A Specter is Haunting This Dialogue: Applying Marxist Theory of Art and Literature to Cormac McCarthy’s The Sunset Limited
Abstract
I set out in my research to apply a critical lens to a severely underdiscussed work in the bibliography of one of the most important authors to our modern literary canon: Cormac McCarthy's The Sunset Limited (2006). McCarthy is a highly discussed author in our literary moment; however, analyses typically revolve around his more broadly appealing works such as his famous novels, while his more nuanced and obscure works like The Sunset Limited go without notice This research project argues that the play uses characters divided primarily by their social class to create a commentary of late capitalism’s failure to synthesize a cohesive ideology for forward progress. The text creates a circular dialogue between its core two characters that expresses society’s issue of creating ideologies and perspectives that are wholly alien to one another leading to the social strife and conflict we see in our society today. This research into a small text in the literary cannon leads to an ultimate conclusion that late capitalism has inherently created nigh unsolvable divisions in our society that must be addressed. This conclusion is accomplished by blending contemporary and classic works of Marxist theory on ideology and alienation with Marxist art theory, specifically theory on novelistic prose and stage plays which the work is a fusion of, to create a unique theoretical lens for observation. This theoretical lens allows for deep exploration of the novels dialogue, staging choices, sociopolitical context, and characterizations to achieve new synthesis of understanding of McCarthy’s commentary on our society.
Start Time
15-4-2026 10:00 AM
End Time
15-4-2026 11:00 AM
Room Number
252
Presentation Type
Oral Presentation
Presentation Subtype
UG Orals
Presentation Category
Arts and Humanities
Student Type
Undergraduate
Faculty Mentor
Joshua Reid
A Specter is Haunting This Dialogue: Applying Marxist Theory of Art and Literature to Cormac McCarthy’s The Sunset Limited
252
I set out in my research to apply a critical lens to a severely underdiscussed work in the bibliography of one of the most important authors to our modern literary canon: Cormac McCarthy's The Sunset Limited (2006). McCarthy is a highly discussed author in our literary moment; however, analyses typically revolve around his more broadly appealing works such as his famous novels, while his more nuanced and obscure works like The Sunset Limited go without notice This research project argues that the play uses characters divided primarily by their social class to create a commentary of late capitalism’s failure to synthesize a cohesive ideology for forward progress. The text creates a circular dialogue between its core two characters that expresses society’s issue of creating ideologies and perspectives that are wholly alien to one another leading to the social strife and conflict we see in our society today. This research into a small text in the literary cannon leads to an ultimate conclusion that late capitalism has inherently created nigh unsolvable divisions in our society that must be addressed. This conclusion is accomplished by blending contemporary and classic works of Marxist theory on ideology and alienation with Marxist art theory, specifically theory on novelistic prose and stage plays which the work is a fusion of, to create a unique theoretical lens for observation. This theoretical lens allows for deep exploration of the novels dialogue, staging choices, sociopolitical context, and characterizations to achieve new synthesis of understanding of McCarthy’s commentary on our society.
