Evening star., 1928-10-19

A characteristic of the elder authors
which many modern readers like is the
broad scope of their narrative canvases
so like life and the world. in sheer
extent, that one may go back to them
time and time again without running
the risk of remembering it all.
This result is achieved by two easily
understood methods, or devices, rather
the first that Of including such a
wealth of pcople, places and actions
that no reading mind can recall them
all. and second, that Of stretching the
novels out to some real length.
Today a novelist thinks he is doing
something big when he turns out a
book of 10000 words. Many successful
ones are far below that in total number
of words. "Jalna," one of the present
best sellers, is probably not more than
$4,000 words in length
No doubt this laconic method meets
demand of the age. Not every one
actually cares to read. despite the prev
alence of universal education. Certain
temperaments shrink from reading once
they grow to maturity Pictures satisfy
their mental demands.
The cry of the age is for snap,
speed, punch" which qualities are per-
haps served best by condensation In
writing. In this sense there is little
speed to be found in "Pickwick." Yet
that masterpiece certainly has some
thing which no one can or would take
away from it, If it lacks pep as
we of today know that curious word
and word it surely is--it possesses many
charming pictures of days, manners,
customs gone beyond recall. If Pick
wick embodies no particular punch it
vet has innate humor of the best type
If it cannot be labeled Swapping read
ing" even the most lethargic reader
would be forced to admit, after plowing
through half of it, that it does make
a certain impression. Yes, a very def
mite impression
X X X X
This old-fashioned way of writing is
still the style of the best foreign au-
thors it is significant to note. Even an
American writing in the French Ian
guage, young Julian Green saw flt to
make his Closed Garden" a rather
long book, according to modern stand
ards. AS for the German authors, they
almost unanimously stick to lengthy
novels. Surely. this is no caprice on
their part. but an instructive under
standing that the best narrative art
calls for a certain scope which in itself
gives the reader a sense of life and liV-
ins not to be secured from cramped,
niggardly use of words. A shorter work
may be a masterpiece, of course. Mere
length will not make masterWork in
literature any more than it will in
music Something more is necessary.
But it may be submitted that, every
thing else being equal, the long novel
has a better chance for real success
than the short one.
BY piling words on words the true
artist can make his people seem real
and give his locations permanence and
put life into his action, so that the
total result to the reader is a sense of
having seen and heard and been pres
ent Again, it must be stressed that
mere length will not achieve these re-
suits. Who has not Waded through
some tome which bored as much at the
end as at the beginning? And who is
there who has not read Short-story
masterpiece which, despite its brevity.
became living, breathing thing for its
duration?
The trouble with all such short mas
terpieceS is that they are short. The
reader feels afterward that he has had
mere taste of something great. The
great novel, grand in proportion, leaves
him with a feeling of not only having
tasted something good, but of actually
being in possession of that same good
afterward. 1t is the difference between
single piece of high-grade candy and
full meal. The first has sparkle to