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O livro dos insultos
'O livro dos insultos' de H. L. Mencken é uma reunião - pela primeira vez no Brasil - das polêmicas explosivas do mais famoso jornalista americano das décadas de 20 e 30. Suas idéias sobre a política, a moral, a religião, a cultura e a estupidez humana aplicam-se hoje como nunca.
248 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1918
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308 people want to read
About the author
H.L. Mencken
637 books728 followersHenry Louis "H.L." Mencken became one of the most influential and prolific journalists in America in the 1920s and '30s, writing about all the shams and con artists in the world. He attacked chiropractors and the Ku Klux Klan, politicians and other journalists. Most of all, he attacked Puritan morality. He called Puritanism, "the haunting fear that someone, somewhere, may be happy."
At the height of his career, he edited and wrote for The American Mercury magazine and the Baltimore Sun newspaper, wrote a nationally syndicated newspaper column for the Chicago Tribune, and published two or three books every year. His masterpiece was one of the few books he wrote about something he loved, a book called The American Language (1919), a history and collection of American vernacular speech. It included a translation of the Declaration of Independence into American English that began, "When things get so balled up that the people of a country got to cut loose from some other country, and go it on their own hook, without asking no permission from nobody, excepting maybe God Almighty, then they ought to let everybody know why they done it, so that everybody can see they are not trying to put nothing over on nobody."
When asked what he would like for an epitaph, Mencken wrote, "If, after I depart this vale, you ever remember me and have thought to please my ghost, forgive some sinner and wink your eye at some homely girl."
(from American Public Media)
At the height of his career, he edited and wrote for The American Mercury magazine and the Baltimore Sun newspaper, wrote a nationally syndicated newspaper column for the Chicago Tribune, and published two or three books every year. His masterpiece was one of the few books he wrote about something he loved, a book called The American Language (1919), a history and collection of American vernacular speech. It included a translation of the Declaration of Independence into American English that began, "When things get so balled up that the people of a country got to cut loose from some other country, and go it on their own hook, without asking no permission from nobody, excepting maybe God Almighty, then they ought to let everybody know why they done it, so that everybody can see they are not trying to put nothing over on nobody."
When asked what he would like for an epitaph, Mencken wrote, "If, after I depart this vale, you ever remember me and have thought to please my ghost, forgive some sinner and wink your eye at some homely girl."
(from American Public Media)
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Displaying 1 - 30 of 43 reviews
June 27, 2019
I enjoyed this book.
April 29, 2011
A ROLLICKING GOOD READ.
“It is the misfortune of humanity that its history is chiefly written by third-rate men.”—page 13
“He [Washington] had no belief in the infallible wisdom of the common people, but regarded them as inflammatory dolts, and tried to save the republic from them.”—page 2
None other, I am convinced, has ever been as skilled at the use of words in the American language, as the ‘irascible curmudgeon,’ H. L. Mencken. Certainly Boyle, Michener, Twain and Robbins all competently aspire—but Mencken is the master.
‘Damn! A Book of Calumny’ is an assortment of forty-nine commentaries—many about the “average man” (of whom H. L. was never wont to champion)—some riotous, some banal that overall offers up a rollicking good read.
Recommendation: Mencken is an acquired taste, but once acquired can be addicting.
“The average man does not get pleasure out of an idea because he thinks it is true; he thinks it is true because he gets pleasure out of it.” –page 41
“Marriage is always a man’s second choice.”—page 29
ePub edition from www.gutengerg.org, 53 pages.
“It is the misfortune of humanity that its history is chiefly written by third-rate men.”—page 13
“He [Washington] had no belief in the infallible wisdom of the common people, but regarded them as inflammatory dolts, and tried to save the republic from them.”—page 2
None other, I am convinced, has ever been as skilled at the use of words in the American language, as the ‘irascible curmudgeon,’ H. L. Mencken. Certainly Boyle, Michener, Twain and Robbins all competently aspire—but Mencken is the master.
‘Damn! A Book of Calumny’ is an assortment of forty-nine commentaries—many about the “average man” (of whom H. L. was never wont to champion)—some riotous, some banal that overall offers up a rollicking good read.
Recommendation: Mencken is an acquired taste, but once acquired can be addicting.
