Theodore Dreiser

Author Code: ATDX

From a poor background, Dreiser started his career as a journalist. He published his first novel, Sister Carrie, in 1900. The book was discontinued from publication due to its shocking contents for the time. His second novel, Jenny Gerhardt (1911), brought him a degree of fame and his trilogy concerning a business magnate, The Financier (1912), The Titan (1914) and The Stoic (1947), are probably his best-known works. His most successful commercial work was An American Tragedy (1925), a critque of American society and business. In the 1920's, Dreiser became a socialist and in his later years joined the American Communist Party.