(Hat tip, Dave Lull, for both.)
Virginia Woolf said Cather "had all the accomplishments of culture without a trace of its excess." After an early career in journalism, she turned herself into an artist; after an early life in smalltown America, she turned herself into a cosmopolitan. She knew the important questions, posing them in compelling plots with vivid characters, assuming the intelligence on the part of her readers to work out the answers for themselves.
I had thought of writing a piece advancing the thesis that Willa Cather is the great American novelist -- which I think is the case. But Epstein has made such a good case, why bother?
I'll pass on commenting on the Flaubert essay, but I completely agree about Willa Cather. I re-read "Death Comes for the Archbishop" a little while ago, and enjoyed it even more. Not only for the New Mexico setting, but for its insights into people.
ReplyDeleteSo I agree about Cather, most definitely.
Yes, Cather definitely is one of America's premier novelists but she deserved a better write-up than this one.
ReplyDeleteIt wasn't necessary for Epstein to demean Hemingway, Faulkner and Fitzgerald to make Cather look like the bigger tree in the forest.
Just as it used to tick me off when NYC critics labeled her 'a regional author.'
Finally, while I believe "Death Comes for the Archbishop" is a fine book, I would refrain from calling it 'the most beautiful religous novel written in America or in any other country.'
Too bad that you've retired, Frank. You could done it better.