“ANATOLE FRANCE"

Poverty Bay Herald, Volume LII, Issue 17155, 4 October 1926, Page 5

“ANATOLE FRANCE"

AN INTERESTING LECTURE

A large arid appreciative audience attended/ the Study and Discussion Society’s meeting on Thursday evening, when ALr. G. I>. Brown gave an abld address on “ Anatole France.” The lecturer opened the subject by deploring the fact that British people generally had a very scant knowledge of foreign authors, although a great deal of the. literature of the present day was largely influenced by European thought, as expressed by the leading French and Russian writers, foremost among whom was. Anatole France. For the first dO years, of his life, although prominent- a.- a* man of letters, he did not create any great impression in Franco outside literary circles. It was not till the Dreyfus trial had forced him to take sides definitely on the side of justice that his ability and philosophy had been appreciated by the people as a whole. From that time he had developed naturally and inevitably towards the radical arid socialist school of thought, and became the most powerful figure in the socialist movement. Anatole France was the lineal descendant of Voltaire and Renan, and his anti-clerical writings were banned by the church. Extracts were read from “ Penguin Island,” illustrating the ironical method in which France deal with the shams and hypocrisy of religion and social life. One of In'sgreatest attractions lay in t,ho delicate irony that permeated all his work. His ?cal in attacking all abuses, no matter how firmly they .were rooted in tho pride and prejudice of the day, was fearless. Without faith in God, or idealism, he was the apostle of sincerity, sympathy, and toleration for the weaknesses of humanity. This was demonstrated by passages from “ Le Crime tie SylvestreBonnard,'’ “ Thais,” “ Crainqueville,” and *• f.n Rotisserie do la Roino Podanfjuo.”

A thinker far in advance of his (lav, an author vastly superior to Ihe multi tiulf- of writers, and a philosopher seeing deep into the heart, of things, 'Mon sieur France directed our glance to the future.

rii° points marie by (lie lecturer were t.'iknn up by many of those present, and keen opposition was shown to certain phases of France’s philosophy.