“The average man does not get pleasure out of an idea because he thinks it is true; he thinks it is true because he gets pleasure out of it.” –page 41
“Marriage is always a man’s second choice.”—page 29
ePub edition from www.gutengerg.org, 53 pages.
February 17, 2016
I see people comparing HL Mencken to Hunter S Thompson in the comments here, which is a fair assessment. However, that's not my first choice of comparison. I see Mencken as an earlier Christopher Hitchens, or even a Mark Steyn. While Hunter would would wreck your favorite social institutions by employing his signature absurdity, Mencken achieves the same effect with only a few acerbic sentences. His style is more laconic and sarcastic, much like Hitchens and Steyn.
Anyway, this particular collection of articles is short, to-the-point, extremely funny (especially the article about what kind of woman Mencken would want to be if he were one), and sadly still relevant today (the morons of his time are still legion today and are little changed). If you're a fan of Thompson, Hitchens, or Steyn, or if you're just a curmudgeonly type who views society with disdain, pick this up. It's short enough to finish in a sitting or three.
Anyway, this particular collection of articles is short, to-the-point, extremely funny (especially the article about what kind of woman Mencken would want to be if he were one), and sadly still relevant today (the morons of his time are still legion today and are little changed). If you're a fan of Thompson, Hitchens, or Steyn, or if you're just a curmudgeonly type who views society with disdain, pick this up. It's short enough to finish in a sitting or three.
October 4, 2018
Surprisingly tame.
July 16, 2016
Não é que não tenha gostado do estilo e da acidez. Mas é muito áspero ler ideias tão machistas de um jornalista influente e que escreveu por 38 anos em um jornal relevante. Muitos temas são abordados de maneira cínica, o que é delicioso de ler. Suas críticas à humanidade geral são bem engraçadas. As críticas musicais e literárias são muito legais.
August 5, 2019
In Damn! A Book of Calumny, H.L. Mencken gives his opinion on a wide variety of subjects ranging from William Jennings Bryan, through Classical Music, to Zoos. I am a huge fan of Mencken’s hilarious, bombastic, and sesquipedalian style. He is the quintessential American cynic and it’s a lot of fun to watch him smash every sacred cow he can get his hands on. The fact that I disagree with his opinions much of the time does nothing to dampen my enjoyment of reading him. To understand the American mind in the 3 decades before WWII, it’s essential to read him.
May 22, 2024
Sardônico.
Livro mordaz, acutilante. O autor não tem meias medidas e passa por cima de tudo o que bem entender.
É difícil, se não impossível, alguém concordar com todas as suas opiniões. Mostra personalidade e que sabe pensar por si próprio. Ao final, deixa um pouco de espaço para elogiar também.
Para quem gosta de sarcasmo é um prato cheio. Muito hilariante, mas também muito enriquecedor. Dá pra aprender umas coisas.
Livro mordaz, acutilante. O autor não tem meias medidas e passa por cima de tudo o que bem entender.
É difícil, se não impossível, alguém concordar com todas as suas opiniões. Mostra personalidade e que sabe pensar por si próprio. Ao final, deixa um pouco de espaço para elogiar também.
Para quem gosta de sarcasmo é um prato cheio. Muito hilariante, mas também muito enriquecedor. Dá pra aprender umas coisas.
September 17, 2020
Ótimo livro de um dos melhores cronista dos EUA. Ótimas histórias, textos, frases e aforismos que certamente seriam massacrados se fossem escritos nos dias de hoje, uma prova de qualidade.
April 3, 2023
I listened to this short collection because I wanted to know a little about HL Mencken, a formidable figure in early 20th century American letters. And - oomph! - what a snob! a sexist, racist, classist asshole. And very funny at points and I did like how he castigated sentimentality and moralism.
"George Washington was not pious. He drank whisky whenever he felt chilly, and kept a jug of it handy. He knew far more profanity than Scripture, and used and enjoyed it more. He had no belief in the infallible wisdom of the common people, but regarded them as inflammatory dolts, and tried to save the republic from them. He advocated no sure cure for all the sorrows of the world, and doubted that such a panacea existed. He took no interest in the private morals of his neighbors."
"George Washington was not pious. He drank whisky whenever he felt chilly, and kept a jug of it handy. He knew far more profanity than Scripture, and used and enjoyed it more. He had no belief in the infallible wisdom of the common people, but regarded them as inflammatory dolts, and tried to save the republic from them. He advocated no sure cure for all the sorrows of the world, and doubted that such a panacea existed. He took no interest in the private morals of his neighbors."
