E.B. White | Uncommon Sense
“Democracy is the recurrent suspicion that more than half of the people are right more than half of the time.” —E.B. White (July 11, 1899–October 1, 1985) This celebrated writer and longtime Mainer lived through some of the nation’s most tumultuous times—the Great Depression and two world wars, not to mention the Cold War and […]
By Yankee Magazine|Aug 19 2020|
E.B. White
Photo Credit: Courtesy of White Literary LLCPhoto Credit : Courtesy of White Literary LLC
“Democracy is the recurrent suspicion that more than half of the people are right more than half of the time.”
—E.B. White (July 11, 1899–October 1, 1985)
This celebrated writer and longtime Mainer lived through some of the nation’s most tumultuous times—the Great Depression and two world wars, not to mention the Cold War and Watergate—yet held a deep, almost joyous faith in its founding principles of freedom and democracy. In 2019 his granddaughter, Martha White, collected more than 50 of White’s essays, letters, and poems into a book called On Democracy; published by HarperCollins, it is now out in paperback.
I have been savoring “On Democracy” for about two weeks now, slowing down the consumption to prolong the delight in its digestion. In addition to each individual piece being nearly pitch perfect, its structure, casting crumbs from 1928 through 1976, leading us on an amazing linear, historical journey, this book, even more than “One Man’s Meat”, also has shown me the growth and maturation of an incredible intellect and the development of the skills of one of our great essayists. A huge thank you to you at Yankee for shining this spotlight on a such a deserving work.