Wyndham Lewis, a controversial and often polarizing figure, carved a niche in both the literary and art worlds with his sharp wit and incisive commentary on modern society. His works, encompassing short stories, novels, and critical essays, reflect his complex views on art, politics, and human nature. This article delves into the richness of Lewis's literary endeavors, examining the themes, styles, and influences that permeate his work.

Wyndham Lewis: The Elitist with a Painter's Eye

Lewis began his literary journey with short stories, viewing them as reflections of the themes he explored in his painting. Despite his dismissive attitude towards the short story genre, these works encapsulate the full spectrum of his artistic and philosophical concerns. Literary critic E. W. F. Tomlin observed that Lewis's collection, The Wild Body, contained "almost the whole of Lewis," indicating that his stories were as much about him as they were about his fictional characters. Lewis's fascination with the divided self—mind versus body, intent versus outcome—is a recurring theme in his satire.

His prose is marked by structural clarity and vivid, painterly descriptions. The sharpness of his metaphors and the discordant edge of his diction create memorable images, such as the "slut of a room, dribbling at the sink" from "Unlucky for Pringle" or the athletic Frenchwoman with "crocket-like floral postiches" in "Some Innkeepers and Bestre." His stories often capture the small obsessions that dominate human life, as seen through the lens of his artistic theories.

The Wild Body and the Satirical Lens

The Wild Body, Lewis's first collection of stories, evolved from a mere travelogue into a complex portrayal of human absurdity. It echoes Henri Bergson's notion of humanity as "a thing behaving like a person." Lewis's characters, from the inhabitants of the Pension Beau Séjour to the domineering Breton innkeeper, embody mechanical repetition and comic pathos. They are often depicted as animals, highlighting the primitive instincts that drive human behavior.

The stories in The Wild Body critique modern mechanization and standardization, depicting humanity as a "herd" and likening individuals to machines. His characters are caught in repetitive, meaningless patterns, representing the absurdity of existence. This theme is evident in his narrative descriptions, such as a Frenchman's eyes in "Bestre" that appear as "metal discs," or a shopkeeper in Rotting Hill likened to "a wound-up toy."

The Art of Place and Humanity

Lewis's exploration of place is intricately tied to his view of the human condition. The foreign settings of The Wild Body emphasize the narrator's alienation, while the domestic scenes in Rotting Hill reflect post-war decay. Stories like "Unlucky for Pringle" and "The Rot" in Rotting Hill depict environments that mirror the characters' inner turmoil and the societal disintegration they inhabit.

Lewis's later work, Rotting Hill, a political treatise on post-World War II London, connects physical decay with social and political degeneration. Through interactions with various characters, Lewis critiques socialism, the Labour Party, and communism, often using his literary persona to voice his own conservative views.

Artists and Society: A Bitter Reflection

Lewis frequently addressed the plight of the artist in modern society, focusing on hostile environments and the challenges of maintaining artistic integrity. His stories reveal the compromises artists make for survival, as seen in "Doppelganger" and "The Cornac and His Wife." In these works, Lewis critiques the superficial adulation of artists and the societal pressures that distort genuine creativity.

His portrayal of women as traps for creative men aligns with his Nietzschean views. Stories like "The Code of a Herdsman" and "Junior" depict women as manipulators of men, reinforcing traditional gender roles and the struggle for creative...