July 15, 2017
Mencken was a journalist, an essayist, and most of all a contrarian. Damn! is a short collection of his essays that were handpicked by Mencken himself. An eloquent writer, Mencken can be a little sassy (some would even call bigoted) at times. Nonetheless, his style is worth noting and replicating in an age where (good) contrarians are becoming harder and harder to find.
December 10, 2020
calumny
[ˈkaləmnē]
NOUN
the making of false and defamatory statements in order to damage someone's reputation; slander.
As foretold by the title, this is a collection of defamatory statements by H.L. Mencken on a variety of topics ranging from religion to art and randomness in between. Mencken was a highly respected satirist of his time, and much of his insights and snarks still maintain their genius and relevance nearly a century since they were published - I personally have 37 highlighted passages in my own copy. Mencken has a passion for pointing out the absurd in what is typically held as the mundane or mandatory, and never fails to do so with wit and wisdom. A short read, but a must read.
[ˈkaləmnē]
NOUN
the making of false and defamatory statements in order to damage someone's reputation; slander.
As foretold by the title, this is a collection of defamatory statements by H.L. Mencken on a variety of topics ranging from religion to art and randomness in between. Mencken was a highly respected satirist of his time, and much of his insights and snarks still maintain their genius and relevance nearly a century since they were published - I personally have 37 highlighted passages in my own copy. Mencken has a passion for pointing out the absurd in what is typically held as the mundane or mandatory, and never fails to do so with wit and wisdom. A short read, but a must read.
September 4, 2023
My opinion of Mencken plummeted after reading Teachout’s excellent biography of him, yet I thought I should give his works a shot rather than rely on the quotations that have survived to today, popping up in various works by others. This book didn’t help my impression of him.
Out of the entire book only five pages were worth noting, and these being his observations on religion. Everything else is an elitist rant that makes him out to be an unpleasant, offensive and bigoted curmudgeon…which he was.
He was perceptive to a point as a cultural critic, but like John Simon he was also just plain mean.
Out of the entire book only five pages were worth noting, and these being his observations on religion. Everything else is an elitist rant that makes him out to be an unpleasant, offensive and bigoted curmudgeon…which he was.
He was perceptive to a point as a cultural critic, but like John Simon he was also just plain mean.
January 7, 2023
An acerbically witty collection of aphorisms, rants, random thoughts, pet peeves, and reflections on everything from politics, to science, to religion, philosophy, history, culture, social issues, and life itself. One of Mencken's older works from before he became a household name, "Damn!" is a kind of political arson of the prudish, anti-intellectual, and superstitious sensibilities of the era. While the issues have changed over the past 105 years, there is still much to recognize in the psychology of both Mencken and the society he so blisteringly excoriates. 4/5
June 15, 2023
Reunindo toda sua mordacidade e irreverência, o livro é uma compilação brilhante de insultos, sarcasmo e críticas afiadas, abrangendo décadas de trabalho do autor. Conhecido por sua perspicácia e seu humor ácido, Mencken era inigualável em seus comentários ferinos sobre uma ampla gama de temas, desde política e religião até literatura e cultura. Retrato da habilidade única do autor de provocar risos e reflexões simultaneamente, o livro é um deleite para aqueles que apreciam o poder da palavra afiada e do humor inteligente e desbocado.
March 28, 2025
A surprisingly funny and up to date collection of humorous looks at the country and religion and marriage and a lot of other things. I want to give this three and a half stars. It is good but not brilliant. It is dated in its jokes, of course, and some of the pieces are too abrupt. But this was a nice introduction to Mencken's work for me.
October 18, 2023
Always interesting, always thoughtful, always well written.
Read
December 8, 2023H.L. Mencken, when he’s not actively writing specific and earnest criticism or researching and writing for journalistic purposes, comes off to me as someone I fundamentally do not trust. I don’t think this is entirely his fault, but more so the faults of the people who constantly quote him or bring him up or extol his virtues. And to be fair, I am sure that in his day he was a constant and forceful voice against, well, mostly bullshit. But he also inspired a kind somewhat Left/Libertarian male officiousness that I aspired to be when I was younger and ran away sprinting away as I got older. It’s the worst tendencies of Stephen King’s sanctimonious streak that comes out on twitter sometimes, or bulk of the individvualized George Carlin quotes, and all of Keith Olberman. The kind of things that makes a certain amount of sense but are too reductive to do anybody any good. It’s not quite hokum, because it’s clever, but it’s well something.
