The Wind Is Never Gone

More than seventy years after its publication in 1936, Margaret Mitchell’s Gone with the Wind has never been out of print. An icon of American culture, it has had similar success abroad, popular in Japan, Russia, and post–World War II Europe, among other places and times. This work analyzes the continuations of Mitchell’s novel: the authorized sequels, Scarlett by Alexandra Ripley and Rhett Butler’s People by Donald McCaig; the unauthorized parody The Wind Done Gone by Alice Randall and a politically correct parody; and the many fan fiction stories posted online. The book also explores Gone with the Wind’s ambiguous ending, the perceived need to publish an authorized sequel, and the legal battle to determine who may re-write Gone with the Wind.

M. Carmen Gómez-Galisteo’s work has appeared in Ad Americam, Contemporary Legend, Americana, Clepsydra, RAEI, The Grove, and NeoAmericanist, among other publications. She currently teaches at UNED, Universidad Isabel I and Universidad Francisco de Vitoria (Madrid, Spain).

M. Carmen Gómez-Galisteo

Format: softcover (6 x 9)
Pages: 216
Bibliographic Info: notes, bibliography, index
Copyright Date: 2011
pISBN: 978-0-7864-5927-8
eISBN: 978-0-7864-8636-6
Imprint: McFarland

Preface      1
Introduction: I Have Been Unfaithful to Thee, Scarlett!      3

1. Gone with the Wind by Margaret Mitchell      15
2. To Be Continued: Scarlett by Alexandra Ripley and the Failed Sequels Commissioned to Emma Tennant and Pat Conroy      36
3. Copyright Not Gone with the Wind      55
4. The Gone with the Wind Parodies: The Wind Done Gone by Alice Randall and “Frankly, Scarlett, I Do Give a Damn” by Beverly West and Nancy Peske      79
5. Rhett Butler’s Side of the Story: Rhett Butler’s People by Donald McCaig      107
6. Gone with the Wind Fan Fiction      124
7. The Gone with the Wind Canon      155

Conclusion: Is It Gone with the Wind?      173
Bibliography      183
Index      203