Colin Wilson, Existential Criticism: selected book reviews

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When Colin Wilson published an essay entitled “Existential Criticism and the Work of Aldous Huxley” in

The London Magazine

(vol. 5, no. 9, p. 46-59) in 1958, a reader complained in the next issue that, as far as he could tell, existential criticism differed from ordinary literary criticism only in its pretentiousness. This prompted Wilson to clarify his position by writing his groundbreaking essay, “Existential Criticism”, first published in

The Chicago Review

(Vol. 13, no. 2, 1959, p. 152-181). In it he declared that:

A literary critic turns without embarrassment from Milton to Dostoevsky, from Jane Austen to Shaw. Such nonchalance may be envied by the existential critic, but he has no desire to imitate it. He cannot consider Jane Austen in relation to Dostoevsky without asking

951 words

Citation: Stanley, Colin. "Existential Criticism: selected book reviews". The Literary Encyclopedia. First published 01 March 2013 [https://www.litencyc.com/php/sworks.php?rec=true&UID=32155, accessed 19 March 2024.]

32155 Existential Criticism: selected book reviews 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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