Ancient Greece and 1920s America: A New Historicist Approach to Thornton Wilder’s The Woman of Andros

Abstract

Abstract This article analyzes Thornton Wilder’s The Woman of Andros through a new historicist framework and proposes that American influences are present within the ancient Greek setting of Brynos. It examines Wilder’s 1920s America and relates it to a textual analysis of the novel with a focus on gender, immigration, and the intersection of both concerns. It places the anti-feminism and xenophobia present in Brynos in direct relation to the same sentiments prevalent in 1920s America. The treatment of Chrysis and Glycerium by characters such as Simo and Chremes is the central focus of the comparison. The article argues that Wilder uses Brynos as a distancing device, allowing readers to internalize the connections between contemporary American society and ancient Greek Brynos. This analysis contrasts with the overwhelming views of the novel as either escapist or universal.