In Their Wisdom

(1974) was the second of C. P. Snow’s novels to appear after he finished his eleven-book “Strangers and Brothers” series (1940-70). His previous novel,

The Malcontents

(1972), had tried, boldly though not always successfully, to enter the world of the radical young of the period.

In Their Wisdom

returns to middle-aged and elderly characters and seems much more assured. Several of the characters (like Snow himself at this time) are members of the House of Lords, another privileged British enclave to be represented in Snow’s oeuvre, which also encompasses (in “Strangers and Brothers”) Lincoln’s Inn, a Cambridge college, and the “corridors of power” in Westminster and Whitehall. Despite its proximity to those corridors, the Lords is presented as a place of…

2544 words

Citation: Tredell, Nicolas. "In Their Wisdom". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 12 June 2007 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=19413, accessed 28 March 2024.]

19413 In Their Wisdom 3 Historical context notes are intended to give basic and preliminary information on a topic. In some cases they will be expanded into longer entries as the Literary Encyclopedia evolves.

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