Criticism > Contemporary Literary Criticism > Cozzens, James Gould (Vol. 92) - Irving Malin (essay date Winter 1981)

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Irving Malin (essay date Winter 1981)

SOURCE: "The Education of Francis Ellery," in John O'Hara Journal, Vol. 4, No. 2, Winter, 1981, pp. 32-8.

[Malin is an educator and critic whose books include William Faulkner: An Interpretation (1957) and Isaac Bashevis Singer (1972). In the following essay, he examines the character development of Francis Ellery in Ask Me Tomorrow.]

In Just Representations, a James Gould Cozzens reader, edited by Matthew J. Bruccoli, there is only one novel reprinted. This novel is Ask Me Tomorrow, first published in 1940. Bruccoli notes in his introduction that the novel is "uncharacteristically personal, drawing on Cozzens's experiences as a tutor in Europe." The brief description reverberates with meanings. In 1940 Cozzens was thirty-seven; he was able to be ironic toward his young hero, to have a "double view" of him.

My reading of the novel is not the usual kind for a Cozzens...

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1. Introduction
2. Principal Works
3. Criticism
   1. George J. Becker (review date June 1949)
   2. Martin Price (review date Autumn 1957)
   3. Benjamin De Mott (essay date Winter 1957)
   4. Richard G. Stern (review date Winter 1958)
   5. Frederick Bracher (essay date 1959)
   6. The Times Literary Supplement (review date 6 May 1965)
   7. John Brooks (review date 25 August 1968)
   8. John Updike (review date 2 November 1968)
   9. The Times Literary Supplement (review date 30 January 1969)
   10. James A. Epperson (review date 8 December 1978)
   11. Robert Scholes (essay date 1979)
   12. Colin S. Cass (essay date Fall 1981)
   13. Irving Malin (essay date Winter 1981)
   14. Terry Teachout (review date 28 February 1986)
   15. Richard A. Posner (essay date 1988)
4. Further Reading
5. Copyright

1. John Updike