A Belated Guest (from Literary Friends and Acquaintance) E-Book

William Dean Howells

• Herausgeber: DigiCat
• Kategorie: Gesellschafts- und Liebesromane
• Sprache: Englisch

Veröffentlichungsjahr: 2022

Beschreibung

In "A Belated Guest", William Dean Howells deftly intertwines themes of social interaction and the nuances of human relationships, revealing insights about courtesy and societal expectations through carefully crafted dialogue and rich character development. Written in a realist style that characterizes much of Howells' work, this narrative exemplifies his commitment to exploring ordinary life and the complexities within it. The story takes place within the stiff confines of Victorian social codes, presenting a microcosm of how societal pressures shape personal interactions and emotional landscapes. Howells' keen observations offer readers a window into the intricacies of friendship and the unspoken tensions that accompany social gatherings. William Dean Howells, often hailed as the "Dean of American Letters", emerged during a pivotal period of American literature, advocating for realism as a counterpoint to romanticism. His extensive literary friendships and collaborations informed much of his work, and his astute understanding of social dynamics significantly influences "A Belated Guest". Howells' experiences among literary circles and his sensitivity to the prevailing cultural climate of the late 19th century uniquely positioned him to explore these themes. Readers seeking a thought-provoking exploration of the subtleties of human connection will find "A Belated Guest" a compelling addition to their literary repertoire. Howells' eloquent prose and intricate character portrayals invite deep reflection on our own social interactions, making this work a timeless examination of the human condition.

Leseprobe

William Dean Howells

A Belated Guest (from Literary Friends and Acquaintance)

 

EAN 8596547366393

DigiCat, 2022 Contact: [email protected]

Table of Contents

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Table of Contents

My recollections of Bret Harte begin with the arrest, on the Atlantic shore, of that progress of his from the Pacific Slope, which, in the simple days of 1871, was like the progress of a prince, in the universal attention and interest which met and followed it. He was indeed a prince, a fairy prince in whom every lover of his novel and enchanting art felt a patriotic property, for his promise and performance in those earliest tales of 'The Luck of Roaring Camp', and 'Tennessee's Partner', and 'Maggles', and 'The Outcasts of Poker Flat', were the earnests of an American literature to come. If it is still to come, in great measure, that is not Harte's fault, for he kept on writing those stories, in one form or another, as long as he lived. He wrote them first and last in the spirit of Dickens, which no man of his time could quite help doing, but he wrote them from the life of Bret Harte, on the soil and in the air of the newest kind of new world, and their freshness took the soul of his fellow-countrymen not only with joy, but with pride such as the Europeans, who adored him much longer, could never know in him.

When the adventurous young editor who had proposed being his host for Cambridge and the Boston neighborhood, while Harte was still in San Francisco, and had not yet begun his princely progress eastward, read of the honors that attended his coming from point to point, his courage fell, as if he had perhaps, committed himself in too great an enterprise. Who was he, indeed, that he should think of making this

"Dear son of memory, great heir of fame,"