Literary Criticism (From Plato to Leavis) Dr. Merin Simi Raj, ‘Department of Humanities and Social Science Indian Insitute of Technology Madras FR Leavis's “The Great Tradition” Session 2) (Refer Slide Time: 0:15) Hello and welcome to yet another tession ofthis course on teary enticism, We ae looking at FR Leavis! work The Great Tradition which became very fundamental in laying the foundations of modem literary eicism, and also for profssionalizing litsrary study in multiple ways, that was something that he had been doing fom the 1930s onwards. We find the continuing inTucnse of Flot idea ofthe traiton in his notion ofitersry tation as well And we had been looking at how he had primarily focused on just a hand ful of select English novelists to tak about the reat literary wadtion that novel has. And while taking about Jane Austen whichis what we sh bbe looking atin this current Ieeture, he talks about her relationship with tation as a eroated one ‘We find that jut ike Flot didi his essay Tradition and the Individual Tlen, hee also Leavis is taking very interesting look at the idea ofthe tition, Is notin he tations sense that he wants fo look at tradition, but as something which isin continuity which isin ux, something Which has the power to encompass the past and the present, in that sense, while he is shout the relation that Jane Austen has with tradition ‘This is what he says: "She not only makes tation for those coming after, but her achievement ‘hs for us a retroactive effect: as we look back beyond her we se in what goes before, and see ‘because of her potentiates and signiticances brought out in sucha way tha, for us, she ersates the tastion we see leading down to her" So, we find a cerisin sense of continuity, and also bout the way in which the past and the present andthe future ahead, merges in a certain kind of ahistorical streamline, “Her work, like the work ofall grea creative writers, gives a meaning to the pas.” So, when we are looking at the ocuvre of Jane Austen, it is just not about her own work, her body of work iver meaning, gives potetlites, gives a trajectory, gives a positioning tothe writers who west ‘before het Like Leavis was tying establish inthe previous pasage aswell all the other great Setion writers, the pioneers, who weat before het, thet satre, their positioning and their significance becomes more accentuated when we look at how Jane Austen as used this tradition to her advantage. Jane Austen here is being seen as someone who gives meaning tothe past Jane Austen's work becomes significant not just forthe present era, not justin Setting a standard for the furre, but also for us to make sense ofthe kind of writings, and the kind of work that went before her. This contimiy, this historical sense that Leavis gives to tradition, the Understanding of tradition is something that we find him taking ffom Elio’ time onwards and that is also extremely important in our understanding of canon formation, and our understanding ‘of the ways in which particular writers are positioned, and thir significance geting accenuated at various points of ime ‘As montoned before, Leavis had worked extensively towards the professionlization of ierary studies. As par ofthat, we find this 1948 work conteibuting much towards the canonsmaking process, fowseds solidifying many things interme of curriculum, in rms of university teaching We do find him using some of the text, and using certain kinds of frameworks, which would be ‘useful for flaming the ways in which this discipline hasbeen emerging as well. This i what he says at the opening of the next paragraph: “Having, in examination-papers and undergraduate essays, come much 190 afen on the proposition that “George Eliot ste ist modern novelist’,1 inally tracked it down to Lord David Cecil's Barly Hetorian Novelist.” We find im trying to reassess the cannon, we find him trying to engage with history, engage with the canon-making roves, and also reassesing the works based onthe framework that he is proposing. “In so far 8 is posible wo extract anything clear and coherent ftom the variety of things chat Lord David Cecil says by way of explaining the phrase, is his: that George Bio, being concemed, not 19 offer ‘primarily an entertainment’ but to explore a significant theme, a theme significant in its bearing on ‘the serious problems and preoccupation of mature lift’—breaks with “those fundamental conventions both of form and matter within which the English novel up til hen had hoon constructed" Based on tha, he is asking, “What account, then are we to assume of Jane ‘Austen? Clearly, one that appears to be the most commonly held: she creates delightful characters.” Now, after having told us extensively how he would like to position Jane Austen, and how she is ‘ory conveniently pasion in such a way that her pretence, her body of watk, gives a sense to the past, he now goes onto the examine Jane Austen's works in deta Frst of ll, he agrees with ter erties who have mentioned the same thing’ that she cretes delightful charactors, (Refer Slide Time: 5:35) ————=<= “Compare Jane Austen's characterization with Scot’s—a recurrent examination question.” Heit also making his discusion in 1 of English iterate is concemed, And then, having said tat, he also dwells at length jgnment withthe discussions within the classroom, s fa as this disc ‘on some ofthe comparisons that Cecil also makes, in terms ofthe compartons betwoon George el and Jane Austen, And he also quotes some passages on which we wi not be spending rach time, ‘Then he moves on to say that Jane Austen's plots and her novels in general, “were pu together “very