lester Kane, a prosperous manufacturer's son, and their love must contend with continual dissaproval from his family.

This book establishes the restored version of Jennie Gerhardt as a far better piece of literature than the 1911 edition. It is also the first extensive study of the damaging effects of the editorial process on a significant work of American literature. This study carefully compares the restored edition to the 1911 edition, revealing clear and precise patterns to the Harper editing. These patterns, in turn, suggest that the Harper editors deliberately approached Dreiser's original manuscript with the intention of softening its social and moral content. This study argues that the firm's historical emphasis on family values and its lengthy bout with bankruptcy and reorganization, coupled with the conservative social and moral climate at the turn of the century, motivated the house to edit the novel with a heavy and censorious hand. The end result was a more agreeable and, therefore, more saleable book. This study also provides an extensive discussion on the probable reasons why Dreiser acquiesced to changes he felt were not in the best interest of his novel. By continually placing material from the 1911 edition alongside that of the restored edition and then situating the cuts and emendations within their appropriate thematic, historical, cultural, social, moral, biographical, and autobiographical contexts, readers will see how the editors distorted Dreiser's original writing of every major character, their interaction with their environment, and their relationship with others. Readers will also see how the editing blunted, and in some cases completely erased, Dreiser's criticism of the wealthy capitalist; society's understanding and treatment of the poor, the working class, and the immigrant; and traditional notions of motherhood, womanhood, relationships, and the American Dream. This study argues that once Dreiser's original language is restored, Jennie Gerhardt can stand alongside Dreiser's other novels and can add to critical discussions on class, gender, morality, ethnicity, naturalism, and romanticism in Dreiser's fiction. The Trouble with Dreiser: Harper and the Editing of Jennie Gerhardt is an important work for collections of American literature, Theodore Dreiser, textual studies, early twentieth-century cultural studies (especially those interested in ethnicity), and early twentieth-century historical studies.

Selected by the Modern Library as one of the 100 best novels of all time 'American writing, before and after Dreiser's time, differed almost as much as biology before and after Darwin,' said H. L. Mencken. Sister Carrie, Dreiser's great first novel, transformed the conventional 'fallen woman' story into a bold and truly innovative piece of fiction when it appeared in 1900. Naïve young Caroline Meeber, a small-town girl seduced by the lure of the modern city, becomes the mistress of a traveling salesman and then of a saloon manager, who elopes with her to New York. Both its subject matter and Dreiser's unsparing, nonjudgmental approach made Sister Carrie a controversial book in its time, and the work retains the power to shock readers today. 'Sister Carrie came to housebound and airless America like a great free Western wind, and to our stuffy domesticity gave us the first fresh air since Mark Twain and Whitman,' noted Sinclair Lewis. 'Dreiser enlarged, willy-nilly, by a kind of historical accident if you will, the range of American literature,' observed Robert Penn Warren. '[Sister Carrie] is a vivid and absorbing work of art.'

"In 1919, having recently accepted the publishing contract of a new publisher, Dreiser proposed to publish a "book of characters" that would collect twelve biographical sketches of individuals who were major influences on Dreiser, both as a man and as a writer. The resulting narratives combine the best attributes of the character sketch, the autobiography, and the short story into miniature masterpieces of prose. The men profiled in Twelve Men are a diverse and colorful group: from Dreiser's equally famous brother, the song-writer Paul Dreiser's ("My Brother Paul"), to the entirely obscure railroad foreman Michael Burke ("The Mighty Rourke"), on whose work crew Dreiser had labored in 1903. The twelve narratives are compelling portraits of the men portrayed, but they also reveal many insights into Dreiser's own life and work."--Goodreads website.

One morning, in the fall of 1880, a middle-aged woman, accompanied by a young girl of eighteen, presented herself at the clerk's desk of the principal hotel in Columbus, Ohio, and made inquiry as to whether there was anything about the place that she could do. She was of a helpless, fleshy build, with a frank, open countenance and an innocent, diffident manner. Her eyes were large and patient, and in them dwelt such a shadow of distress as only those who have looked sympathetically into the countenances of the distraught and helpless poor know anything about. Any one could see where the daughter behind her got the timidity and shamefacedness which now caused her to stand back and look indifferently away. She was a product of the fancy, the feeling, the innate affection of the untutored but poetic mind of her mother combined with the gravity and poise which were characteristic of her father. Poverty was driving them. Together they presented so appealing a picture of honest necessity that even the clerk was affected....

Regarded as one of Dreiser's best novels, Jennie Gerhardt is here recaptured as it was originally written, restoring it to its complete, unexpurgated form.

Dreiser's second novel and his own personal favorite features an impoverished heroine who, in simply trying to make her way in the world, inadvertently defies a host of social conventions.

In 1992 the University of Pennsylvania Press published a new edition of Theodore Dreiser's second novel, Jennie Gerhardt. The original published text was altered significantly from the author's intentions: its sexual energy was short-circuited, its criticisms of organized religion were blunted, its language was smoothed and sentimentalized, and, most important, Jennie Gerhardt was reduced to a less thoughtful, less womanly character. The restored edition brings back the sexual charge, reinstates the social and religious criticism, and makes the language Dreiser's again. This volume brings together 19 fresh readings, together with an introduction, of the Pennsylvania edition by three generations of Dreiser critics. The volume includes general assessments, analysis of main characters, treatments of the autobiographical roots of the narrative, views of various traditions (realistic, sentimental, ethnic) on which Dreiser drew, and investigations of historical contexts that inform his story.

Jennie Gerhardt (A Novel) by Theodore Dreiser: Jennie Gerhardt is a captivating novel penned by Theodore Dreiser, a master of American literary realism. The story follows the eponymous protagonist, Jennie Gerhardt, as she navigates the complexities of love, societal expectations, and personal sacrifices in early 20th-century America. Set against a backdrop of social class divisions and moral dilemmas, Dreiser weaves a tale that explores themes of ambition, desire, and the limitations imposed by society. Through vivid characterization and a richly detailed narrative, Jennie Gerhardt offers a compelling portrayal of a woman's struggle for happiness and fulfillment. Key Points: Realistic Portrayal of Society: Theodore Dreiser's novel delves into the societal norms and constraints of early 20th-century America, exposing the class divisions and moral complexities that impact the lives of the characters. Complex Female Protagonist: Jennie Gerhardt emerges as a multidimensional character who grapples with her own ambitions, desires, and the societal expectations placed upon her. Her journey resonates with readers as she navigates the challenges of love and personal fulfillment. Exploration of Human Relationships: The novel delves into the intricacies of human relationships, examining themes of love, sacrifice, and the conflicts between personal desires and societal obligations. Through its nuanced portrayal of characters and their interactions, Jennie Gerhardt offers insights into the complexities of human emotions and the consequences of choices made.