The Smart Set

The Smart Set: George Jean Nathan and H.L. Mencken
by Thomas Quinn Curtiss


These two men were *THE* arbiters of what counted as quality literature and drama in the early 1900s - or at least so this book would lead you to believe.

These days, it seems Mencken's name is primarily recognized from curmudgeonly quips appearing in desk calendars.

I have to admit those quips are what made me remember the name, and pick up this book. It's a bonus that I learned more about Mr. Nathan as well.

Nathan and Mencken served as the drama and literature critics for the magazine "The Smart Set" from 1908 until 1923. They were responsible for nurturing young writers and dramatists such as Eugene O'Neill, Theodore Dreiser and F. Scott Fitzgerald, giving them a venue to publish writing that was considered radical for its time. They were also responsible for the American debuts of some European talents such as James Joyce and Lord Dunsany (an Irish playwright also known for writing fantastic tales).

In their search for quality, Nathan and Mencken often found themselves in the center of the cultural controversies of the day, which they revelled in.

The best thing that I found in this book was a quotation that was finally able to sum up my feelings about what qualifies as art. Nathan, in his book The Critic and the Drama, states, "Art is a reaching out into the ugliness of the world for vagrant beauty and the imprisoning of it in a tangible dream."

You can find this book on WPL's 2nd Floor, 818.5209 CUR.

c Waterloo Public Library 2007