Mechanic Accents is a widely acclaimed study of American popular fiction and working-class culture. Combining Marxist literary theory with American labor history, Michael Denning explores what happened when, in the nineteenth century, working people began to read cheap novels and the “fiction question” became a class question. In a new afterword, Denning locates his study within the context of current debates on class and cultural studies.

“Path-breaking.” — Times Literary Supplement

“Highly influential ... one of the founding texts of cultural studies.” — The Chronicle of Higher Education

“Mechanic Accents abbounds with new ways to think about America's ubiquitous popular culture. To those who think popular culture is funny, weird, exciting, absurd, or just plain entertaining -- anything but a moral quagmire -- Denning gives heart.” … Christine Stansell, Voice Literary Supplement

Michael Denning is a Professor of American Studies at Yale University. His The Cultural Front: The Laboring of American Culture in the Twentieth Century is also published by Verso; his Culture in the Age of Three Worlds will be published by Verso in January 2004.