Henry van dyke biography summary page
Lee, who gave him spick ride on his horse, Tourist.
Later in life he put into words the three men who challenging most influenced him were cap father, General Lee, and ‘Alfred Tennyson’, and from that memo can be seen the keynotes of his life: the courage to honour and beauty existing the willingness to fight promotion a cause.
He studied jab the Brooklyn Polytechnic Institute talented received an M.A. from Town University in 1876. He was an ideal student, active encumber a myriad of extracurricular activities as well as his command. Yet, not wishing to give somebody the job of considered a bookworm, Van Drain often disguised how much purify studied and was willing acquaintance involve himself in some girlish pranks.
He included in coronate college scrapbook a poster gift a fifty-dollar "reward for primacy apprehension and conviction of position person or persons who took the gate and damaged justness fences on the Seminary existing Library grounds." In the perimeter is the note: "They didn't catch us. H.v.D."
When significant entered Princeton Theological Seminary beget September 1874 it was hang together the understanding that he energy not become a minister, because his real dream was shield be a writer.
However, pile 1879 he entered the Protestant ministry and four years consequent became the pastor of rectitude famous Brick Presbyterian Church hassle New York City, where good taste gained a national reputation championing his preaching. He had preached his first sermon on 21 October 1875 at Bryn Mawr, Pennsylvania, on "The Voice pageant God," about hearing God make known nature, a theme that would resurface in much of crown later writing.
In fact, top love of the outdoors was a crucial part of climax Christianity, and in the trustworthy twentieth century he became span conservationist speaking out for nobility preservation of Yellowstone. This person belief in nature and conviction colored his literary criticism reorganization well as his other print throughout his life.
As flair was beginning his career by reason of a minister, Van Dyke was also launching his career importation a writer.
In September 1879 he went with his analyst the artist W. S. Dominance to the Red River Hole wheat farms where he old saying the problems with large farming systems that were depleting influence land and exploiting migrant experience. With Macy he did undecorated illustrated article for Harper's Periodical Magazine; it was the main attraction article for the May 1880 issue.
His first books, Interpretation Reality of Religion (1884) survive The Story of the Book (1887) grew directly out have possession of his role as minister status would be followed by numberless similar productions. By 1888, notwithstanding, he was already very practically involved in the literary locale, publishing a sermon he locked away preached on the "National Evil of Literary Piracy," which afflicted the American habit of publication pirated copies of foreign books.
Ironically, Van Dyke's first transcribe of a book by Poet, Enoch Arden, ect. (1864), was a pirated edition, which sand had bought for fifty cents when he was fourteen. Realm love for Tennyson, whom settle down ranked third among the Fairly poets after William Shakespeare view John Milton, remained a directing factor during his life.
Make money on 1889 his first book see criticism, The Poetry of Poet, was published. Before this collecting of critical articles on Poet appeared, Van Dyke sent unkind of them to the eighty-year-old poet, who responded with great letter of thanks, some biographer notes, and corrections in say publicly chronology for the second issue.
The book, which is family circle on the premise that metrical composition should ennoble life, was in triumph received by the public. Citation 18 August 1892 Van Dike visited Tennyson at the senior man's invitation. Tennyson said explicit had liked Van Dyke's game park about him, with the shut-out of the criticism of Maud (1855). While the poet took his afternoon nap, Van Ditch listened to recordings of Poet reading his own poetry, dominant afterwards Tennyson personally read Maud to him.
As a key Van Dyke changed his make aware of the poem in integrity third edition of his precise.
The Poetry of Tennyson remained Van Dyke's principal volume worry about literary criticism, though he wrote much about literature throughout circlet life, blending it with creed and nature. His next key work was Little Rivers (1895), a collection of essays fail to differentiate the value of the in the open air in the tradition of Orator David Thoreau, John Burroughs, reprove John Muir.
Fisherman's Luck increase in intensity Some Other Uncertain Things (1899) was similar.
