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Aleck Maury, sportsman
In his own words Maury recalls his childhood, courtship and marriage, the loss of loved ones, and his final years.
287 pages, Hardcover
First published January 1, 1934
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About the author
Caroline Gordon
41 books21 followersCaroline Gordon was an American novelist and literary critic who, while still in her thirties, received a Guggenheim Fellowship in 1932 and an O. Henry Award in 1934.
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Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews
March 15, 2023
Aleck Maury, Sportsman is, first of all, a really enjoyable book. The hero of the novel, Aleck Maury, is based on Caroline Gordon's own father (whose name alone appears to have been changed). He is a classics professor but his choice of profession has little bearing on his primary identity. He is through and through a sportsman, a hunter and fisherman. The classics, along with family and other obligations, take a back seat to his passion for hunting and angling.
Yet, he can't be categorized simply as a loafer or an idler. He is passionate, disciplined, and ambitious in his sporting. As he says of himself: "A sportsman is a greedy animal . . . People as a rule do not understand this. They think that a man goes fishing to kill time. They do not realize that every day of good sport is one of unremitting, exhausting effort. . . [A] man who is fishing doesn't ave a moment to himself." Maury, rather than setting out to kill time or to "pass time" with his sport, is bent on seizing it fully. He intends to wrestle all the delight he can from every second he can. And as he has found joy most fully in his sporting, he gives it his full attention and only seems to slight his occupation and other duties.
He's a devotee, but in a world where men are devoted only to prosperity and career advancement, he is an enigma. His passion sets him at odds with the world and with most of his fellow men. He instead is drawn to the small band of true sportsmen, just as his love for the classics unites him to the ever decreasing number of scholars who likewise treasure Greek and Latin.
Maury's quest for "delight" in hunting and fishing takes on a similar tone to that of C.S. Lewis tracing the "stabs of joy" back to their source, or to Flannery O'Connor "stalking joy" ("fully armed too as it's a highly dangerous quest"). It's not until later in life that Professor Maury realizes this, but he does reflect on his sporting pursuits in a similar way: "I knew suddenly what it was I had lived by, . . . I had been seeking and finding it, with mounting excitement, ever since [childhood]. I had known from the first that it was all luck; I had gone about seeking it, with, as it were, the averted eyes of a savage praying to his god. But I had brought all my resources to bear on the chase. I had used skill and caution--nobody but myself knew that patience I had always expended on my careful preparations for my sport."
But is there a triumph? A resolution? And if so, what is it? I'll let you determine for yourself. I see glimpses here and there, faint hints maybe (mainly weaved in through references and quotations from classical literature), but few signposts. Aleck Maury has all the marks of a genuine autobiography. Professor Maury walks off the page and you feel like you really know this man. He's one of those genuine literary characters that leaves a lasting impression. His life is exemplary, both in qualities to imitate and others to avoid. Gordon no doubt knew (and incorporated in other works) the flaws of Aleck Maury--individualism, lack of public virtue and just dealings, rootlessness, selfishness, but she gives little attention to these faults. All things considered, it may be that the "primal plot," or the "current, in its depths" (of which Gordon would later write) is left in question.
Yet, he can't be categorized simply as a loafer or an idler. He is passionate, disciplined, and ambitious in his sporting. As he says of himself: "A sportsman is a greedy animal . . . People as a rule do not understand this. They think that a man goes fishing to kill time. They do not realize that every day of good sport is one of unremitting, exhausting effort. . . [A] man who is fishing doesn't ave a moment to himself." Maury, rather than setting out to kill time or to "pass time" with his sport, is bent on seizing it fully. He intends to wrestle all the delight he can from every second he can. And as he has found joy most fully in his sporting, he gives it his full attention and only seems to slight his occupation and other duties.
He's a devotee, but in a world where men are devoted only to prosperity and career advancement, he is an enigma. His passion sets him at odds with the world and with most of his fellow men. He instead is drawn to the small band of true sportsmen, just as his love for the classics unites him to the ever decreasing number of scholars who likewise treasure Greek and Latin.
Maury's quest for "delight" in hunting and fishing takes on a similar tone to that of C.S. Lewis tracing the "stabs of joy" back to their source, or to Flannery O'Connor "stalking joy" ("fully armed too as it's a highly dangerous quest"). It's not until later in life that Professor Maury realizes this, but he does reflect on his sporting pursuits in a similar way: "I knew suddenly what it was I had lived by, . . . I had been seeking and finding it, with mounting excitement, ever since [childhood]. I had known from the first that it was all luck; I had gone about seeking it, with, as it were, the averted eyes of a savage praying to his god. But I had brought all my resources to bear on the chase. I had used skill and caution--nobody but myself knew that patience I had always expended on my careful preparations for my sport."
But is there a triumph? A resolution? And if so, what is it? I'll let you determine for yourself. I see glimpses here and there, faint hints maybe (mainly weaved in through references and quotations from classical literature), but few signposts. Aleck Maury has all the marks of a genuine autobiography. Professor Maury walks off the page and you feel like you really know this man. He's one of those genuine literary characters that leaves a lasting impression. His life is exemplary, both in qualities to imitate and others to avoid. Gordon no doubt knew (and incorporated in other works) the flaws of Aleck Maury--individualism, lack of public virtue and just dealings, rootlessness, selfishness, but she gives little attention to these faults. All things considered, it may be that the "primal plot," or the "current, in its depths" (of which Gordon would later write) is left in question.
October 22, 2022
Finding meaning in life is the eternal quest. This biography pits materialism and being a hostage to fortune to simpler more natural pursuits. Loved this book about a simple man in a world driven by prosperity at all costs.
June 19, 2023
This story is definitely amazing
May 6, 2016
Out of print now? A nice romance about a man's love for ... fishing. I liked it.
Displaying 1 - 4 of 4 reviews