On Politics: A Carnival of Buncombe

Cover
JHU Press, 1996 - 377 Seiten
"Has the art of politics no apparent utility? Does it appear to be unqualifiedly ratty, raffish, sordid, obscene, and low down, and its salient virtuousi a gang of unmitigated scoundrels? Then let us not forget its high capacity to soothe and tickle the midriff, its incomparable services as a maker of entertainment." -- -from On Politics

With a style that combined biting sarcasm with the "language of the free lunch counter," Mencken shook politics and politicians for nearly half a century. The political arena afforded Mencken a special opportunity to showcase his talents. He despised pretentiousness and hypocrisy and found numerous, easy targets among politicians. But while he could be merciless in attacking local and national leaders, Mencken always interspersed his scathing commentaries with entertaining exaggerations and high humor. This collection of seventy political pieces drawn from Mencken's famous Monday columns in the Baltimore Evening Sun during the twenties and thirties shows the "Sage of Baltimore" at his satirical best. While social attitudes may have changed, the value of Mencken's words on American politics offers us a timeless perspective.

 

Inhalt

A Carnival of Buncombe FEBRUARY 9 1920
7
The Clowns in the Ring MAY 12 1920
13
Campaign Notes SEPTEMBER 13 1920
22
In Praise of Gamaliel OCTOBER 18 1920
30
Optimistic Note NOVEMBER 29 1920
38
Gamalielese Again SEPTEMBER 9 1921
46
Making Ready for 1924
55
Calvinism
64
Onward Christian Soldiers AUGUST 24 1928
181
The Campaign Opens AUGUST 27 1928
187
Der Wille Zur Macht SEPTEMBER 10 1928
196
Al in the Free State OCTOBER 29 1928
205
Autopsy NOVEMBER 12 1928
214
Roosevelt Minor
224
The Hoover Bust MAY 18 1931 232
232
Hoover in 1932 JULY 27 1931
242

The Impending Plebiscite OCTOBER 22 1923
72
PostMortem JULY 14 1924
81
Meditations on the Campaign AUGUST 25 1924
99
The Coolidge Buncombe OCTOBER 6 1924
108
The Voters Dilemma NOVEMBER 3 1924
117
Twilight OCTOBER 17 1927
126
The Coolidge Mystery JANUARY 30 1933
136
Al Smith and His Chances JULY 5 1927
144
Al APRIL 23 1928
153
Real Issues at Last JULY 23 1928
162
Al and the Pastors AUGUST 6 1928
171
The Men Who Rule Us OCTOBER 5 1931
252
Where Are We At? JULY 5 1932
262
PreMortem OCTOBER 24 1932
271
The Tune Changes MARCH 27 1933
281
Roosevelt JANUARY 2 1934
291
The Burden of OmnipotenceRoosevelt Alf
297
The More Abundant Dialectic APRIL 20 1936
310
After the New Deal SEPTEMBER 28 1936
324
Coroners Inquest NOVEMBER 9 1936
338
Index
367
Urheberrecht

Andere Ausgaben - Alle anzeigen

Häufige Begriffe und Wortgruppen

Autoren-Profil (1996)

H. L. Mencken 1880-1956 H. L. (Henry Louis) Mencken was born in Baltimore, Maryland, on September 12, 1880. He considered Maryland to be his home despite his many years in New York. As a child he attended Professor Friedrich Knapp's Institute, a private school for children of German descent. He completed his secondary education at Baltimore Polytechnic Institute, from which he graduated at the age of 16. Mencken wanted to be a writer but was obligated to work in his father's cigar factory. When his father died suddenly in 1899, Mencken immediately sought a job at the Baltimore Herald. Through he began with no experience in journalism, he quickly learned every job at the newspaper and at age 25 became its editor. Mencken went on to build himself a reputation as one of America's most brilliant writers and literary critics. His basic approach was to question everything and to accept no limits on personal freedom. He attacked organized religion, American cultural and literary standards, and every aspect of American life that he found shallow, ignorant, or false - which was almost everything. From the 1920's until his death, Mencken's sharp wit and penetrating social commentary made him one of the most highly regarded - and fiercely hated - of American social critics. He was later memorialized in the dramatic portrait of the cynical journalist in the play and film Inherit the Wind. Shortly after World War I, Mencken began a project that was to fascinate him for the rest of his life: a study of American language and how it had evolved from British English. In 1919 he published The American Language: A Preliminary Inquiry into the Development of English in the United States. To this and his publisher's surprise, the book sold out quickly; its wit and nonscholarly approach attracted many readers who would not normally buy a book on such a subject. In 1936, a revised and enlarged edition was published, and in 1945 and 1948, supplements were added. The work shows not only how American English differs from British English but how the 300 year American experience shaped American dialect. Thus the book, still considered a classic in its field, is both a linguistic and social history of the United States. Mencken died in his sleep on January 29, 1956. He was interred in Baltimore's Loudon Park Cemetery.

Bibliografische Informationen