In this dramatic re-reading of postmodernism, Phil Harper contends that the fragmentation considered to be characteristic of the postmodern age can in fact be traced to the status of marginalized writers of the thirties to fifties: West, Nin, Barnes, Allison, Brooks. Disempowered by circumstances of gender, race, and sexual orientation, these writers (Harper argues) display a postmodern sensibility that is specifically rooted in their status in society.