Barzun still stands head and shoulders above most other critics and thinkers of his time, as far as I can tell. I keep trying to pick up John Senior, for instance, but the thought just strikes me as preposterous whenever I open up "The Death of Christian Culture".
“…how superior humour is to wit in respect to enjoyment — These men say things which make one START without making one feel…”
The lack of the word “start” made me quite unsure of why his comment on wit vs humour struck you so strongly.
Good catch! Don’t know how on earth I managed to drop the keyword. 😂
I'll forgive your slighting of Barzun in light of your impressive evening reading. Few of us can unwind so profitably!
Barzun still stands head and shoulders above most other critics and thinkers of his time, as far as I can tell. I keep trying to pick up John Senior, for instance, but the thought just strikes me as preposterous whenever I open up "The Death of Christian Culture".
Corrigenda: Miller's plays were being reissued after half a century, not half a decade.