This book is a kind of 45 theses on various topics…not unlike a collection of George Carlin brain droppings…but of important issues! and circa 1918.
Some Examples:
“ON LYING
Lying stands on a different plane from all other moral offenses, not because it is intrinsically more heinous or less heinous, but simply because it is the only one that may be accurately measured. Forgetting unwitting error, which has nothing to do with morals, a statement is either true or not true. This is a simple distinction and relatively easy to establish. But when one comes to other derelictions the thing grows more complicated. The line between stealing and not stealing is beautifully vague; whether or not one has crossed it is not determined by the objective act, but by such delicate things as motive and purpose. So again, with assault, sex offenses, and even murder; there may be surrounding circumstances which greatly condition the moral quality of the actual act. But lying is specific, exact, scientific. Its capacity for precise determination, indeed, makes its presence or non-presence the only accurate gauge of other immoral acts. Murder, for example, is nowhere regarded as immoral save it involve some repudiation of a social compact, of a tacit promise to refrain from it—in brief, some deceit, some perfidy, some lie. One may kill freely when the pact is formally broken, as in war. One may kill equally freely when it is broken by the victim, as in an assault by a highwayman. But one may not kill so long as it is not broken, and one may not break it to clear the way. Some form of lie is at the bottom of all other recognized crimes, from seduction to embezzlement. Curiously enough, this master immorality of them all is not prohibited by the Ten Commandments, nor is it penalized, in its pure form, by the code of any civilized nation. Only savages have laws against lying per se.”
“THE CURSE OF CIVILIZATION
A civilized man’s worst curse is social obligation. The most unpleasant act imaginable is to go to a dinner party. One could get far better food, taking one day with another, at Childs’, or even in a Pennsylvania Railroad dining-car; one could find far more amusing society in a bar-room or a bordello, or even at the Y. M. C. A. No hostess in Christendom ever arranged a dinner party of any pretensions without including at least one intensely disagreeable person—a vain and vapid girl, a hideous woman, a follower of baseball, a stock-broker, a veteran of some war or other, a gabbler of politics. And one is enough to do the business.”
“MORALIST AND ARTIST
I dredge up the following from an essay on George Bernard Shaw by Robert Blatchford, the English Socialist: “Shaw is something much better than a wit, much better than an artist, much better than a politician or a dramatist; he is a moralist, a teacher of ethics, austere, relentless, fiercely earnest.”
What could be more idiotic? Then Cotton Mather was a greater man than Johann Sebastian Bach. Then the average college critic of the arts, with his balderdash about inspiration and moral purpose, is greater than Georg Brandes or Saint-Beuve. Then Éugene Brieux, with his Y. M. C. A. platitudinizing, is greater than Molière, with his ethical agnosticism, his ironical determinism.
This childish respect for moralizing runs through the whole of contemporary criticism—at least in England and America. Blatchford differs from the professorial critics only in the detail that he can actually write. What he says about Shaw has been said, in heavy and suffocating words, by almost all of them. And yet nothing could be more untrue. The moralist, at his best, can never be anything save a sort of journalist. Moral values change too often to have any serious validity or interest; what is a virtue today is a sin tomorrow. But the man who creates a thing of beauty creates something that lasts.”
This book is a kind of 45 theses on various topics…not unlike a collection of George Carlin brain droppings…but of important issues! and circa 1918.
