Lewis, Sinclair

Full Name: Harry Sinclair Lewis

Achievements: Major 20^th century American novelist

Born: February 7, 1885; Sauk Centre, Minnesota

Died: January 10, 1951; Rome, Italy. Aged 66

Field & Discipline: Literature; Writer

Language: English

Father: Edwin J Lewis

Mother: Emma Kermott

Siblings: Fred; Claude

Spouse: 1) Grace Hegger; 2) Dorothy Thompson

Children: by Hegger: Wells. by Thompson: Michael

Education: Public schools, Sauk Centre; Oberlin College, Ohio; Yale University

Major Work:

"Main Street" (1920)

"Babbitt" (1922)

"Arrowsmith" (1925)

"Elmer Gantry" (1927)

"Dodsworth" (1929)

Life & Times:

Lewis graduated in 1908 and worked as a newspaper reporter in Iowa and California for a couple of years. From 1910-15 he worked as an editor and advertising manager for publishers in NewYork. He published a children's book in 1913 and his first adult novel: "Our Mr Wrenn" in 1914. He sold several short stories to the "Saturday Evening Post" and in 1915 was able to give up his job in publishing.

He wrote four more novels, all of which were moderately successful before "Main Street" was published in 1920. This was the novel which made his name.

The novel is set in Gopher Prairie, and is an indictment of small town life in the mid-West, and the myth of American friendliness and community spirit. "Main Street" was a bestseller.

Lewis had now entered the most successful creative period of his life with a series of novels about contemporary America. "Babbitt" (1922) was set in a mid-sized American city called Zenith, representative of a city like Cincinnati. In this novel, Lewis tells the story of a successful estate agent called Babbitt whose public morality is not matched by his business practices. It was another popular success and gave rise to the same sort of controversy as "Main Street".

In "Arrowsmith" (1925), Lewis exposed the double standards in the medical profession. For this he was awarded the Pulitzer prize but in May 1926 Lewis publicly refused the prize in a letter which he released to the press. His reason for refusal was that the prize was awarded to the novel which gave the best depiction of "the wholesome atmosphere of American life".

The following year he brought out "Elmer Gantry" in which he exposed the hypocrisy of the church and attacked the revival of fundamentalism. His protagonist, Gantry, is a well-meaning theological student who is made uneasy by his strong sexual drive. The novel had a mixed reception. Some church ministers welcomed the exposure of wrong-doing in their profession but many critics pronounced the book obscene. Others like [a fan was] Mencken* praised the book for its reality and lack of sentimentality.

His next novel, "Dodsworth" was different in tone, about a typical American businessman whose mind expands through travelling in Europe and who decides to import European culture to America.

In 1930 Lewis accepted the Nobel Prize for literature, and his acceptance speech spoke on "The American Fear of Literature" and the American hostility to modern realism.

In 1937 he began an association with a young actress, Marcella Powers, and they appeared in several plays together.

His first play "The Jaywalker" appeared in 1935, but was not a success. In the same year his novel, "It Can't Happen Here" chronicled the way a newspaper editor attempted to stand up against the American Fascists. It was turned into a successful play and the rights were brought by a Hollywood company.

At the end of the 30's, Lewis wrote a weekly column for "Newsweek". The novels he wrote during the 40's did not generally match the success he had experienced earlier. The only interesting novel was "Kingsblood Royal" (1947), the story of a prosperous and popular white American who discovers he is one-thirty-second black and announces the fact. His expectations are that this will make no difference to his family and friends and that it will help to lessen racial prejudice. Instead, he is ostracized, loses his job and is not even accepted by the black community. The book was seen as anti-racist propaganda, and Lewis was awarded a special award by "Ebony" magazine.

The last few years of Lewis's life were spent in heavy drinking and travelling in Europe.

Extra Connections: An admirer was [an admirer was] Darrow*

Assessment: Lewis’s success was due to the accuracy of his satire and his ability to show the waste of spirit behind the achievements of many members of middle-class America.

Bibliography:

• Schorer, Mark, Sinclair Lewis, An American Life, Heinemann, London, 1961.