Dreiser, Theodore

Dreiser, Theodore (b. Terre Haute, Ind., 27 August 1871; d. Hollywood, Calif., 28 December 1945) Rising above his childhood poverty, Dreiser attended college and became a journalist. He emerged as one of the Progressive Era’s most effective social critics after publishing his first book, Sister Carrie, in 1900. Dreiser wrote realistic novels describing ordinary Americans trapped by forces beyond their control in tragic lives; he also portrayed America’s business leadership as morally corrupt and insensitive toward human suffering. His most notable works were Jennie Gerhardt (1911), The Financier (1912), The Titan (1914), The “Genius”(1915), and An American Tragedy (1925). He wrote and lectured enthusiastically about socialism, pacifism, and the Soviet Union.