THE CONCEITS OF SHAW.

Auckland Star, Volume LXIV, Issue 85, 11 April 1933, Page 14

THE CONCEITS OF SHAW.

I agree in the main with S. Glading's criticism. Shaw could have stated his case against Shakespeare without comparing the Avon bard's with his (Shaw's) mental capacity. Paradoxically, I agree with Shaw as an anti-Shakespearean. To quote Shaw: "Shakespeare's genius consists in his making other people believe that he is a genius." Most readers take Shakespeare on his face value. And rightly so. It is as an adapter and as a successful plagiarist that Shakespeare won his fame. Shaw's conceit shows in most of what he has written. As a critic he certainly ranks the highest of this or any other period. His Ccltic (being an Irishman) gift of lucidity enables him to throw the strong light of his genius round British institutions. And we can thank him for his courage in this respect. Many critics aver that G.B.S. writes with his tongue in' his cheek. I have just read his "Black Girl in Search of God." If an unknown author had written this rubbish the book would have never been reviewed. After attacking Christianity, and every other "anity," Shaw winds up by tolling the world that the Bible is one of the few books worth reading. Such buffoonery is tolerated because Shaw's success as a craftsman destroys criticism, and his brilliancy has gained for him a world-wide clientele. Shaw's characters are pure puppets—Shavian creations. Dickens' men and women live—because they have lived. And we have them in the flesh still. It is 100 years since Dickens published his first sketch. And a history of English literature for that period, with Dickens left out, would be tantamount to presenting "Hamlet" with the character of Hamlet left out. I have found more inspiration in one page of Dickens than in all the Shavian literature I have read. Shaw is probably the greatest intellectual force of his day. But in the last analysis we have a greater heritage in Dickens. HERBERT MULVIHILL.