New-York tribune. [volume] (New York [N.Y.]) 1866-1924, 1908-05-13
[ College Professor on the ART of
flirting Fiction.

Aseae- D!r1srner & Brothers
| 7,,;s hoax rrovokes rather aliiuseu elioh
-, .o,os of literature VIII always invite the
-, o,alvst. and he VIII of'eh discourse upon
-. :, ,,alnful as well as pleasing fashion- yet
= -, o,,en question as TO "he'her ne may not
,,, carry his researches 100 Iar' 1t is tiie per-
si's - -, that ouickens a literary form into
- Cor the man with weakness for def
- 80 .,ts means the existence of a pitfali at
-, ,,,-n- How you to arrive at con-
=. zas,i-ion when the practice of one mas
s,eers from that Of another almost as much
.ho,eb the two were using different forms?
- there is a type Of mind which is ire
My attracted by what rather darkly
nm IS problems Of literary method, and
20 we are not infrequently vouchsafed books
Professor Hornes study of THE Technique
the Novel
n Is 2 little difficult to see just why it has
sen written, but this author has himself no
,pbt on the subject. The aim Of this book.
saws is to make clear The principles that
n6erlie the most popular form Of literature, the
vel" and he goes to assume that the gen.
al reader must often desire to establish his
,rion Of his favorfte novelsts on some irmer
s;s than that of mere instructive admiration,
,,e changing whinls Of personal enjoyment
TIE aim and the assumption seem plausible
enough Possibly there are readers who will
.sa, more comfortable on having Professor
snrnes word for it that the development OF the
lo- Of 2 novel consists in the tracing OF sin
gle series Of events from their causes through
heir various fnteractions to their consequences
| -7erhaps We should not be far astray If said
-se tracing Of trivial and unrecognized causes
/ "a their infinite and inevitable results" The
RAIDER who Will allow this to sink in may per-
hsps come to feel that his mental processes have
basn strengthened Nevertheless, not alb
salutelv certain that he will rise from mere
instructive admiration" to higher plane Of lit
srsry enjoyment by following Professor Horne's
advice and considering 1.-The novel as a set of
steps" If he wants TO make the effort here is
the professors recipe:
We consider the novel for a moment as a set OF
-s : 10 long falling action: very rarely can one
~ i+s Inc Of ascent and descent Rather as in
ise each effect becomes in its turn a cause. and
#so there is one long progression To this the step
gr2 93{ ,4 ines Each incident
[esch action raises the characters. and the reader.
s2 70 - dna anofher and stronger interest
H. III Then for a space the novel moves horizon
t@gn fsI1iar With II the new level is
! -ome n and can remember II Then me Story
again Al the summit of the series the author
- Is MO his peoples heart Of hearts gives such
ksnov-edge OF them Of ourselves Of nfe as Is N
hin 70 give and leaves Us TO msornsle n S ms
We nave reaches e6e or iIS batk to an ordinars
kr1-d and that if you like is hlsh cohuei'e
- a traeedys falling action. ,.,
sa-,etiraes TO be sure the steps fail 20 ctlln no
r. weakness Of most Of the forerunners OF ~ m
ave IS Of not few works Of more recent , daIe,
- - horizontal line OF commentary, loses our
E-eTrio1 forgets the altitude he has reacheo me-
T. 75Is,ca when his next perpendicular nne OF
ie-t appears il does not raise US 70 aEe At all
r. lack cumulative interest
Fbo is 10 be aided by talk like this? VIII 'hs
- reader be drawn by il to fuller anu
= ..ia-sor, of a great novel? VIII IL
II - i,l,,7sing novelist on his path? We take
1--we 10 doubt IT
i rofaesor Horne notes in his Introduction tha'
t-.-.or+ant field which he has kept in view
h.- NJ collegiate study, and he adds that the
y &c If his hook have been tested in prac-
81 4 Classroom work It would be discourse
II - ouaetion the effectiveness o. ms acdueiiiio
+ ,istrations. hut, looking simply to the Door
= stands. it is permissible to DOUBT It's
ne the truth is that he has overeslmated
er-a-1 10 which the technique of the mover
Il h oo,ei5erea in and for itself 1t is too
II o-s1 q question Professor Horne realizes
y : there is q power of genius, of mastery
- l-7-,ar, thought of fire and poetry ana
y ardo~ which far transcends technique pu'
L. has moi helped him to see the futlIlty OF Try
tract more or less systematized laws OF
,aeelre from the great body OF hctloh- 1t Is
L. thing 10 survey the history Of the mover anu
h Indicate the characteristics of the dlT1erehl
- touched 171,on 1t is another TO super
trose upon such an examination the klno OF
l--fra1 ara1ysis which Professor Horne mas
t. To rrove that this that author
krked along certain lines is simple enough
I-nrl f, does not follow that he was vividly
lrs-io,,s Of his technical principles. The trouble
hat when YOU have tabulated the methods OF
l. the masters you have really got no Tor
taraer: YOU have got no nearer to working
teorv Of technique To borrow an illustrauoh
tnn another art a painter receives techflica4
tE-uction but his technique remains an essen
faly personal thing, saturated in MS lnol'ldu-
thy. The technique Of the novelist is even more
n ard parcel Of his own nature ana even
fore impossible Of formulation.
Professor Horne is so painstakng and sincere
f. he incines his reader to syrlpathetc
tood but with the best will in the world to fol-
r his argument one is still constrained TO pro-
r. That il hardly carries conviction. One can
r. but feel that this author has put his thesis
fgether By main strength; that he has not
Pared with true conception of what fiction is
p sensitiveness TO the delicate issues it in
Ives There are sayings il his book which IN
Pre- wonder as 10 whether ne has really graspeo
secrets Of his authors. For example, IN a
fspter on plot, he has this passage: IF there
any possible criticism Of the individual novels
Balzac it is that they attempt 10 cover TOO
re held. There are 50 many characters and
is 50 dwelt upon. so fingered over, that we
r the effect Of concentration" He observes
" Theckeray could not whip his multitude OF
fies into orderly and unified progression" |
T. bringing in Dickens. Hugo and Dumas, he
fEes the oracular statement that these mas
IS however worked in what was still forrna-