Some Examples:
“ON LYING
Lying stands on a different plane from all other moral offenses, not because it is intrinsically more heinous or less heinous, but simply because it is the only one that may be accurately measured. Forgetting unwitting error, which has nothing to do with morals, a statement is either true or not true. This is a simple distinction and relatively easy to establish. But when one comes to other derelictions the thing grows more complicated. The line between stealing and not stealing is beautifully vague; whether or not one has crossed it is not determined by the objective act, but by such delicate things as motive and purpose. So again, with assault, sex offenses, and even murder; there may be surrounding circumstances which greatly condition the moral quality of the actual act. But lying is specific, exact, scientific. Its capacity for precise determination, indeed, makes its presence or non-presence the only accurate gauge of other immoral acts. Murder, for example, is nowhere regarded as immoral save it involve some repudiation of a social compact, of a tacit promise to refrain from it—in brief, some deceit, some perfidy, some lie. One may kill freely when the pact is formally broken, as in war. One may kill equally freely when it is broken by the victim, as in an assault by a highwayman. But one may not kill so long as it is not broken, and one may not break it to clear the way. Some form of lie is at the bottom of all other recognized crimes, from seduction to embezzlement. Curiously enough, this master immorality of them all is not prohibited by the Ten Commandments, nor is it penalized, in its pure form, by the code of any civilized nation. Only savages have laws against lying per se.”
“THE CURSE OF CIVILIZATION
A civilized man’s worst curse is social obligation. The most unpleasant act imaginable is to go to a dinner party. One could get far better food, taking one day with another, at Childs’, or even in a Pennsylvania Railroad dining-car; one could find far more amusing society in a bar-room or a bordello, or even at the Y. M. C. A. No hostess in Christendom ever arranged a dinner party of any pretensions without including at least one intensely disagreeable person—a vain and vapid girl, a hideous woman, a follower of baseball, a stock-broker, a veteran of some war or other, a gabbler of politics. And one is enough to do the business.”
“MORALIST AND ARTIST
I dredge up the following from an essay on George Bernard Shaw by Robert Blatchford, the English Socialist: “Shaw is something much better than a wit, much better than an artist, much better than a politician or a dramatist; he is a moralist, a teacher of ethics, austere, relentless, fiercely earnest.”
What could be more idiotic? Then Cotton Mather was a greater man than Johann Sebastian Bach. Then the average college critic of the arts, with his balderdash about inspiration and moral purpose, is greater than Georg Brandes or Saint-Beuve. Then Éugene Brieux, with his Y. M. C. A. platitudinizing, is greater than Molière, with his ethical agnosticism, his ironical determinism.
This childish respect for moralizing runs through the whole of contemporary criticism—at least in England and America. Blatchford differs from the professorial critics only in the detail that he can actually write. What he says about Shaw has been said, in heavy and suffocating words, by almost all of them. And yet nothing could be more untrue. The moralist, at his best, can never be anything save a sort of journalist. Moral values change too often to have any serious validity or interest; what is a virtue today is a sin tomorrow. But the man who creates a thing of beauty creates something that lasts.”
May 27, 2024
Após a leitura de "O Livro dos Insultos" de H. L. Mencken, é impossível não sentir uma certa nostalgia pela sagacidade afiada e despretensiosa de um escritor que soube, como poucos, retratar os absurdos e incongruências de sua época. Mencken, um crítico mordaz e um observador astuto das idiossincrasias humanas e sociais, me parece ainda mais imprescindível no cenário atual, onde a figura do crítico conservador parece ter perdido sua verve e profundidade.
É inevitável, ao percorrer as páginas repletas de ironia e escárnio deste compilado de textos, perceber a falta que personalidades como Mencken fazem hoje. Em tempos onde o debate público frequentemente descamba para o superfícial ou o estritamente ideológico, a capacidade de Mencken de articular críticas fundadas tanto em uma erudição robusta quanto em um senso de humor cáustico, faz-se notavelmente ausente.
Suas palavras não apenas divertem; elas provocam. A cada ensaio, a cada observação afiada sobre os "tipos humanos", Mencken nos lembra de que a crítica pode ser uma arte — e mais, pode ser fundamental para desafiar o Brasil que só existe na cabeça dos progressistas e incentivar um pensamento mais conciso e profundo. Hoje, mais do que nunca, precisamos de vozes como a dele, que saibam ser conservadoras sem cair no dogmatismo, que utilizem o insulto não como mero ataque, mas como ferramenta de reflexão.
Ler Mencken no presente tempo significa se deparar com um lembrete doloroso de que o debate intelectual perdeu um pouco de seu brilho — tornou-se mais temeroso e, muitas vezes, menos penetrante. Suas palavras, embora escritas em outro século, são um chamado a resgatar a crítica incisiva e substancial que não apenas desafia as ideias preconcebidas, mas também entretém e ilumina, fazendo-nos pensar e, por vezes, rir de nós mesmos. Seria um prazer ver emergir novos Menckens em nossa era, capazes de manejar a língua com tamanha destreza, oferecendo-nos uma visão crítica que nos fascina pelo raciocínio mesmo quando não concordamos com ele.
