The New Republic

the literary scholar. I was never interested in his politics. The fact that he kept his politics and his literary studies separate kept me reading him. To those interested in Howe's non political reading literature I recommend: "A Critics Notebook." He is not a flashy critic but his readings are solid and he offers many, many small insights into the writing and reading process.

- jacksondyer

October 9, 2007 at 10:41pm

expend attacking lefties who don't matter very much. Righties who do matter very much, however, are generally ignored or treated with great respect -- especially if they think other people should invade Iran for them.

- Fairfax

October 10, 2007 at 9:58am

I'm not sure it is possible to separate the politics from the literature critic in Irving Howe's ouvre. "Politics and the Novel" is one obvious example. Excellent introduction to this whole subject-ideal for High School seniors. Another example of "politics and art" was the practice of movement "heavyweights," invited to campuses around the country, to speak one night on "politics" and another night on "Art and Literature." That was Howe's and his associate Harrington's practice when they were out organizing for their causes on campus. The article is interesting, although dated, in that it successfully identifies Trotsky's influence on the American social democracy. Overlooking the social democratic tendency in politics is a mistake as is ignoring the influence of Trotsky and his exceptional life on the world of ideas.

- LawrenceGulotta

October 10, 2007 at 10:34am

"I'm not sure it is possible to separate the politics from the literature critic in Irving Howe's ouvre." It is not only possible it is indispensable. Howe himself wrote very eloquent essays arguing for such a separation. He is quoted as having called English who politicize literature: "terrorists with tenure." Of course, when he said it, "terrorists" didn't go around blowing themselves up. (Ah, the good old days.) "Politics and the Novel" is one obvious example. Excellent introduction to this whole subject-ideal for High School seniors." Hardly a good introduction to "High School seniors." I doubt that even English majors in most colleges, given the poor preparation they get in High School, would be able to deal with this book. The chapters Turgenev and the Politics of Hesitation, or Henry James': The Political Vocation are certainly beyond the reach of most High School or College Undergraduate students. In any case, the title of the book is misleading since the book is about the portrayal of socio-political life. It does not problematise (i.e. theorize) the practice of novel writing, as profs with a political bee in their bonnet would say In other words, Howe's study does not treat the novel itself as a political form of writing. This makes all book that much more important and it may be why Lawrence thinks the book easy enough for High School students to read. If a study doesn't use technical verbiage then it must be easy to read.

- jacksondyer

October 10, 2007 at 12:11pm

Marty you nailed it with the last sentence. I am happy to see you realize that this decades old and now pretty much irrelevant debate doesn't exactly stir the imaginations of many (most) young people. I have no doubt that you are most likely right just that you are right about something few care about.

- blackton

October 10, 2007 at 12:41pm

http://tinyurl.com/79sr (For the sake of balance Marty)

- The Ignorant Populist

October 10, 2007 at 1:02pm

Give it a rest, Mr P. The pissing matches with Navasky, the Rosenberg files, Pete Seeger-bashing etc-- this stuff is about as relevant to the issues facing me and my children as William Jennings Bryan and the gold standard. Why can't TNR devote more articles to prison reform, the failed drug war, an examination of how NAFTA went wrong, a comparison of Ireland's turnaround vs Mexico's continuing squalor, who's going to emerge as the Sulzbergers' white knight (Bloomberg? Larry and Sergei? the Abu Dhabi Investment Authority??). Best to close the Hiss-Rosenberg-New Left chapter and move on, as they say.

- teplukhin2you

October 10, 2007 at 1:20pm

Either recommend the link as something worth a reader's time--or criticize it as something revealing of pernicious or, at least, banal ideas. But don't apologize for linking to it at all, effectively cancelling entirely the posting; the link; its author; the author of the book reviewed (Irving Howe); and the subject of the book reviewed (Trotksy). And you once said that you admire Paul Berman's prose and you try to emulate it! Berman's prose, whether you agree with his arguments or not, is lucid, transparent. You're so full of contempt for "the old left"--and your readers that you assume have contempt for you--that you can't even make a one sentence link to a review essay of an interesting book (yes, I have read it) without becoming tangled in the twisted branches of your own rage and vituperation. If Dostoyevsky's Underground Man had a blog, this would be it: paranoid, preening, spiteful, in love with its own secret self-knowledge, threatened by the more secure knowledge of others. And thus, yes: the contempt for your readers becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy. Just another reason why--leaving all politics aside--you're one of the worst writers of English prose I have ever read.

- yeselson

October 10, 2007 at 1:22pm

This sentence: And thus, yes: the contempt for your readers becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy, should have read, "And thus, yes: The contempt that your readers have for you becomes a self-fulfilling prophesy."

- yeselson

October 10, 2007 at 1:35pm

Dostoevsky never heard Arielle Dombasle sing at the Supper Club. It would be a lovely thing if we could see a reversal of the present ratio of Spine articles on CarterSeegerSharptonJudtOldLeft to Spine articles on Arielle Dombasle, BHL, Jussi Bjoerling, the Lemonheads, child-raising in Cambridge MA, yiddish writers etc

- teplukhin2you

October 10, 2007 at 1:49pm

Reading Chapter 8 of "Politics and the Novel" gives the reader an insight into Howe's perspective on the balance between politics and literature. Too many years ago, I read the work in high school and it left an solid impression on me. I urge anyone to read "Politics and the Novel." CHAPTER EIGHT MALRAUX, SILONE, KOESTLER: THE TWENTIETH CENTURY The central event of our century remains the Russian Revolu

- LawrenceGulotta

October 10, 2007 at 1:50pm

"CHAPTER EIGHT MALRAUX, SILONE, KOESTLER: THE TWENTIETH CENTURY The central event of our century remains the Russian Revolution." How many HS students today, Lawrence, know who Malraux was much less Silone. They may ( I even doubt that) know about Koestler's Darkness at Noon. In any case, Howe himself was not comfortable reading literature as political documents.

- jacksondyer

October 10, 2007 at 2:17pm

The Bolshevik's communism killed the idea of socialism. The best definition to nowaday youngsters is Silona's saying (in the "God that failed" book): The Satan lives in heaven. Those who haven't met him will not reconise an angel. One who didn't experienced the Soviet or similar non democratic ideological systems has no imagination to understand what it mean. Trotsky invented the "Revolutionary terror". Namely, that the "movement" has the right to terrorise the people. Z. I. Kesseh

- nzk@012.net

October 11, 2007 at 3:06am