Feb 3 17:21
3 mos ago
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English term
inflict a book
Non-PRO
English
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Literary Work
Havng started reading The Spy by James Fenimore Cooper I came across this in the Author's introduction:
"As the only atonement in his power, he determined to inflict a second book, whose subject should admit of no cavil, not only on the world, but on himself."
I was perplexed by this unusual combination: inflict a book (in the meaning of forcing someone to experience something very unpleasant). Furthermore, I'm not sure about the second part of the sentence, i.e. "a ..book, whose subject should admit of no cavil, not only ON the world, but ON himself." Is it in the sense that the author doesn't want to be reproached by the world and by himself? OK, this should be regarded as a second question, I guess. Let's deal with 'inflict a book' first.
"As the only atonement in his power, he determined to inflict a second book, whose subject should admit of no cavil, not only on the world, but on himself."
I was perplexed by this unusual combination: inflict a book (in the meaning of forcing someone to experience something very unpleasant). Furthermore, I'm not sure about the second part of the sentence, i.e. "a ..book, whose subject should admit of no cavil, not only ON the world, but ON himself." Is it in the sense that the author doesn't want to be reproached by the world and by himself? OK, this should be regarded as a second question, I guess. Let's deal with 'inflict a book' first.
Responses
-2
2 days 5 hrs
English term (edited):
he determined to inflict a second book
Selected
he decided a throw a second book of his own at the reading public
IOW after his first book was criticized, he refused to quit and decided to make himself again a "nuisance" and foist a second book on the reading public.
I don't think it's got to do with any kind of "self-perception" of low quality, I understand it more as
"you won't get rid of me, here is a second book of mine".
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Note added at 8 days (2024-02-11 22:41:29 GMT) Post-grading
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As the only atonement in my power for leaving my answer unfinished, here is the second part:
from the AUTHOR’S INTRODUCTION to "The Spy":
Many years later, circumstances, which it is unnecessary to relate, and of an entirely adventitious nature, induced the writer to publish a novel, which proved to be, what he little foresaw at the time, the first of a tolerably long series. The same adventitious causes which gave birth to the book determined its scene and its general character. ***The former was laid in a foreign country; and the latter embraced a crude effort to describe foreign manners***. When this tale was published, ***it became matter of reproach among the author’s friends***, that he, ***an American in heart as in birth, should give to the world a work which aided perhaps, in some slight degree, to feed the imaginations of the young and unpracticed among his own countrymen, by pictures drawn from a state of society so different from that to which he belonged***. The writer, while he knew how much of what he had done was purely accidental, felt the reproach to be one that, in a measure, was just. As the only atonement in his power, he determined to inflict a second book, whose subject should admit of no cavil, not only on the world, but on himself. He chose patriotism for his theme; and to those who read this introduction and the book itself, it is scarcely necessary to add, that he took the hero of the anecdote just related as the best illustration of his subject.
IOW
The "sin" that was "atoned" by writing the second book ("The Spy") was that his first book ("Precaution") was "laid in a foreign country; and embraced a crude effort to describe foreign manners ... by pictures drawn from a state of society so different from that to which he belonged."
To the point that, as his first book was published anonymously, "its author was thought by many to be an Englishman",
His "atonement" for what he has done wrong with his first book was to be to write a second book choosing a subject to which none of these criticisms could be levied, not by anyone in the word, nor by the author himself. (="whose subject should admit of no cavil, not only on the world, but on himself.")
Which is more or less what's been already said in the introduction about the author of the book (in the version available on www.gutenberg.org ):
“I believe I could write a better story myself!” With these words, since become famous, James Fenimore Cooper laid aside the English novel which he was reading aloud to his wife. A few days later he submitted several pages of manuscript for her approval, and then settled down to the task of making good his boast. In November, 1820, he gave the public a novel in two volumes, entitled Precaution. But it was published anonymously, and dealt with English society in so much the same way as the average British novel of the time that its author was thought by many to be an Englishman. It had no originality and no real merit of any kind. Yet it was the means of inciting Cooper to another attempt. And this second novel made him famous.
When Precaution appeared, some of Cooper’s friends protested against his weak dependence on British models. Their arguments stirred his patriotism, and he determined to write another novel, using thoroughly American material.
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/9845/9845-h/9845-h.htm
I don't think it's got to do with any kind of "self-perception" of low quality, I understand it more as
"you won't get rid of me, here is a second book of mine".
