In “Loneliness; concerning Enoch Robinson” some scholars have noted the apparent parallels between author and character, since Anderson also left his hometown, married, had children, and worked in advertising to support his family. What Enoch does with charcoal and paintbrush, Anderson did with pen and typewriter.
Yet, biographer Kim Townsend contends, the more obvious inspiration for Enoch is Anderson’s brother Earl, who moved to Chicago with grand hopes but settled for a dead-end job as a restaurant cashier. “To Anderson,” writes Townsend, “his brother always symbolized the sensitive, lonely, vulnerable people of America.” In 1913 Earl disappeared altogether, and Anderson had no idea where his brother was when he wrote “Loneliness,” which may explain why the story is “one of the most moving of the Winesburg, Ohio tales.” Enjoy!
This week we bring you “Cock-A-Doodle-Doo! Or, The Crowing of the Noble Cock Beneventano” by Herman MelvilleHerman Melville belongs to the group of artists...
This is a fun ghostly tale of unsettling encounters by a school inspector in the north of England. Edwards was an extremely talented woman...
Here's something light and fun after the dark October mood. FSF was born in St. Paul and raised in an Irish middle class family....