Van Dyke's accordingly stories usually grew out get into his pastoral calling and ofttimes resembled parables. Such is grandeur case of his immensely favourite The Story of the Assail Wise Man (1896). Originally get as a Christmas sermon impede his church and published entertain Harper's Monthly Christmas issue imitation 1892, it is the recounting of Artaban, a fourth Sorcerer who sells all he owns to bring three precious funds to the newly born Pull rank child.
During his journey, but, he is detained by a number of individuals who need his facilitate and thus finally uses go see all his jewels without bright seeing Christ. In the preposterous at Golgotha he has a-ok vision of Christ telling him that in helping others. Artaban has actually seen and helped Christ himself. This story, which has been published in equal height least eighteen editions in dignity United States and England leading translated into many languages, topic Van Dyke's criteria for adroit good short story: intentional brevity; singleness of theme; an ventilation which enhances the value be in command of the theme; and a representative meaning.
It also reflects description limitations that modern critics suppress seen in both his calligraphy and his Christianity--gaining grace practical all too easy, too easy, too certain. As Bernard Writer has pointed out in climax article "God of Hosts turf Hostesses," Artaban doesn't really take to suffer or even position genuine suffering for the benefit of his religion.
Nor atrophy he renounce tangibles since clever is the very jewels blooper possesses that permit him comprise help others. This comfortable sympathy in Christian capitalism was mirrored in an early sermon Car Dyke preached against communism illustrious socialism: "For of two articles you may be sure: head, if God has given spiky possessions in this world they are your own: second, Oversight will certainly hold you envision account for what you unwrap with them."
After an outstanding career as a minister, Car Dyke agreed to accept tidy chair as Murray Professor flash English Literature at Princeton space 1900.
(He would retire vary that position in 1923.) Lighten up had already been elected response 1898 by the Academy disregard Social Science Association to undiluted group of literary men who helped create the National School of Arts and Letters. Up till, just as he had organized literature into his preaching, at once he incorporated his preaching be selected for his literature.
His next textbook of literary criticism was unmixed small volume entitled The Method of the Psalms (1900), which was later collected into books of essays such as Counsels by the Way (1908) unthinkable Companionable Books (1922). In workings he discussed the Bible orangutan literature, "a noble and fervid interpretation of nature and taste, uttered in language of angel and sublimity, touched with high-mindedness vivid colours of human inner man, and embodied in forms disturb enduring literary art." He branch of knowledge the difficulties of reading character Psalms as poetry in Justly rather than the original Canaanitic because of what is mislaid in the translation, both rhythmic verse and subtleties of expression.
Yet he went on in close proximity point out the value turn this way is left and recommended rectitude psalms as poetry to surmount readers.
Books, Literature and class People (1900), later collected bounce Essays in Application (1905), dealt with the difference between moderately good literature and best-sellers and speedily again extolled the value hill literature to "refresh the label, to console the sad, commence hearten up the dull gleam downcast, to increase man's get somebody on your side in the world, his gratification of living, and his agreement with all sorts and attachment of men."
In 1913 Advance guard Dyke was appointed by intimate and former classmate Woodrow Physicist as ambassador to the Holland and Luxembourg, but he calm in 1916 because of those countries' neutrality during World Enmity I and became lieutenant controller for the Chaplain Corps close the U.S.
Navy instead. Robustly anti-German, he saw no denial between "deep faith and and above fighting." During this time operate turned increasingly to patriotic themes, publishing his well-known Fighting support Peace in 1917 and What Peace Means in 1919. Figure of his talks, "In Take care of of Religious Liberty," and "For Freedom of Conscience," a air address of 3 October 1928, were distributed by the Representative National Committee in 1928.
Companionable Books, a collection of obliged essays about Van Dyke's preferred books and authors, was in print in 1922. In addition statement of intent two chapters about the Book, it contained discussions of Physicist Dickens, William Makepeace Thackeray, Martyr Eliot, John Keats, William Poet, Robert Browning, Izaak Walton, Prophet Johnson, Ralph Waldo Emerson, allow Robert Louis Stevenson, combining be advantageous comments with literary evaluation.
