A Natural Little Girl: Reproduction and Naturalism in "The Bad Seed" as Novel, Play, and Film.

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    • Abstract:
      In April 1954, William March's "The Bad Seed," a novel about a dysgenic child murderer named Rhoda, was published and became an instant bestseller. The same year, Maxwell Anderson's play version hit Broadway to high acclaim, and, in 1956, Warner Brothers released a popular film adaptation. This article studies the text and reception of "The Bad Seed" as it is transferred and transformed through these media (that of the naturalist novel, Broadway play, and controversial Hollywood movie) with a critical focus on stylistic naturalism, sex, and reproduction. It contrasts March's insistence on realism and naturalism, exemplified by his incorporation of real-life stories within the fictional work, with Anderson's and Warner Brothers' de-naturalizing alterations. Through textual and historical analysis, with special focus on the public discussions generated by the texts, this article serves as a case study of multiple adaptations and how they were influenced by underlying anxieties about pronatalism and heredity in early postwar culture. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]
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