Once again Dr. Lewis Leary writes, “For language is finally the essayist’s single tool, that and a mind acute enough to discover the right words. He cannot depend on situation, plot, or character. Spirited action does not atone for deficiencies in style. Mystery or suspense is not often useful.”
Posted in June 2012 …
The Essayist then is a Personality…
Dr. Leary explains, “Our present delight in the explanations of R. P. Blackmur, T. S. Eliot, or Lionel Trilling and the less strenuous insight of E. B. White results from their ability to say complicated things simply, without posturing in any attitude but their own. They are among those few who, in Leslie Fiedler’s words, … Continue reading
What is an Essay?
Dr. Lewis Leary (1906-1990), former Chairman of the English Department of Columbia University writes, “An essay is an attempt to express a mood or explain an attitude. Most simply, it is a man speaking about what seems to him important or true or at the moment worth saying. Your dictionary will tell you that it is a literary composition, … Continue reading
Ralph Waldo Emerson – The Greatest American Essayist
Dr. Leary wrote in 1960, “Whether he is demigod or, as has been recently suggested, antichrist, Emerson continues to live, our most continually provocative essayist, because he speaks with skill of matters which disturb us still. He requires personal fulfillment, for he insists that there is no greater sin than any man’s failure to realize … Continue reading
Fat is Fatal Vol. #1 Essay 18
Please note: For those who’ve read the “to be continued…” portion of this essay, it is now updated and complete. There was a time when the only place you could see a humongous “fat lady” was in the freak show at a carnival. Now, they’re everywhere you look, and the carnival fat lady is out … Continue reading
Divorce is Dumb Vol. #1 Essay 12
Just forty-five years ago, a divorced man had absolutely no prospects of running for public office. His failed marriage was considered a direct reflection of his character, or lack there of, and he was therefore considered, by the voters, to be unelectable. For instance, as a divorced man, Ronald Reagan was thought to be a … Continue reading
The Abyss of Abortion Vol. #1 Essay 1
I am convinced that the legalization of abortion in 1973 would never have come to fruition if not for the success of the U. S. Supreme Court case to remove prayer from our public schools in 1963, and the unintended consequences of Vatican II in 1965. But before we can fully understand how abortion became … Continue reading
It's the Women, Not the Men! 