Mantrap by Sinclair Lewis
Mantrap by Sinclair Lewis wasn't Lewis's finest novel, but it immediately followed his trifecta of Main Street, Babbitt, and Arrowsmith, so it would be unreasonable to expect the next novel to be the same calibar.
Mantrap is an escapist novel, talking about finding freedom in the wilds of northern Minnesota, away from the rat race and pressures of society.
Mantrap: Fell Below Radar, Changed Radically Into a Movie
An early example of escapist literature
This is a 1925 novel of a Eastern lawyer and his wife who go into the wilderness where the lawyer finds himself in competition with a experienced woodsman for the attentions of his (the woodsman) beautiful, but bored, wife.This book shows the conflicting roles of men and women in the 1920's. This book made good workings for a movie since it was a romance story, which is exactly what happened. This book was made into a film in 1926, that although not well known anymore, the film actually garnered more attention then the book.
The story is set in the mid 1920s. Ralph Prescott, a 40 year old bachelor is persuaded by E. Wesson Woodbury, Babbitty executive of a stockings company, to join him for several weeks
roughing it during the summer in northern Canada.
The plan is for them to will paddle canoes, move their gear overland, fish, hunt, meet Indians and fur trappers and live the "simple," rugged life of the great outdoors as a way of getting away for the summer.
Prescott made the trip because he was working long hours and stressing himself out badly because he had nothing to do other than work. He agrees to go, only to find out on the trail that he hates the bullying, self-important Wes Woodbury,.
At one of their camping spots a Canadian fur trader named Joe Easter shows up. Joe owns a store at Mantrap Landing, and Ralph comes to regard Joe as a true friend, and then begs him to take him away from Wes Woodbury. Joe agrees.
As their canoe heads toward Mantrap Landing, Joe tells Ralph about a visit he took to Minneapolis where he met and married a spunky woman manicurist, Alverna, and brought her to live with him in the wilds.
Alverna is bored and a famous flirt, and it doesn't take long before Ralph is madly in love with her. To break away from temptation (and to avoid hurting his friend) Ralph takes off in a canoe with only a single guide to find his original host, Woodbury.
Alverna runs away from Joe and persuades Ralph to take her with him back to civilization. The two become lovers, and their guide steals their canoe and abandons them right before an understandably furious Joe Easter catches up with them, right before massive forest fires almost engulf all three.
The men eventually renew their friendship and Alverna asserts her independence and determination to return to the USA and live her own life, making her one of several early strong female characters that Sinclair Lewis wrote about. Ralph intends to return to New York, but Joe decides to stay in the wild where he belongs.
The description is renowned, in part because Sinclair Lewis and his brother had traveled into Canada the summer before, so he had first hand experience of the area. Ironically, some academics talk about the title, which is not meant to have a double meaning but only refers to a location in Canada.
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Sinclair Lewis Link List
- Sinclair Lewis
- One of the best pages to find information on Sinclair Lewis, his works, and information on the antique value of his novels.
- Our Mr Wrenn
- One of the few pages on the entire Internet on the early novel Our Mr. Wrenn by Sinclair Lewis.
- Travel Writing
- Mantrap by Sinclair Lewis is a travel writing novel, so if you want to know about more of the classics, this is the place!
Sinclair Lewis on Wikipedia
Sinclair Lewis (February 7, 1885 ? January 10, 1951) was an American novelist, short-story writer, and playwright. In 1930, he became the first American to be awarded the Nobel Prize in Literature, "for his vigorous and graphic art of description and his ability to create, with wit and humour, new types of characters." His works are known for their insightful and critical views of American society and capitalist values, as well as their strong characterizations of modern working women.
Man Trap by Sinclair Lewis on Amazon
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Sinclair Lewis Websites & Websites on Sinclair Lewis Novels
Sinclair Lewis Classics | Sinclair Lewis Novels | Sinclair Lewis Websites
Sinclair Lewis has published a large array of works, many of which were classics of American literature.-
Free Air by Sinclair Lewis
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This lens is dedicated to the early Sinclair Lewis novel Free Air, originally published in 1919. This novel was about the possibilities of travel and adventure that the automobile opened up for all Americans, and was the last novel be...
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The Job: An American Novel, by Sinclair Lewis
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The Job: An American Novel is one of the early novels written by famous American author, Sinclair Lewis. This novel was one of the stepping stones towards Lewis's success. The first edition was printed in 1917, and is now a very rare and...
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The Innocents by Sinclair Lewis
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One of the last "early" novels by Sinclair Lewis. He considered The Innocents a pot boiler, pulp fiction type of wok. It originally appeared as a series of serialized stories in a women's magazine, then was compiled and edited i...
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Hike and the Aeroplane by Sinclair Lewis
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This lens is dedicated to Hike and the Aeroplane, the first novel written by the great American author, Sinclair Lewis. Written under the pen name of Tom Graham, this first work printed only 1,000 copies, and was the inauspicious beginning to a...
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Sinclair Lewis Novels and Antique Books
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This lens is about a great American author, Sinclair Lewis. Although not recognized today, he was a great American author who bridged the gap between Mark Twain and Ernest Hemingway, and was one of John Steinbeck's greatest influences. After th...
Blog Posts on Sinclair Lewis
Escapist and Travel - Still Major Writing Topics to This Day
- 1001 books you must read before you die
- Wyndham Lewis 0267 : The Storm of Steel . Ernst Jünger 0268 : Women in Love . DH Lawrence 0269 : Main Street . Sinclair Lewis 0270 : The Age of Innocence . Edith Wharton 0271 : Chrome Yellow . Aldous Huxley 0272 : Life of Christ . ...
- “Work of Art” by Sinclair Lewis
- This aa rare surviving copy of the New York Times Book Review with American author, Sinclair Lewis on the cover. Awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature, Sinclair Lewis is the author of Main Street, Babbit and It Can't Happen Here, ...
- It Can't Happen Here by Sinclair Lewis
- Lewis shows how vitaly important the balances of power are in the US and in any democracy becuase if the checks and balances fail, the whole thing fails. Has anyone else read this? I've brought it up in the Writers Craft forum but this ...