É inevitável, ao percorrer as páginas repletas de ironia e escárnio deste compilado de textos, perceber a falta que personalidades como Mencken fazem hoje. Em tempos onde o debate público frequentemente descamba para o superfícial ou o estritamente ideológico, a capacidade de Mencken de articular críticas fundadas tanto em uma erudição robusta quanto em um senso de humor cáustico, faz-se notavelmente ausente.
Suas palavras não apenas divertem; elas provocam. A cada ensaio, a cada observação afiada sobre os "tipos humanos", Mencken nos lembra de que a crítica pode ser uma arte — e mais, pode ser fundamental para desafiar o Brasil que só existe na cabeça dos progressistas e incentivar um pensamento mais conciso e profundo. Hoje, mais do que nunca, precisamos de vozes como a dele, que saibam ser conservadoras sem cair no dogmatismo, que utilizem o insulto não como mero ataque, mas como ferramenta de reflexão.
Ler Mencken no presente tempo significa se deparar com um lembrete doloroso de que o debate intelectual perdeu um pouco de seu brilho — tornou-se mais temeroso e, muitas vezes, menos penetrante. Suas palavras, embora escritas em outro século, são um chamado a resgatar a crítica incisiva e substancial que não apenas desafia as ideias preconcebidas, mas também entretém e ilumina, fazendo-nos pensar e, por vezes, rir de nós mesmos. Seria um prazer ver emergir novos Menckens em nossa era, capazes de manejar a língua com tamanha destreza, oferecendo-nos uma visão crítica que nos fascina pelo raciocínio mesmo quando não concordamos com ele.
March 6, 2012
H.L. Mencken wrote prolifically and fervently on many subjects. He was regarded as a leading scholar on Nietzsche, as well as being quite well-versed on classical music.
Mostly, he was opinionated. And hysterically funny.
I remember watching Dave Kingman play baseball back in the 70's and 80's. He struck out a huge percentage of the time, and only batted .236. What Kingman did better than most, though, was hit home runs. Huge, towering, gargantuan, tape-measure blasts. His failures were many, but his triumphs were spectacular.
H.L. Mencken was a lot like Kingman. He had some brilliant ideas, especially regarding philosophy and religion, human foibles, and the role of the arts in society.
Some of his opinions were controversial and, in retrospect, ridiculous. (Mainly, I speak of his views on women)
"Damn!" is a fairly small collection of Mencken's works. Some of these are a few pages, others but a few sentences.
At his best, such as the opening essay on how George Washington would be shredded by the "modern" establishment ("modern" being 100 years ago), he is dead-on. His points are still valid today, as we suffer through the toilet that is another presidential campaign. Many of his pieces on religion are not knee-jerk atheism, but quite thoughtful and well argued.
When he goes down swinging, though, it's like watching Kingman. He swings from his feet, even when he misses.
I get the impression that many times, he was being sardonic when, say, he discusses red-haired women as being overly crafty and sly.
This collection serves as a decent primer into Mencken's world. It's under 100 pages, and few pieces are long enough to allow boredom to encroach.
Best of all, you see glorious triumphs and ignominious whiffs, juxtaposed. I gave "Damn!" 4 stars out of 5. There were some 3-star essays in there, and more than a few 1-stars. But there are enough 5-star efforts to balance them out.
(NB: A huge amount of Mencken's work, including this collection, is available for free download. I downloaded this free from the Kindle Store)
Mostly, he was opinionated. And hysterically funny.
I remember watching Dave Kingman play baseball back in the 70's and 80's. He struck out a huge percentage of the time, and only batted .236. What Kingman did better than most, though, was hit home runs. Huge, towering, gargantuan, tape-measure blasts. His failures were many, but his triumphs were spectacular.
H.L. Mencken was a lot like Kingman. He had some brilliant ideas, especially regarding philosophy and religion, human foibles, and the role of the arts in society.
Some of his opinions were controversial and, in retrospect, ridiculous. (Mainly, I speak of his views on women)
"Damn!" is a fairly small collection of Mencken's works. Some of these are a few pages, others but a few sentences.
