Osteen (English, Loyola College), through an analysis of DeLillo's novels like White Noise and Underworld, maintains that although DeLillo has been interpreted as both a denouncer and defender of contemporary culture, neither characterization is complete. Instead, Osteen maintains that DeLillo's depictions of modern institutions like chemical companies, the CIA, and the media, show respect for their power and ingenuity while criticizing their dangerous impacts. Furthermore, such sources of power induce dread and cause DeLillo's characters to seek magic in the form of quasi-religious ritual, pseudodivine authority, and miraculous transformation. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR