Henry Louis Mencken.doc

Henry Louis MenckenHis life: He was born and spent most of his life in the city of Baltimore, Maryland. He was the son of German immigrant parents. He completed high school but did not attend university, only graduated from Baltimore Polytechnic Institute at 16. He became a reporter on the Baltimore Morning Herald.A few years later, he joined the staff of its rival newspaper, the Baltimore Sun or Evening Sun, first as a reporter, then as its drama critic and editor, a position which he held until 1941. In 1930, Mencken (in 50) marriedGerman AmericanSara Haardt, a professor of English atGoucher Collegein BaltimoreCollege, but Haardt was in poor health from tuberculosis throughout their marriage and she died in 1935.When he was 68, Mencken suffered a stroke that left him aware and fully conscious but nearly unable to read or write, and to speak with some difficulty. Mencken died in his sleep on January 29, 1956.His ideasHe was a central figure in American intellectual life during the 1920s. He launched the most cutting attacks of any writer against Americas middle class culture. He invented the word booboisie, combining the two words bourgeoisie and booby (an awkward, foolish person). In caustic, witty essays, he derided (mock) the institution which supported the middle class. He hated narrow-minded religion. He believed strongly in intellectual freedom and fought all attempts to censor literature and drama. He felt that the greatest threat of censorship came from the countrys religion fundamentalists, whose opinions were all based on their interpretation of the Bible. He hated commercialism. He did not support democracy because he considered the masses too ignorant and greedy to exercise it wisely.Quotation:I believe that religion, generally speaking, has been a curse to mankind, that its modest and greatly overestimated services on the ethical side have been more than overcome by the damage it has done to clear and honest thinking. I believe that no discovery of fact, however trivial, can be wholly useless to the race, and that no trumpeting of falsehood, however virtuous in intent, can be anything but vicious. I believe that all government is evil, in that all government must necessarily make war upon liberty. I believe that the evidence for immortality is no better than the evidence of witches, and deserves no more respect. I believe in the complete freedom of thought and speech. I believe in the capacity of man to conquer his world, and to find out what it is made of, and how it is run. I believe in the reality of progress. I believe that it is better to tell the truth than to lie. I believe that it is better to be free than to be a slave. And I believe that it is better to know than be ignorant. His worksMenckens essays were received with delight or horror, depending, he was also highly respected for his literary criticism and he exerted a powerful influence on American literature.He helped to found and edit two literary magazines which were highly influential among intellectuals.a) It examined the development of the English language in America, b) It contrasted English and American expressions and usage. c) It explained the origin of many American idioms, d) It traced the influence of immigrant languages on American English.His style:He wrote with enthusiasm and exaggeration. His exuberant and extravagant use of the language was so amusing and startling that even his most violently critical essays became acceptable to his readers.He employed a huge vocabulary and liked to insert unusual or unexpected words, for surprise or comic effect, into otherwise normal sentences. Although his style is occasionally difficult to read, Mencken is still considered one of the best and liveliest essayists of this century.He was a ma