David Weir is Professor of Comparative Literature at the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art. He is the author of Brahma in the West: William Blake and the Oriental Renaissance, also published by SUNY Press; Decadence and the Making of Modernism; James Joyce and the Art of Mediation; and Anarchy and Culture: The Aesthetic Politics of Modernism.

"David Weir chases down myriad long-ignored traces of a largely forgotten American artistic subculture: the often gay, countercultural, urbane, and sometimes snooty group that flew the banner of 'decadence.' … he is an … unassuming and admirably prepared guide." — Modern Philology"…Weir provides useful insights into what he assumes was the hardly home-grown phenomenon of American Decadence." — The Times Literary Supplement"…this book is more expository than analytical, but the absence of previous scholarly attention to these issues makes it necessarily so. Weir's engaging writing style makes the book broadly accessible … Highly recommended." — CHOICE "Weir admirably recovers the contexts for American versions of late nineteenth-century and early twentieth-century decadence. He skillfully and resourcefully explores its dominant tendencies and locates its various urban settings. Weir gives enough space both to individual works and to their various cultural backgrounds so that the book is remarkably well balanced." — Gordon Hutner, University of Illinois

• List of IllustrationsPrefaceAcknowledgments1. Introduction: The Problem of American Decadence2. New York: Decadent Connections3. Boston: Decadent Communities4. Chicago: The Business of Decadence5. San Francisco: The Seacoast of Decadence6. The Decadent RevivalAfterwordNotesIndex

David Weir is Professor of Comparative Literature at the Cooper Union for the Advancement of Science and Art. He is the author of Brahma in the West: William Blake and the Oriental Renaissance, also published by SUNY Press; Decadence and the Making of Modernism; James Joyce and the Art of Mediation; and Anarchy and Culture: The Aesthetic Politics of Modernism.

"David Weir chases down myriad long-ignored traces of a largely forgotten American artistic subculture: the often gay, countercultural, urbane, and sometimes snooty group that flew the banner of 'decadence.' … he is an … unassuming and admirably prepared guide." — Modern Philology"…Weir provides useful insights into what he assumes was the hardly home-grown phenomenon of American Decadence." — The Times Literary Supplement"…this book is more expository than analytical, but the absence of previous scholarly attention to these issues makes it necessarily so. Weir's engaging writing style makes the book broadly accessible … Highly recommended." — CHOICE "Weir admirably recovers the contexts for American versions of late nineteenth-century and early twentieth-century decadence. He skillfully and resourcefully explores its dominant tendencies and locates its various urban settings. Weir gives enough space both to individual works and to their various cultural backgrounds so that the book is remarkably well balanced." — Gordon Hutner, University of Illinois

• List of IllustrationsPrefaceAcknowledgments1. Introduction: The Problem of American Decadence2. New York: Decadent Connections3. Boston: Decadent Communities4. Chicago: The Business of Decadence5. San Francisco: The Seacoast of Decadence6. The Decadent RevivalAfterwordNotesIndex