Elizabeth Hardwick
Elizabeth Hardwick
Full Name and Common Aliases
Elizabeth Jane Hardwick was an American literary critic, poet, novelist, and essayist. She is often referred to as Liz.
Birth and Death Dates
Elizabeth Hardwick was born on June 27, 1916, in Lexington, Kentucky, USA. She passed away on November 2, 2007, at the age of 91, in New York City.
Nationality and Profession(s)
Hardwick was an American by nationality, and her profession spanned multiple fields including literature, criticism, poetry, novel writing, and essay writing. Her contributions to literary theory and criticism are particularly notable.
Early Life and Background
Elizabeth Hardwick grew up in a family that valued education highly. Her father was a professor at the University of Kentucky, which instilled in her an appreciation for learning from an early age. She developed a passion for reading and writing during her childhood and teenage years, influences that would shape her future career.
Major Accomplishments
Elizabeth Hardwick's work had a significant impact on American literary circles. Her notable accomplishments include:
Co-founding the influential literary magazine The Paris Review in 1953 with Mary McCarthy and Robert Giroux.
Serving as the magazine's first fiction editor, where she worked closely with writers such as James Baldwin, Truman Capote, and Ernest Hemingway.
Writing critically acclaimed works including her memoir Bartleby in Manhattan, a collection of essays that reflect on modern life in New York City.Notable Works or Actions
Elizabeth Hardwick's contributions to literature extend beyond her role at The Paris Review. Some of her notable works include:
Spectacular Difference: The Fantastic Art of Jean-Honoré Fragonard, a study of 18th-century French art.
Bartleby in Manhattan, as mentioned earlier, is a seminal work that offers insights into the world of New York City during the mid-20th century.
Her essays on various literary and cultural topics showcase her erudition and intellectual curiosity.
Impact and Legacy
Elizabeth Hardwick's influence on American literature is profound. She helped shape the literary landscape through her work at The Paris Review, and her writing continues to be studied and admired for its thought-provoking nature.
Why They Are Widely Quoted or Remembered
Hardwick's lasting impact can be attributed to several factors:
Her sharp insights into literature, culture, and society continue to resonate with readers.
Her contributions to the development of The Paris Review, a journal that has become synonymous with literary excellence, are invaluable.
* The breadth and depth of her writing demonstrate her intellectual curiosity and passion for understanding the world around us.
Elizabeth Hardwick's legacy serves as a testament to the power of dedication, intellect, and creativity. Her contributions to literature continue to inspire readers and writers alike, making her one of the most enduring figures in American literary history.
Quotes by Elizabeth Hardwick
Elizabeth Hardwick's insights on:
Nature should have been pleased to have made this age miserable, without making it also ridiculous.
Farewell to Kentucky and our agreeable vices. We go to bed early, but because of whiskey seldom with a clear head. We are fond of string beans and thin slices of salty ham. When I left home my brother said: It will be wonderful if you make a success of life, then you can follow the races. Farewell.
In art it is not often possible to make direct use of your dreams of tomorrow and your excuses for yesterday.
Sometimes one has the feeling of an almost supernatural character to the shifts and changes in our national mood. They appear beyond the prose of cause and effect...
A murder is a challenge, an embarrassment, to the inner life of the dead one, almost a dishonor, like other violent events that may come upon you without warning. It is not certain that you may not have in some careless or driven way chosen to put yourself in the path of a murderer.
Some men define themselves by women although they appear to believe it is quite the opposite; to believe that it is she, rather than themselves, who is being filed away, tagged, named at last like a quivering cell under a microscope.
Writing is not “the establishment of a professional reputation” as if one were a doctor or lawyer; it is not properly in the sentence with creation of a family and the purchase of a home.
Now, my novel begins. No, now I begin my novel – and yet I cannot decide whether to call myself I or she.
The stain of place hangs on not as a birthright but as a sort of artifice, a bit of cosmetic.