If it makes hard reading, his subject at least got hard
thinking. Before you condemn that curious style of his-so easy to
parody, so hard to imitate--ask whether such refinement of
thought as his could be much more simply expressed. Sometimes he
could have been simpler, undoubtedly; it was his fault that he did
not care to be; but that "plain American" would usually have
served his purpose, is certainly false.
Henry James must yield first honors as a novelist, it may be, to
others of his century if not of his generation. As a writer, above
all as a writer of fine, imaginative criticism of the intellect as
it moves through the complexities of modern civilization, he
yields to no one of our time. Whether he has earned his
distinction as an American writer I do not know, although I am
inclined to believe that he is more American than the critics
suspect; but as a master of English, and as a great figure in the
broad sweep of international English literature, his place is
secure.
Samuel Butler's "Erewhon" has passed safely into the earthly
paradise of the so-called classics. It has been recommended by
distinguished men of letters, reprinted and far more widely read
than on its first appearance; it has passed, by quotation and
reference, into contemporary literature, and been taught in
college classes.
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