> Well,
> 
> just got back from holidays to see my mailbox inundated by that ol' REH
> & racism thread. I am certainly not going to indulge in that same old
> discussion again. As I had once written on the subject, one problem in
> this discussion is that REH's most offensive racial remarks have not
> been published, being either found in unpublished letters or expurgated
> from the published versions.
> So here follows a nauseating series of racist comments from
> Two-Gun-Bob. If you still think REH was not a racist after that, nothing
> will convince you.
> 
> Patrice


Patrice,

You have shown unpublished evidence of which I was not aware.  Racism is
quite evident in the samples, there's no doubt.

One thing I've noticed is that REH seemed to "play to" what he perceived to
be the philosophies of his correspondents.  His highly contradictory
comments about Shakespeare seem to bear this out, in which he alternately
reviled and then praised the Bard, apparently dependent upon with whom he
was discussing him.

I have to wonder how much of that is evident here, particularly with HPL.
Stil no excuse, though.

I note that he had a negative crack or to for Lithuanians and other
Europeans, as I noted he'd also done in stories from time to time.  It seems
like he was largely Nordic and Celtic-centric, for sure.

--Mike

Reply via email to