Participation Type
Paper
Presentation #1 Title
The Importance of Place in Ron Rash’s Serena
Presentation #1 Abstract or Summary
In his most successful novel, Serena (2008), Ron Rash richly sets the scene in Western North Carolina, capturing the urbanity of Biltmore and the isolation and danger of lumber camps in the 1920s. The main characters, the Pembertons, have a foot in both worlds as they scheme and plan for their lumber company to clear cut as many trees as possible before the Great Smoky Mountains National Park becomes a reality. In the world of the novel, Rash includes fictional versions of key players in these historical moments, including Horace Kephart and the Vanderbilts. This presentation considers Rash’s engagement with the history of the lumber industry and of the campaign to create a national park in the Smokies during the 1920s. Of particular interest is Rash’s inclusion of the writer and activist Horace Kephart in the novel. Ultimately, this paper argues that by engaging the historical context of Western North Carolina in the late 1920s, Rash presents the complex interplay between outside change agents in the region such as the fictional Pembertons who represent the ecological devastation of extractive industries and the fictionalized version of Kephart who fights to protect the natural beauty of the area.
At-A-Glance Bio- Presenter #1
Erin M. Presley is an Associate Professor of English at Eastern Kentucky University, where she teaches courses in writing, literature, and Appalachian Studies.
The Importance of Place in Ron Rash’s Serena
In his most successful novel, Serena (2008), Ron Rash richly sets the scene in Western North Carolina, capturing the urbanity of Biltmore and the isolation and danger of lumber camps in the 1920s. The main characters, the Pembertons, have a foot in both worlds as they scheme and plan for their lumber company to clear cut as many trees as possible before the Great Smoky Mountains National Park becomes a reality. In the world of the novel, Rash includes fictional versions of key players in these historical moments, including Horace Kephart and the Vanderbilts. This presentation considers Rash’s engagement with the history of the lumber industry and of the campaign to create a national park in the Smokies during the 1920s. Of particular interest is Rash’s inclusion of the writer and activist Horace Kephart in the novel. Ultimately, this paper argues that by engaging the historical context of Western North Carolina in the late 1920s, Rash presents the complex interplay between outside change agents in the region such as the fictional Pembertons who represent the ecological devastation of extractive industries and the fictionalized version of Kephart who fights to protect the natural beauty of the area.
