A Man’s Example

Louis Bromfield and His Books, by Morrison Brown. 166 pp. Fair Lawn, New Jersey: Essential Books. $4.50

We are willing to call a man heroic if, as a writer, he sacrifices his life to his books; if his loyalty and devotion are exclusively literary; if his personal weaknesses can only be justified by his printed works. But we balk, in a curiously snobbish way, at the converse. We pretend that it is deplorable for a man who, though he may be talented as a writer, wishes to give himself elsewhere, to sacrifice his printed works to his life. Yet is it? Doesn’t the heroism lie. in the fact that a choice has been made, and a true example of dedication whether in life or art—set before us?

RB

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Roger Becket

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Louis Bromfield and His Books, by Morrison Brown. 166 pp. Fair Lawn, New Jersey: Essential Books. $4.50

We are willing to call a man heroic if, as a writer, he sacrifices his life to his books; if his loyalty and devotion are exclusively literary; if his personal weaknesses can only be justified by his printed works. But we balk, in a curiously snobbish way, at the converse. We pretend that it is deplorable for a man who, though he may be talented as a writer, wishes to give himself elsewhere, to sacrifice his printed works to his life. Yet is it? Doesn’t the heroism lie. in the fact that a choice has been made, and a true example of dedication whether in life or art—set before us?