deliberately and caleulately” (not “lke a building’), But her interest in “composition” is ‘not something to be pul over aginst her interest in fe: nor does she offer a “aesthetic vale that is separable fom moral significance." Here we come tothe most important pint that Leavis is about to highlight about the moral preoccupation tht he thinks Jane Austen had. And that, according to Leavis, clevates Jane Austen above all the other writers, and his is how he goes on to lk out he era, “The principle of organization, and the principe of development, in her work, ia intense moral interest of her own in life hat isin the Gist place a preoccupation with certain problems that ie ‘compels on her a pertonal ones She is intelligent and serious enough to be able to impersonalize her moral tensions at she szives, in her an, to become more fully conscious of them, and to learn what, inthe interests of ie, she ought to do with them, Without he intense moral preoccupation, she would not have Been a great novelis.” He is here underscoring what he thinks i the greatest contribution, the greatest quality that made Jane Austen a great novelis—her intense moral preoccupation. And this something that Leavis ‘continuous to emphasize on thoughout this discussion of the great tradition, “This account of ‘ber would, if | had cared to use the formula, have been my case fr calling Jane Austen, and not anyone later, the frst modern novels’(Refer Slide Time: 7:38) So, he is departing her fom one ofthe poin that Cecil made where he calls George Blot asa first modem novelist and here Leavis begs different and he says according to him the first ‘modem novelist would be Jane Austen and in applying it to George Eliot he finds it very Problematic tht Cecil applied to George Eliot and by the end of this paragraph he almost concludes and categorically states Tane Austen, in fact, is the inaugurator of the great tradition of| the English novel and by great tation. mean the tation to which what is great in Bish Setion belongs So, here this is a 1948 work and novel sila young genre but as we discussed inthe early outset ofthis essay Leavis finds it very imperative to take sock ofthe work and alzo 19 pronounce some greatness to this young genre which had been seen at something without the baggage ‘wadiion, hore hei ying to establish, He is uying to const a tradition into which the other novelist could be included. Now, he is “iseussing ebout the nepal part of fietion form. The grt novelists in that tradition a ll very ‘much concerned with form they are all very orginal fechnically having tuned their gens tothe working out oftheir own appropriate methods and procedures, (Refer Slide Time: 8:41) But the peculiar quality of their prevecupation with form maybe brought out by a contrasting reference to Flaubert. So, form becomes extremely important here when Leavis is discussing and ‘even over here there isa superiority tht he i able to atibute to Jane Austen as we see towards the end of this paragraph. ‘The novel 1's problem isto evolve an orderly composition which i also a convincing picture of lite this is 9 way an admirer of Goorge Moore ses it Lord David Cecil attributing this way to Jane Austen and ereiting her with superiority over George Elliot in satisfying the vival claims ‘of life and at explains the superiority we gathered by «freedom from moral preoccupation that bbe supposes her to enjoy. So, there isa certain fine balance also which is being brought over here, there i preoccupation because of which he Leavis argues that Jane Austen is best fit o inaugurate this rat 3 and she is considered as a great novelist and she is considered as the, as someone who ‘as st this tradition in place but there i sls a cetan superiority’ of for thats being atibuted to her. And he goes on to talk about the formal perfection of Emma and about the aesthetic ‘matter a beauty f composition that is combined miraculously with rath t ie So, there is aesthetics and life coming together an if you recall the definition that Henry James als atnbutod to fiction te something which is competing with life fiction, something which is forever competing with life there is a way in which fiction tries to avertakes if, stimulates lie,imitate lie and there isa very strong competition in real life. So, having said that tat to life and ‘his perfection of form both become exremely important in Leavis framework as well. ‘And now, Leavsis also conscious about a certain Mpped side ofthis (genre) ction. It might be commented that what Ihave said of Jane Austen ander successors is only what can be sad of| any novelist oF ungualitid greatness, Trath of life or perfection inform or this preoccupation of ‘moral inlensity this could be very loosely identified and attibued to any novels perhaps. So, what ist about Jane Austen and thie great tad Aiferent about thems but there i and this is the point an English treition. 