Current:

Publishers’ Circular (1880-1890), 1st August 1890, Edition 1 of 1, Page 908, St. Dunstan's House, E.C. August 1, 1890.

Page 908
Page 4
4 of 60

On this page

  • Departments (2)
    • CO35TTEliTTS
    • St. Dunstan's House, E.C. August 1, 1890.
  • Text (5)
  • Transcript

    • Note: This text has been automatically extracted via Optical Character Recognition (OCR) software. The text has not been manually corrected and should not be relied on to be an accurate representation of the item.

      Additionally, when viewing full transcripts, extracted text may not be in the same order as the original document.

      Ar00400

      \ 908 The Publishers' Circular August 1 , 1890

      Co35ttelitts

      CO 35 TTEliTTS

      Literary Intelligence 908 Books And Rumo...

      LITERARY INTELLIGENCE 908 BOOKS AND RUMOURS OP BOOKS 909

      NOTES AND NEWS ... 911 CONTINENTAL NOTES 913

      BOOKSELLERS OF TO-DAY VII . > IR . DAYID STOTT 9 H MESSRS . LONGMANS' DINNER TO THEIR STAFF 915

      AN AMERICAN VIEW OF INTERNATIONAL COPYRIGHT 916 THE DISCOUNT SYSTEM IN THE BOOK TRADE .. 917

      THE BOOK-FINDER 917 OXFORD UNIVERSITY EXTENSION 917 PROFESSOR TYNDALL AS A STUDENT 918

      THE LAST APPEARANCE OF CHARLES DICKENS IN AMERICA 918

      SALE JOTTINGS 918 TRADE CHANGES 919

      IN MEMORIAM 919 REVIEWS , < fec 920 INDEX TO BOOKS PUBLISHED IN GREAT

      BRITAIN BETWEEN JULY 16 & 31 925 BOOKS PUBLISHED IN GREAT BRITAIN FROM JULY 16 TO 31 926

      NEW BOOKS AND BOOKS LATELY PUBLISHED .. 929 MISCELLANEOUS m BUSINESS CARDS 950

      BUSINESSES FOR SALE 952 , 952 SITUATION WANTED .,,,,..,.. , 953 ASSISTANTS WANTED 953

      BOOKS FOR SALE 954 BOOKS WANTED TO PURCHASE 954

      St. Dunstan's House, E.C. August 1, 1890.

      St . Dunstan's House , E . C . August 1 , 1890 .

      Fjihe August Number Of Harpers Magazine ...

      fJiHE August number of Harpers Magazine - * - contains an article by Mr . W . D . Ho wells that very closely touches the interests of

      literary workers on both sides of the Atlantic . It deals with contemporary criticism , and

      contemporary criticism is pronounced to be eminently unsatisfactory . Those who are

      acquainted with the writings of Mr . Ho wells will , of course , be prepared for this ; for he

      has ere now expressed himself on the matter in a way that was decidedly unequivocal ; but

      his present article is the keenest and most elaborate on its subject that we have yet seen

      from his pen . It exhibits all his usual acumen , his candour , and his steadfastness of judgment .

      It is written with conviction , and deserves the attention of all who are interested in the vital

      question of literary integrity . Mr . Howells believes with Mr . Ruskin and

      Archdeacon Farrar that' a bad critic is probably the most mischievous person in the world' ;

      and further he avers that * nearly all current ; criticism as practised among the English and

      Americans is bad , is falsely principled and is conditioned in evil . It is falsely principled

      because it is unprincipled or without principles ; and it is conditioned in evil because it is almost

      wholly anonymous . ' And this grave indictment that critics criticise without reference to

      an author ' s aim or the requirements of his art , and that malevolence lurks under the mask of

      the anonymity , is supported throughout some ) ialf-dozen pages of the plainest and directest

      writing ever put forth by an author of position ! and experience . By way of ameliorating the

      ¦ evil it is suggested that anonymity should be abolished ; but we fear the suggestion is not

      Jikely to be taken ; nor , indeed , do we quite see how the morality of a critic would be assured

      ; b y compelling him to write over his own naniM * xiiere . There , are are many many ways ways of 01 being oeing dishonest aianoneat j ^

      m __ :: " ~~ -r ^ " - ;' r- "¦ ¦ .:: ¦ . •¦¦ UtH

      the most damaging criticism does not always

      come from those who wear close masks . Failing this reform we have but one consolation

      left—that the effects of criticism are not lasting .

      Mr . Howells was not the first to affirm that literature would in no way suffer if our literary

      censors , following the illustrious example of Smelf ungus Redivivus , threw down their critical

      assaying balances and took leave of the belleslettres function for ever , because art of any ;

      sort is ultimately independent of criticism and unaffected by it . But this doctrine , it seems

      to us , is only partially true . Of the destructive order of criticism literature is indeed ultimately

      independent . We are disposed to think that the statement that the Iliad is devoid of poetry

      and that Lear shows no power of characterisation would not now carry conviction to the

      mind of any intelligent reader . Shakespeare and Homer are safe from the attacks of the

      slashing reviewer , be his weapons ever bo deadly . But it is not hence to be inferred

      that all criticism is necessarily futile or useless . It ^ m ^ mm mm is tw \^ wymv sometimes ^^ mmmm mm -mmr ^* ^ mimm ^ mm ~¦ ^ m- * m thoug " ^ ¦— —^ - ^ ^ m ^^ M ht ^^ — that — ^ — criticism , like anI

      epigram , must carry a sting in it » tail , or at , leas mMt ^/^ Vf ^ t imW that mmr ^ t , mmm ^ 9 W 0 the ^ W ^ m * ^ T critic ^ mW ^^ ^ ^^ ^ ^^ ^ should *^ ^^ * " ^ ¦¦—¦ m— m — make ' ' — — a point of ^^

      this dwelling mistak on e defects is attributable rather wtmr ¦¦ ¦ than half on itie merits injustice . To

      W * »^ fcWi * » K » AP ^ WV » M ' mmT » T » w w -mr — — » - — — ¦ - ——— . — - my of of ^ y , M _ the which % / JKJLV / critic V / A . A , critics Vlv to W ^ be w are ^ r ^* r p |/ avi i guilt quantjor v ««« m y v . It entertaining ¦****— is ¦* --mw — not the ' office , but d j

      simply to be just . His function is to expoun ¦ ¦ and inte Ml Hir A ret Jk 1 and condemnation —» ¦¦ - —•—mtm- is jas it were ,

      M »* V % a side ^ mT rp , m ~ J issue Vm * mmw , m ' « . KW -H Great - ^ ^^ »™ -w " critics ———— - — — have , invariably recognised this . Goethe , the most ^ penetrative

      and luminous of criticsrarely condemned , Arnold and Sainte at their - Beuve best , are Carl , elucidative yle , Ruskin and , and not

      critics destructive ^ k mWm J & t ^ R J ^^ % ^^ Jm ^ V ^ Vto to ^ B ^^ F ^^ render »¦ . pUfc ^ fc ^ S ^* W ympath ^ w valuable \ J ^^ m' v * 0 ^^ ^^ y ^ F ^^ and ^*^ ^ and ^ ^^ inai lasting ght ^ > ill services enable obscure

      to literaturefor greatness is often kpfegrould never , be intelliible to the average

      mfl * ^ v but for the efforts g of perspicacio ^ WmfmWBtmWF ^ nr ¦ - ' . _

  • Citation
    • Publishers’ Circular (1880-1890), Aug. 1, 1890, page 908, in the Nineteenth-Century Serials Edition (2008; 2018) ncse.ac.uk/periodicals/pc/issues/tec_01081890/page/4/