If : The Untold Story of Kipling's American Years

A unique exploration of the life and work of Rudyard Kipling in Gilded Age America, from a celebrated scholar of American literatureAt the turn of the twentieth century, Rudyard Kipling towered over not just English literature, but the entire literary world. At the height of his fame in 1907, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature, becoming its youngest winner. His influence on figures—including the likes of Freud and William James—was vast and profound. But in recent decades Kipling’s reputation has suffered a strange eclipse. Though his body of work still looms large, and his monumental poem “If—” is quoted and referenced by politicians, athletes, and professors, he himself is treated with profound unease as a man on the wrong side of history. In If, scholar Christopher Benfey brings this fascinating writer to life and, for the first time, gives full attention to his intense engagement with the United States—a rarely discussed but critical piece of evidence in our understanding of this man and his enduring legacy.Benfey traces the writer’s deep involvement with America over one crucial decade, from 1889 to 1899, when he lived for four years in Brattleboro, Vermont, and sought deliberately to turn himself into a specifically American writer. It was his most prodigious and creative period, as well as his happiest, during which he wrote The Jungle Book and Captains Courageous. Had a family dispute not forced his departure, Kipling almost certainly would have stayed. Leaving was the hardest thing he ever had to do, Kipling said. “There are only two places in the world where I want to live,” he lamented, “Bombay and Brattleboro. And I can’t live in either.”In this fresh examination of Kipling, Benfey hangs a provocative “what if” over Kipling’s American years and maps the imprint Kipling left on his adopted country as well as the imprint the country left on him. If proves there is relevance and magnificence to be found in Kipling’s work. A New York Times Notable Book of 2019 A unique exploration of the life and work of Rudyard Kipling in Gilded Age America, from a celebrated scholar of American literature At the turn of the twentieth century, Rudyard Kipling towered over not just English literature but the entire literary world. At the height of his fame in 1907, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature, becoming its youngest winner. His influence on major figures—including Freud and William James—was pervasive and profound. But in recent decades Kipling’s reputation has suffered a strange eclipse. Though his body of work still looms large, and his monumental poem “If—” is quoted and referenced by politicians, athletes, and ordinary readers alike, his unabashed imperialist views have come under increased scrutiny. In If , scholar Christopher Benfey brings this fascinating and complex writer to life and, for the first time, gives full attention to Kipling's intense engagement with the United States—a rarely discussed but critical piece of evidence in our understanding of this man and his enduring legacy. Benfey traces the writer’s deep involvement with America over one crucial decade, from 1889 to 1899, when he lived for four years in Brattleboro, Vermont, and sought deliberately to turn himself into a specifically American writer. It was his most prodigious and creative period, as well as his happiest, during which he wrote The Jungle Book and Captains Courageous . Had a family dispute not forced his departure, Kipling almost certainly would have stayed. Leaving was the hardest thing he ever had to do, Kipling said. “There are only two places in the world where I want to live,” he lamented, “Bombay and Brattleboro. And I can’t live in either.” In this fresh examination of Kipling, Benfey hangs a provocative “what if” over Kipling’s American years and maps the imprint Kipling left on his adopted country as well as the imprint the country left on him. If proves there is relevance and magnificence to be found in Kipling’s work. A unique exploration of the life and work of Rudyard Kipling in Gilded Age America, from a celebrated scholar of American literature At the turn of the twentieth century, Rudyard Kipling towered over not just English literature, but the entire literary world. At the height of his fame in 1907, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature, becoming its youngest winner. His influence on figuresincluding the likes of Freud and William Jameswas vast and profound. But in recent decades Kiplings reputation has suffered a strange eclipse. Though his body of work still looms large, and his monumental poem If is quoted and referenced by politicians, athletes, and professors, he himself is treated with profound unease as a man on the wrong side of history. In If, scholar Christopher Benfey brings this fascinating writer to life and, for the first time, gives full attention to his intense engagement with the United Statesa rarely discussed but critical piece of evidence in our understanding