--------------------------------------------------
Note added at 8 days (2024-02-11 22:41:29 GMT) Post-grading
--------------------------------------------------
As the only atonement in my power for leaving my answer unfinished, here is the second part:
from the AUTHOR’S INTRODUCTION to "The Spy":
Many years later, circumstances, which it is unnecessary to relate, and of an entirely adventitious nature, induced the writer to publish a novel, which proved to be, what he little foresaw at the time, the first of a tolerably long series. The same adventitious causes which gave birth to the book determined its scene and its general character. ***The former was laid in a foreign country; and the latter embraced a crude effort to describe foreign manners***. When this tale was published, ***it became matter of reproach among the author’s friends***, that he, ***an American in heart as in birth, should give to the world a work which aided perhaps, in some slight degree, to feed the imaginations of the young and unpracticed among his own countrymen, by pictures drawn from a state of society so different from that to which he belonged***. The writer, while he knew how much of what he had done was purely accidental, felt the reproach to be one that, in a measure, was just. As the only atonement in his power, he determined to inflict a second book, whose subject should admit of no cavil, not only on the world, but on himself. He chose patriotism for his theme; and to those who read this introduction and the book itself, it is scarcely necessary to add, that he took the hero of the anecdote just related as the best illustration of his subject.
IOW
The "sin" that was "atoned" by writing the second book ("The Spy") was that his first book ("Precaution") was "laid in a foreign country; and embraced a crude effort to describe foreign manners ... by pictures drawn from a state of society so different from that to which he belonged."
To the point that, as his first book was published anonymously, "its author was thought by many to be an Englishman",
His "atonement" for what he has done wrong with his first book was to be to write a second book choosing a subject to which none of these criticisms could be levied, not by anyone in the word, nor by the author himself. (="whose subject should admit of no cavil, not only on the world, but on himself.")
Which is more or less what's been already said in the introduction about the author of the book (in the version available on www.gutenberg.org ):
“I believe I could write a better story myself!” With these words, since become famous, James Fenimore Cooper laid aside the English novel which he was reading aloud to his wife. A few days later he submitted several pages of manuscript for her approval, and then settled down to the task of making good his boast. In November, 1820, he gave the public a novel in two volumes, entitled Precaution. But it was published anonymously, and dealt with English society in so much the same way as the average British novel of the time that its author was thought by many to be an Englishman. It had no originality and no real merit of any kind. Yet it was the means of inciting Cooper to another attempt. And this second novel made him famous.
When Precaution appeared, some of Cooper’s friends protested against his weak dependence on British models. Their arguments stirred his patriotism, and he determined to write another novel, using thoroughly American material.
https://www.gutenberg.org/files/9845/9845-h/9845-h.htm
Peer comment(s):
| disagree |
philgoddard
: This is incorrect and ungrammatical. And his first book wasn't criticised - you repeated Robert's correct assertion in the discussion entries that the writer is being ironic and self-deprecating.
6 hrs
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His first book WAS criticized for being "unamerican" (not in the McCarthy's sense, but for being "alien" to the real-life experience of an average American) - **easy to check** // BTW ever thought of asking yourself what this "atonement" could be about?
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| disagree |
Yvonne Gallagher
: "throw" does not mean "inflict". Robert already explained this. Just a "self-disparaging" humorous comment
15 hrs
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Semantics ... More important: "Just a 'self-disparaging' humorous comment" is just a small part in explaining the intended meaning of the whole sentence. In my SOP words are only of interest as parts of what a whole sentence is supposed to mean.
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4 KudoZ points awarded for this answer.
Comment: "Thank you Daryo. Yes, there were some better suggestions, but all they haven't gone any further than comments and discussions. So I decided to inflict the points on you Daryo. If not for the best suggested answer, then for bravery. "
Discussion
You can e-mail me directly to [email protected]. Thak you again.
It wasn't part of your question, but "whose subject should admit of no cavil, not only on the world, but on himself" needs also to be deciphered, to make sense of the whole sentence.
For that you need to first clarify references to preceding text, like this mysterious "atonement", and then what looks perplexing suddenly becomes self-evident ...
"Atonement" for what "sin"? Gone searching in that direction, found few interesting additional elements, and then some more ...
Short version: this translation "…the author decided to print another book whose subject would not be condemned not only by the world, but by (the author) himself." is in fact very close to the mark. Only "condemned" is a bit too strong, more like "complained about / criticized".
I look forward to your further comments!
Edited to say, ‘inflicted’ imo has to refer to ‘on the world’ and ‘on himself’; I can’t see anything else making any sense grammatically.
This writer is only being self-deprecating / ironic. Alternatively, you could see it also as a convoluted way of bragging about himself. A kind of "praising with feint criticism" as the mirror method of "damning with faint praise"?
As for "As the only atonement in his power, he determined to inflict a second book, whose subject should admit of no cavil, not only on the world, but on himself." your need more of the source text to make sense of it.