The Financier

Historical Context and Significance

«The Financier» is the first novel in the trilogy about Frank Cowperwood, written by Theodore Dreiser. Published in 1912, this book offers a vivid depiction of American business practices and social norms at the turn of the 19th and 20th centuries. For its time, the work was groundbreaking as it unveiled themes of greed, manipulation, and personal ambition intertwined with business and financial strategies. The novel provided an insider's view of American economic life, highlighting the connection between the characters' personal ethics and their business success or failure, which sparked significant interest and left a notable mark on culture. Thus, «The Financier» became one of the foundational works exploring American capitalism and its impact on the individual, influencing the development of 20th-century literature.