of this man and his enduring legacy. Benfey traces the writers deep involvement with America over one crucial decade, from 1889 to 1899, when he lived for four years in Brattleboro, Vermont, and sought deliberately to turn himself into a specifically American writer. It was his most prodigious and creative period, as well as his happiest, during which he wrote The Jungle Book and Captains Courageous. Had a family dispute not forced his departure, Kipling almost certainly would have stayed. Leaving was the hardest thing he ever had to do, Kipling said. There are only two places in the world where I want to live, he lamented, Bombay and Brattleboro. And I cant live in either. In this fresh examination of Kipling, Benfey hangs a provocative what if over Kiplings American years and maps the imprint Kipling left on his adopted country as well as the imprint the country left on him. If proves there is relevance and magnificence to be found in Kiplings work. « Rudyard Kipling once towered over not just English literature, but indeed the entire literary world. In 1907, at just forty-two, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature, becoming its youngest winner and the first in the English language. Today, however, when he is read, if indeed he is read at all, it is regarding the history of colonial India, his birthplace and the setting of some his most famous work, and to a lesser extent England, his ancestral home. But, in fact, Kipling's most prodigious and creative period took place in America, which was also his preferred home. It was here, on the crest of a Vermont hillside overlooking the Connecticut River, that Kipling wrote both The Jungle Book and Captains Courageous. And here where his ascent to fame was most rapid. Almost certainly, he would have stayed in the United States, understanding himself not just to be an American but a particularly American artist, had a family dispute not forced his departure in 1896. Steeped in the history of the Gilded Age, Christopher Benfey brings to life in fresh revelatory detail American Kipling, tracing a great but today deeply unfashionable writer's intense personal, political, and artistic involvement with the United States. He offers an overdue reminder of Kipling's extraordinary influence in his own lifetime, as well as a compelling portrait of the American artists and writers he both influenced and was influence by, including William James and, in particular, Mark Twain--who Kipling sought out specifically as kindred spirit when he first arrived, and before long had eclipsed in literary fame and critical estimation. Intertwining biography, criticism, and history, IF restores judiciously a true story of great American artistry. »-- quatrième de couverture "Rudyard Kipling once towered over not just English literature, but indeed the entire literary world. In 1907, at just forty-two, he was awarded the Nobel Prize for Literature, becoming its youngest winner and the first in the English language. Today, however, when he is read, if indeed he is read at all, it is regarding the history of colonial India, his birthplace and the setting of some his most famous work, and to a lesser extent England, his ancestral home. But, in fact, Kipling's most prodigious and creative period took place in America, which was also his preferred home. It was here, on the crest of a Vermont hillside overlooking the Connecticut River, that Kipling wrote both The Jungle Book and Captains Courageous. And here where his ascent to fame was most rapid. Almost certainly, he would have stayed in the United States, understanding himself not just to be an American but a particularly American artist, had a family dispute not forced his departure in 1896. Steeped in the history of the Gilded Age, Christopher Benfey brings to life in fresh revelatory detail American Kipling, tracing a great but today deeply unfashionable writer's intense personal, political, and artistic involvement with the United States. He offers an overdue reminder of Kipling's extraordinary influence in his own lifetime, as well as a compelling portrait of the American artists and writers he both influenced and was influence by, including William James and, in particular, Mark Twain -- who Kipling sought out specifically as kindred spirit when he first arrived, and before long had eclipsed in literary fame and critical estimation. Intertwining biography, criticism, and history, IF restores judiciously a true story of great American artistry."-- Provided by publisher Kipling once towered over the entire literary world. Few realize that Kipling's most prodigious and creative period took place in America, which was also his preferred home. Benfey brings to life in fresh revelatory detail American Kipling, from 1889 to 1899, and especially his four years living in Brattleboro, Vermont. He traces the writer's intense personal, political, and artistic involvement with the United States, mapping the imprint he left on his adopted country as well as the impresion the country left on Kipling. -- adapted from jacket