At his best, such as the opening essay on how George Washington would be shredded by the "modern" establishment ("modern" being 100 years ago), he is dead-on. His points are still valid today, as we suffer through the toilet that is another presidential campaign. Many of his pieces on religion are not knee-jerk atheism, but quite thoughtful and well argued.
When he goes down swinging, though, it's like watching Kingman. He swings from his feet, even when he misses.
I get the impression that many times, he was being sardonic when, say, he discusses red-haired women as being overly crafty and sly.
This collection serves as a decent primer into Mencken's world. It's under 100 pages, and few pieces are long enough to allow boredom to encroach.
Best of all, you see glorious triumphs and ignominious whiffs, juxtaposed. I gave "Damn!" 4 stars out of 5. There were some 3-star essays in there, and more than a few 1-stars. But there are enough 5-star efforts to balance them out.
(NB: A huge amount of Mencken's work, including this collection, is available for free download. I downloaded this free from the Kindle Store)
June 5, 2012
Has anyone ever managed to write so clearly from a personal conviction as Mencken did? "Damn, A book of Calumny" is a collection of writings by H.L. Mencken without a clear narrative. Unless of course we consider the personality of Mencken as the real narrative of this collection. He writes with conviction and eloquence, a man who convinces you of his point simply by explaining it and without shying away from sensitivities and conventions. His interests are extremely wide and his opinions both nuanced and seemingly absolute. Even when he writes something that lost relevance and even defendability in the 1930's, he shows grace and intelligence. Reading one of Mencken's points of view that you disagree with wholeheartedly, you will still feel a deep respect for the man. And when you agree with him, you are delighted and entertained. You feel as if you are in the presence of a great mind and yet, an equal who has written this specifically for you, as a personal letter among friends where no topic needs censorship.
July 29, 2016
Review carried forward from "I'm Reading"
Two people I respect very much - my late father Marvin Berteau and my friend of 30+ years, Danny Heitman - are huge fans of H.L. Mencken, the influential journalist/essayist/satirist of the early 20th century. Two such people can't be wrong, so over the summer I decided to read a little Mencken. I found Damn! A Book of Calumny for free on the Gutenberg project and read it a couple of months ago.
This book is definitely not for everyone - Mencken spares few from his acerbic wit - but if you like biting sarcasm you'll love it. It's a series of very short topical writings. What's really striking is how little human nature has changed in 100 years. Satirical commentary from 1918 is still surprising pertinent in many, many cases (although sometimes strikingly non-PC by our standards today, given that Mencken spares no one it's much easier to tolerate).
I started to include some of my favorite quotes, but they don't fit in the review space. You'll have to read it yourself!
Two people I respect very much - my late father Marvin Berteau and my friend of 30+ years, Danny Heitman - are huge fans of H.L. Mencken, the influential journalist/essayist/satirist of the early 20th century. Two such people can't be wrong, so over the summer I decided to read a little Mencken. I found Damn! A Book of Calumny for free on the Gutenberg project and read it a couple of months ago.
This book is definitely not for everyone - Mencken spares few from his acerbic wit - but if you like biting sarcasm you'll love it. It's a series of very short topical writings. What's really striking is how little human nature has changed in 100 years. Satirical commentary from 1918 is still surprising pertinent in many, many cases (although sometimes strikingly non-PC by our standards today, given that Mencken spares no one it's much easier to tolerate).
I started to include some of my favorite quotes, but they don't fit in the review space. You'll have to read it yourself!
October 14, 2013
Apart from some really good or even brilliant points this book is actually rubbish!
A mixture of sexism, racism and some blunt generalisations that will leave you wonder if it's written by Mencken or a red neck teenager!
He lived and wrote this book decades ago but that doesn't justify some strange ideas that don't even make a solid point or respectful opinion.. something like saying the zoo is useless and doesn't add to the mentality or personality to anyone even children or even professors as another extreme! .. So Mr.Mencken, all the biologists and psychologists and other scientists who spent years studying the animal behaviour and life are just having fun!
Other shocking parts I will just leave them alone. The point is that this book doesn't actually add any new angle of thinking, information or even reflect a philosophy! ..
I don't recommend it... go to the zoo, it's a better use of time!
A mixture of sexism, racism and some blunt generalisations that will leave you wonder if it's written by Mencken or a red neck teenager!
