A Modern Instance

William Dean Howells (1837-1920) ranks as one of America's most important authors. Ever heard of him? I hadn't either until I stumbled over his name several years ago, back when I was reading Frank Norris and Theodore Dreiser. Howells was a proponent and practitioner of realism in literature, a concept that meshed pretty well with novels written by Norris and Dreiser. Since I enjoyed "The Octopus," "McTeague," "Sister Carrie," and "An American Tragedy" so much, I just knew I needed to visit a few of Howells's novels at some point. That time is now. I read two of them, this one and "A Foregone Conclusion". I'm not overly impressed with either one of them. I know, I know...I probably need to read "The Rise of Silas Lapham" to get the full William Dean Howells effect. I just don't want to right now. I can say, after reading these two books, that I understand why Howells is such an obscure figure in American literature. He might practice the sort of realism that fueled many of the novels from Norris and Dreiser, but his failure to focus on the truly sordid details of American life cost him a lasting reputation with a popular audience. "A Modern Instance," written in 1882, studies in minute detail the relationship between Bartley Hubbard and Marcia Gaylord. The story kicks off in Equity, Maine when Hubbard sweeps into town to run the local newspaper. He's quite the dandy, college educated and sharp as a tack, but he lacks morals. Marcia Gaylord is the daughter of the town lawyer, a very beautiful girl who could probably marry anyone she wanted. Of course, she picks the dashing Bartley. The two hit if off well, and Marcia's father likes the young man enough to help him pursue a legal career. Then tragedy strikes in the form of an incident involving Bartley, a young woman, and a young man who works at the newspaper. No one dies, fortunately, but the event sours Hubbard's reputation with Marcia's father. Bartley soon heads for Boston in search of a new start, and Marcia leaves her family to follow him. The two marry, rent a place in Beantown, and Bartley takes a "temporary" position as a big city journalist until he can get his law career on track. It soon becomes clear that Bartley Hubbard will most likely never advance beyond a career in journalism. Nor will his morals improve. As for Marcia, her devotion to Bartley blinds her to the man's flaws. Even an incident involving Hubbard, alcohol, and the police fail to dislodge her loyalty to her man. His failure to practice law causes tempers to flare, but these emotions soon fade away into semi-blissful domesticity. Anytime Marcia gets angry with her husband, she quickly caves in and lets Bartley do what he wants. This behavior infuriates Ben Halleck, a morose, wealthy young man who went to college with Bartley. He knows his old friend's failings, knows he will never change, but he soon discovers that he loves Marcia. It is this love, and the guilt he has for loving another man's wife, that continually

One can tell this is a book first published in 1882, but nevertheless I found it totally readable, and was quite caught up in the story. If you have to like the characters in a novel, then this book might not be for you. I usually prefer to have some admirable characters in a book, but neither the heroine nor the male lead character will excite your admiration. Laid in Equity, a fictional town in Maine, and in Boston in the 1870s, the account of how Marcia Gaylord throws herself at the deficient Bartley Hubbard and they enter into a marriage one suspects will not work, the account is of abiding interest, with many aspects which if viewed from the standpoint of the novel's date of composition are fraught with importance and even today provoke thoughtful consideration. I personally enjoyed this book more than The Rise of Silas Lapham, and you might too.

Since reading this novel first some six years ago, I?ve always felt that it has one of the most unattractive titles of any book I know. On re-reading it, I still think so. This should not put readers off, however, because behind that bland, unimaginative moniker, which reflected some long-since faded thoughts by the author, you will find a fascinating study of divorce in the 19th century, in a society that condemned it. Fifty years ago I can remember my own mother whispering the word ?divorced? when speaking about a couple no longer together?it was too shameful to say out loud. Yeah, well, times have changed. But what about the mid-1870s ? Howells carefully draws the picture in his usual, nuanced style. A handsome, but shallow youth, Bartley Hubbard, flirts with Marcia Gaylord in a small Maine town. We can see their union is ill-fated right from the start, her family opposes it (he seems to have no relatives), but Marcia burns for Bartley. They marry surreptitiously and head for Boston where Bartley gets a foothold in the newspaper world. He mouths idealistic pap like ?I hope I shall never do anything unworthy of your idea.? but basically he has no moral framework in his character; he?s selfish, facile, opportunistic, and self-indulgent. Marcia, though beautiful, is ignorant, self-centered, and very jealous. Howells emphasizes their lack of religion as a key to their deficiencies. As the marriage falls apart, we turn more and more to other characters, all in the higher levels of Boston society, who have the moral fiber that the Hubbards do not. Ben Halleck, Bartley's ex-friend, wrestles with his conscience over his secret love for Marcia as he sees her suffer over Bartley?s abandonment of her. In very 19th century style, he worships her "as a woman whose constancy to her mistake" makes her sacred. He suppresses all his desires, even disappearing to Uruguay for two years, but merely thinking of another man?s wife, albeit a desperately unhappy one, is utterly beyond the pale. He castigates himself unmercifully and winds up a penitent minister. But A MODERN INSTANCE is not a simple melodrama---it is a complex mix of personalities. There are no simple answers---isn?t it easy to be upright when you are financially secure ?---and the end is indefinite. Though Hubbard is used as an example of moral decay, a man without firm principles and moral rectitude, he is still the most vivid, most realistic character. He is a likeable scamp, no matter how he is villified by the Boston society people. The values that people live by in Boston circa 1875 are far from those we know today. They agonize about things that would not give us much pause. They emote on ?civilization? because they, like Howells, could not imagine the horrors of the 20th century. Thus, in a sense, Howells? novel is passé. Yet, his conversations, his picture of relationships, his description of the times, and even of nature are excellent. For example the vivid loggin

Howell's novel follows the doomed marriage of jealous, insecure Marcia Gaylord and immoral--but somehow quite likeable--Bartley Hubbard. The story is very readable, and only seems to bog down in the last section of the book. The characters are well drawn, and Howell captures the changing character of American society towards the end of the nineteenth-century. There are no great moments of drama--rather this novel quietly makes its points. Cady's excellent introduction is best saved until after reading the book, so as to not spoil the plot. A great read for lovers of Wharton or Dreiser, or for anyone interested in American culture.