Hall Caine Criticism
Hall Caine (1853-1931), known formally as Thomas Henry Hall Caine, was a prominent English novelist, autobiographer, critic, and playwright. Once a celebrated figure in early-twentieth-century English literature, Caine's novels were known for their melodramatic and moralistic tones, aiming to uphold strict moral standards he believed were absent in contemporary society. Despite his past popularity, Caine's works, often dismissed as didactic and sensational, have largely faded from modern literary discourse.
Caine was born in Runcorn, Cheshire, and spent much of his childhood on the Isle of Man, which later became a central setting in his fiction. Initially trained in architecture, Caine shifted to literature after forming a significant friendship with poet Dante Gabriel Rossetti, which he documented in his memoir, Recollections of Dante Gabriel Rossetti. His first novel, A Shadow of a Crime, was serialized in the Liverpool Mercury in 1885. Caine's breakthrough came with The Deemster in 1887, establishing him as a notable cultural figure. His career also included a stint as a Liberal member of Parliament and contributions to World War I efforts, for which he was knighted.
Caine's major works, characterized by strong moral themes and dramatic plots, often set on the Isle of Man, include The Christian and The Deemster. His most ambitious work, The Eternal City, achieved unprecedented commercial success and influenced early cinema. Despite these achievements, Caine's literary style, marked by excessive emotionalism and simplistic characterizations, has been criticized and largely dismissed by modern critics. According to Malcolm Elwin, Caine's works suffer from "morbid gloom, sentimentality, and sanctimony," while William Morton Payne critiques the emotionalism and problematic depictions of love in his novels. Nonetheless, his understanding of popular literary tastes, as discussed by P. Morton Shand, contributed to his wide readership during his lifetime.
Contents
- Principal Works
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Essays
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A review of My Story
(summary)
In the following review, the critic offers a favorable assessment of Caine's autobiography, noting that the heart of the book is an intimate story of Rossetti's life, despite the wide discussion focused on Caine's income at the beginning of his career.
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A review of The Woman Thou Gavest Me
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In the excerpt below, Payne derides Caine's novels as “slimy emotionalism, spiced as it is with bits of description as salacious as he dares to make them.” He criticizes the excessive length of Caine's novel, arguing that it panders to crude emotionalism and presents a problematic view of marriage and love, ultimately questioning the literary taste of its audience.
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Sir Hall Caine and the Greatest Public
(summary)
In the following essay, Shand discusses the defining characteristics of Caine's fiction, exploring the wider appeal of popular novels and the modifications of literary conventions necessary to attract a growing reading public.
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Sir Hall Caine
(summary)
In the following essay, Steuart reminisces about his relationship with Caine and assesses the author's place in contemporary English literature.
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Chapter Nine Best Sellers: Hall Caine and Others
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In the following excerpt, Elwin derides Caine's work for its “morbid gloom, sentimentality, and sanctimony.”
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The Process of Literary Capital in the 1890's: Caine, Corelli, and Bennett
(summary)
In the following essay, Feltes places Caine within the literary context of early twentieth-century English romance authors.
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A review of My Story
(summary)
- Further Reading