Pictures from an Institution

Last updated
Pictures from an Institution
PicturesFromAInstitution.jpg
First edition
Author Randall Jarrell
Cover artistJohn Sandford
CountryUnited States
LanguageEnglish
Genre Satire
Publisher Alfred A. Knopf
Publication date
1954
Media typePrint
Pages277
OCLC 285285

Pictures from an Institution is a 1954 novel by American poet Randall Jarrell. It is an academic satire, focusing on the oddities of academic life, in particular the relationships between the characters and their private lives. The nameless narrator, a Jarrell-like figure who teaches at a women's college called Benton, makes humorous observations about his students, especially his fellow academics, in particular the offensively tactless novelist Gertrude, modeled on Mary McCarthy.[ citation needed ]

Contents

Some[ who? ] believe Benton was modeled after Sarah Lawrence College, where Jarrell taught but in an interview with the New York Times, Jarrell stated that "Benton is supposed to be just a type ... I've taken things from real places, but mostly have made them up". [1]

Characters

Awards

Pictures from an Institution was a finalist for the National Book Award. [2]

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References

  1. Nichols, Lewis. "Talk With Randall Jarrell", "The New York Times", May 2, 1954, accessed April 1, 2011.
  2. National Book Foundation. "National Book Awards - 1955" 2007, accessed April 1, 2011.