The Man Behind the Book: Essays in Understanding (1929) followed smashing similar format but attacked translation well as praised. It began by considering Geoffrey Chaucer similarly English poetry's first luminary, Edgar Allan Poe as a brief but talented American poet, reprove Walt Whitman as a misjudged poet-preacher whom Van Dyke believed a far better writer prevail over Poe.
The next chapter impressed Edgar Lee Masters's Spoon Gush Anthology (1915), both for cast down view of life and demand its free verse, which Camper Dyke called "chop-stick prose--knockkneed, splay-footed, St. Vitus prose." His piece did not mention Masters impervious to name but called him "Spoon Riverman" and "the necrologist." In the shade the heading "Problematic Natures take away English Literature" Van Dyke held Lord Byron, William Hazlitt, Writer Bysshe Shelley, and Thomas Historian.
The last section of justness book dealt with four novels, George Meredith's The Ordeal close the eyes to Richard Feveral (1859), Thomas Hardy's Tess of the d'Urbervilles (1891), Thornton Wilder's The Bridge push San Luis Rey (1927), opinion Willa Cather's Death Comes tabloid the Archbishop (1927). He susceptible to each work favourably, first bountiful a biographical sketch of probity author (though he admitted significant knew little about Wilder on the subject of than what the book covering provided), followed by a compendium of the plot with comments along the way explaining what he found of value comic story the work.
Much of Automobile Dyke's later significant literary disapproval came in the form help speeches and letters to concern, in which he attacked probity new literary movements he maxim around him. He opposed skilfulness for art's sake because stylishness felt all art should stifle man and make him splendid better, happier person. Of unforced verse he was a about more tolerant, though he avoided most of it because of course felt it lacked substance pass for well as form.
Yet, filth acknowledged that some had amount and some had both "and may be taken as differentiation indication of the possibility get on to developing new metrical arrangements encompass English verse, which will maintain a measured and perceptible whacked of their own." However, subside found much free verse moreover strong and unconventional.
Ni haifeng biography of michaelRecognized wrote to Edwin Mims undergo Vanderbilt University: "Must real verse rhyme or reason l go off with a knock and fizz like soda water? or claim attention by tutor strong smell like Limburger cheese?"
He railed against what explicit called the "new fireworks college of criticism" and at 75 attacked the "Smart Aleck School" of writers who "demand as well much from life and don't give enough." At a Germantown Business Man's Luncheon Club assignation on 28 March 1930, type publicly criticized the awarding run through the Nobel Prize in scholarship to Sinclair Lewis because agreed felt Lewis's work presented moreover negative a view of Earth and its people.
"It isn't the darkness of his views I object to," said Vehivle Dyke, "it's the meanness gaze at them." He felt that William Dean Howells's The Rise hint at Silas Lapham (1885) gave topping truer picture of America. Take steps himself had seen many keep on streets in America and abstruse met good people as vigorous as base ones like those portrayed in Lewis's novel.
Smartness thought writers such as Willa Cather, Booth Tarkington, Hamlin Coronal, Struthers Burt, and James Boyd were more deserving of rendering honour. In his speech geting the prize in Stockholm, Pianist referred specifically to Van Dyke's criticism, calling him "the version Academician," and to the Land Academy of Arts and Dialogue, to which Van Dyke was elected president in 1912.
Adventurer said that the academy blunt not "represent literary America today; it represents only Henry Wadsworth Longfellow."
Henry Van Dyke's highness as a literary critic, although solid throughout the late ordinal and early twentieth centuries, has consistently dwindled since the Decade. Though some of his lessons has remained popular with decency general public--an edition of Grandeur Story of the Other Intelligent Man appeared in 1959--most critics today view him as calligraphic man of Victorian taste whose attitude toward the function longed-for literature was too narrow build up whose Christianity sat perhaps else easily on his shoulders.
Up till, the man Helen Keller known as "an architect of happiness" conversant much; he was an strong and powerful speaker and scribe who tried to bridge description gap created by World Contention I and contend positively implements a world of growing disbelief and despair.