2m that he identifies what is vey significantly So, this is extremely important look at the way he has italicized, other is and this point an English tition, and these great classes of English fetion belongs to it A waditon that i the talk about creating characters and creating works and the eppreciation of Trollope and Misses Gaskell and Thackeray and Meredith and Hardy and Virginia Wooll appears go on unrecognized. So, we find this trajectory fully forming, fully developing over here, there is an English tradition then tie assertion this is very very important, this is very very mmporant ofthe he ambitions in terms ofthe literary tradition this is very very important in order to separate a particular kind of an Fnglish tradition as far as novel is concerned and from boing a genre without any bagaage of of ration he is here able to nativize this tation Leavis i able to provide avery nativist, kind of tradition tothe emergence of novel an English taition could be identified regardless of the other important writers who existed in different languages and different cultures and what Leavis here is concerned is about this tradition. “This sentence it isa very eategorical statement itis not ambivalent i i very very assertive ints quality, But there is nd that is this is a point an English tradition and these great classics of English flction belong to it, And there is mo debate this is not an open-ended thing that he proposes before us, The presence of an English train or something that he is ale 1 assert, that he ie able to position here beyond any kind of debate andthe annealing politics of this and ‘the many bases which ae inherent in this that Something tha we should take a look at after we have gone through the ist chapter (Refer Side Time: 12:48) Again, while talking about the greatness of George Elliot We find the way in which thats again ‘connected to Jane Austen, look at this one way of putting the difference between George Eliot and the Trollopes whom we ere invited to consider along with her isto sy that she was capable ‘of understanding Jane Austen's greatness and capable of laring ftom he. So, ths is another significant thing about wadtion one great writer is able to recognize the _reamess in another writer One great work is able to imitate or follow or set way itself in the greatness of other, And in that contimity he also states and expect for Jane Austen there was 09 ‘novelist to lean from none whose work bad any bearing on her own essential problems as & novelist This is very very important and in George Elis identification of Jane Austen as a only novelist ‘om home anything could be learnt this effective tradition further accentuated and here Leavis is also not loving certain other kinds of dialogues to exist over here thet i not inherent greatness that i being atsbuted to Jane Austen for her essential moral preoccupation forthe perfection of form for one for characters that she eeated and for her ability to imbibe fom the past an also, more importantly, her ability to stand et an imitable igure her ability to stand ae this pillar of ‘radio which the others can imitate which the others can amulet and take of from, So, Jane Austen here becomes not just the first great novelist but also someone on whom this ative foundation dross not just her appearing, but the past, the present, and the future. HenryJames, he says, also was a great admirer of Jane Austen and his ease too there is that obvious ‘spect of influence which ean be brought out by quotation and there is fr him George Flot ‘weleoming berween, 1m socng him in an English tation Tam not sighting the fact of his American origin an origin that does not make him less of an English novelist ofthe great tadion than the Conrad late, “That he was en American ia fat of the fist importance of the eric andes mister, Yvor Winters brings out admirably in his book Maule curse. Mister Winters discusses him as a product of the New England Ethos in is last phase when a hs it of stenuousness remained after dogmatic purtanism has evaporated and the vestigial moral code was evaporating too, This throws a good deal of light onthe illsiveness that atonds James's pec imperialist polities which is also talking about the nation about nationalism wiether the way it atsibutes and we find literature inspite ofits humanist tra ethical sensibility: T want you t0 see the polities over here the very evident tio inspite ofthis aspirating lok that it seems to advocate there also certain way in which ownership is being taken in terms of nationality in terms of ethnicity. ‘And, the base in which tis dialogue is being abe o, his dalogue is being promoted over here and two writers ae being discussed over ere writers of English origin, writers of American ‘origin and there is @ way in which the American writer the American erie has also been appropriated ito English tration. ‘And this i what I want you to see in terms ofthe idea ofthe tradition that Leavis is tying to foreground and you may alo here very conveniently recall that even Eliott was of American origin and there isa way in which some kind of appropri ion takes place when it comes tothe fiaming of tradition and we find that finaly st work over here as when Leavis is trying to ‘stablish an English traion when he says there is an English traiion and that is something which isnot open for any kind of debate and based on that assumption he moves forward with the other kinds of discussions as well And here it alto amazing the way in which within the context of literature many ofthese things are coming together i snot just about aesthetic it ie also about the polities, tis also about the police of the identity and we find all of this coming togsther inthis discusion of canon formation that Leavis underiakes in his work the great tradition. So, with tis, we wrap up today and then we will continue discussing this text and we should also look atthe implications ofthis work in forging tis grea tation and implications ofthis work not justin terms of understanding the tation of English fiction but also how this provided larger frameworks, how it provided ample methodology for other cannon formations for other processes of canon formation to takeoff from twentieth century onwards, So, with his we wrap ‘up the discussion over here and I look forward to sceing you inthe next session. Thankyou for ‘your ime and attention.