The Farmville herald. (Farmville, Va.) 1957-current, 1959-11-10
HeroId Book Review
The affair in Already" BY DR..
James Wella-d. New York: Revival
and Company. 1859. 3l2 PIP. 1895
By DOROTHY sCHLEGEL

by a recert reviewer in the New
York Herald Tribune to Dr.. James
Wellard $ latest novel. The Affair
in Already.
After reading this "Peyton Place
Of Illionis. as the publishers blurb
has termed it. one is forced to
agree with the Tribune's appraisal
of the book II is disturbing; of
that there is no doubt.
What, one must ask is the rea-
son for this effect Of novel. which
/ in its first pages, threatens to be
little more than the usual brittle
Characterization Of lost genera
ton? Why does the reader put
down the book at the close with his
i heart filled with an overwhelming
pity for the human plight?
Question Answered
The answer to the question lies
in the fact that Give Marshall, the
author protagonist Of the book and
the representative Of all mankind
as we'll, is confronted at every turn
with a spectre as implacable and
as chilling to the free human spirit
as Death itself tho Necessity for
Conformity.
even more pitable is that man. in
his struggle to ma n tain his
individual integrity, is beaten at
! the outset not only BY those fear
some Others in his society, but BY
his own baser instincts as well. 1t
is his realization of his detection
fl m his own ideals that is the
source Of mans greatest despair.
The pity Of the matter is that
there is no cure for this tragic flow
for not only is il inherent in the
very nature Of humankind, but It
n. at times. even necessary. as the
author suggests TO keep the race
in fine fettle
Illinois Scene
WeiIard unrolls his tragedy IN the
town 81 Already, Ill. named sym
bolically for that southern rural sec
ton OF Greece. which. though il has
been invested BY poets with an
aura 1T charming simplicity, was
actually brutalzed and de-hnmanlz-
ed by its remoteness from the cent
ers Of thought. Already. Illinois, rep
resents not only the average small
town III the United States, but also
the condition OF man in HE.
In this outwardly charming. but
actually backward community
the author SETS forth the plight Of
his three human puppets who must
cope. each on his own plane, with
the mandates Of his neighbors
The simplest and the most OBJ
.vious Of the three victims" Of so
c!ety is Abbie Tyler. whose story
is enacted on the purely physical
level. in full view Of the malicious
eyes of her formidable family
and the first citizens of Already. Be
cause this spoiled little rich glrl
dares to offend the rnores of her
group by falling in love With one
of the -untoucnables in American
society. she IS subjected by her
stepfather TO a prolonged series OF
Illustrations, until the girl IN de-
spair destroys both herself and her
tornenter. Abbie s solution to the
problem OF non conformity is the
most direct and primitive OF the
three methods suggested N the
book She merely has recourse 70
physical violence as a means OF
escape
Tragic Fate
Abbtes tate is tragic however
for Ia the hard shell Of the grown
up child there had been some seed.
which with a rodicum OF under
standing and tolerance, might nave
produced d beautiful # somewhat
exotic. growth The little 10th cen
tlrv Phllistlne had enjoyed reading
Catullus and had cherished the ro-
mantle desire TO ~ TO the never
never land Of Sanarkand.
A second potential non-conforn
ist in Already is the physician
scientist. DR. F'ische the repre-
sentative Of the intellectual n ms
relationships With his fellows
Equipped with the persplcuity and
tie sympathy to comprehend en-
tlre]y tho plight oi Abble and her
Inflated lover. nc nontheless takes
refuge m The Aard-headed sclen-
lists view that it IS useless to re-
sist seemingly irresistible forces
The truth of the matter is that
he is far too much enslaved by his
concern Tor hi own creature com
forts and for his entrenched po-
stion III his little segment OF So
ciety to risk losing his security by
championlng tire cause Of the VIC
Tins OF injustice friends though
they may be. Nevertheless. he I'M
consciously reveals MS dlssatlsiac-
ton with himself and with his
neighbors BY connecting his own
private means Of escape, he browns
his mlsgiyings to delicate glasses
OF Orvieto vine.
Third Struggle
The third. but most titanic, strug-
gle of the group. is Waged by the
novelist. Give Marshall Like
great fish caught on society's mon
strous hook. he trashes about on
both sides of the Atlantic. seeking
always 10 love and to live as he
see tit In despair Give wavers
between the Scylla Of old Europe
and the Charbydis of America. In