“ It is permissible to present men as monsters if we wish to make the reader jump ”
G. K. Chesterton, Heretics (1905). copy citation
| Author | G. K. Chesterton |
|---|---|
| Source | Heretics |
| Topic | present monster |
| Date | 1905 |
| Language | English |
| Reference | |
| Note | |
| Weblink | http://www.gutenberg.org/files/470/470-h/470-h.htm |
Context
“They did not profess to mirror the mind of a dog-headed man, to share his tenderest secrets, or mount with his most celestial musings. They did not write novels about the semi-canine creature, attributing to him all the oldest morbidities and all the newest fads. It is permissible to present men as monsters if we wish to make the reader jump; and to make anybody jump is always a Christian act. But it is not permissible to present men as regarding themselves as monsters, or as making themselves jump. To summarize, our slum fiction is quite defensible as aesthetic fiction;”
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