Richard Powers, Orfeo

Martin Kich (Wright State University)

Ed. by Sofia Ahlberg, Uppsala University
The Literary Encyclopedia. Volume 3.2.4: American (US) Writing and Culture: Postwar and Contemporary, 1945-present.
Vol. editors: Sofia Ahlberg (Uppsala University), Patrick Chura (University of Akron), Emory Elliott (University of California, Riverside), Dale Enggass (University of Utah), Christopher Hugh Gair (University of Glasgow), Matthew Hofer (University of New Mexico), Stephen E. Meats (Pittsburg State University), Kerry Myler (Birmingham Newman University), Justin Parks (UiT - The Arctic University of Norway), Nick Selby (University of East Anglia)

Dates

First circulation or publication Jan 2014

Places

United States (Country of Origin)

Genres and Modes

Novel

Resources

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In its subjects and themes, Richard Powers’ most recent novel is both timely and timeless. The novel’s main character is Peter Els, a seventy-year-old retired professor of music who becomes a target of Homeland Security after firefighters whom he calls to his home to resuscitate his dog, which has suffered a heart attack, focus instead on a makeshift laboratory in his home. Suspicious about the purpose of the laboratory, the first responders notify Homeland Security, which decides to conduct a raid on his home. Peter, however, avoids detention and abruptly becomes a notorious fugitive—a cable-news sensation referred to as “Biohacker Bach”. Despite all of the media attention, he somehow manages to remain one step ahead of his pursuers, relying on the assistance of a variety of…

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1723 words

Citation: Kich, Martin. "Orfeo". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 18 March 2024 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=41551, accessed 09 May 2024.]

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