He lived and wrote this book decades ago but that doesn't justify some strange ideas that don't even make a solid point or respectful opinion.. something like saying the zoo is useless and doesn't add to the mentality or personality to anyone even children or even professors as another extreme! .. So Mr.Mencken, all the biologists and psychologists and other scientists who spent years studying the animal behaviour and life are just having fun!
Other shocking parts I will just leave them alone. The point is that this book doesn't actually add any new angle of thinking, information or even reflect a philosophy! ..
I don't recommend it... go to the zoo, it's a better use of time!
September 29, 2014
In college one of my writing text books sang the praises of H. L. Mencken. He was the master of simplicity and clarity. Naturally I had high hopes for his writing. In his ability to construct a sentence, paragragh, and essay I have no qualms. He writes impeccibly. However, what he says in this batch of essays leaves much to be desired.
He was a social critic but it comes off more like a curmudgeon. He uses every available opportunity to rail against Christianity and many times he shoehorns it in. Women and the lower classes fair only slightly better. He did have a few intestering insights but I had to sift through so much piss and vinegar to get them that I didn't really enjoy the book.
He was a social critic but it comes off more like a curmudgeon. He uses every available opportunity to rail against Christianity and many times he shoehorns it in. Women and the lower classes fair only slightly better. He did have a few intestering insights but I had to sift through so much piss and vinegar to get them that I didn't really enjoy the book.
January 1, 2014
I've been interested in HL Mencken for several years due to some quotes of his I read on the internet. This was my first book by Mencken I've read and it was full of blabbing material and crazy beliefs on a variety of topics. He has some great quotes but by-and-large the book is below-average.
Favorite quotes:
1. "It is the misfortune of humanity that its history is chiefly written by third-rate men."
2. "Moral values change too often to have any serious validity of interest; what is a virtue today is a sin tomorrow. But the man who creates a thing of beauty creates something that lasts."
Favorite quotes:
1. "It is the misfortune of humanity that its history is chiefly written by third-rate men."
2. "Moral values change too often to have any serious validity of interest; what is a virtue today is a sin tomorrow. But the man who creates a thing of beauty creates something that lasts."
April 8, 2014
This was my first introduction to Mencken and I genuinely enjoyed it. I've heard his name from Hunter S Thompson and PJ O'Rourke's writing and he fits into the same genre as them, part satirist, part arsehole and mostly a passionate enthusiast on countless subjects. I read a few of the other reviews on this work which slammed him for being sexist, racist and so on... but I think it doesn't matter if you agree or disagree with any one of his many views, its a matter of enjoying how he voices his opinions that is so amusing. Will certainly read more of his work.
July 1, 2011
Hey I thought I would love this guy. But I realize I'd never read all that much of him. I had him shelved in my mind with Wodehouse, Perelman, and Thurber.
But his is not so much wit as irascible rant, at least in this collection of short essays. He's racist, sexist, dyspeptic, and snobbish. And prideful rather than clueless about being so.
But I'll probably read more of him. (Free Kindle book BTW)
But his is not so much wit as irascible rant, at least in this collection of short essays. He's racist, sexist, dyspeptic, and snobbish. And prideful rather than clueless about being so.
But I'll probably read more of him. (Free Kindle book BTW)
August 22, 2016
This is minor Mencken, a collection of short essays - ranging from a paragraph or two, to a few pages. It's occasionally amusing, but it's not specific enough or deep enough to really illuminate anything, as his best criticism can. It's still plenty enjoyable, as he remains a master stylist, but probably the kind of thing a fan would enjoy more - by which I mean I doubt it would make for a good introduction to the author.
September 10, 2010
My first Mencken book. The book is basically a collection of Mencken's commentary on a variety of issues that he saw fit to expound upon, some as short as a few sentences, the longest not more than a few pages. Ballsy and hilarious, though I definitely found myself tugging my collar at some of the things he had to say. A quick read and well worth your time.
May 22, 2012
Nobody can deny that Mencken has a sharp tongue and that he wields it well—and if wit was enough to hide the sophistry, he would be very persuasive. As such, I enjoyed this collection of brief thoughts and mini-essays simply for the quality of the prose. But Mencken’s misogyny, cynicism and secular arrogance is thoroughly unconvincing.
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