Prejudices, First Series (Annotated)

Enriched Edition. Satirical Essays on American Culture, Politics, and Modern Literary CriticismBy H. L. Mencken
Listen with Sir Michael Caine™ and 1,000+ voices
Length7h 23m

About this audiobook

Prejudices, First Series gathers H. L. Mencken's sharply polemical essays on literature, culture, politics, and the American temper, displaying the mordant wit that made him one of the early twentieth century's most formidable critics. Written in a brisk, aphoristic, and combative prose, the volume attacks genteel pieties, provincial moralism, and critical complacency, while situating modern American letters against European standards and the emerging modernist revolt. Mencken, the Baltimore journalist, editor, and essayist, wrote from a lifelong suspicion of orthodoxy and mass opinion. His work at The Smart Set and later The American Mercury placed him at the center of debates over realism, free expression, and cultural authority. His German-American background, journalistic discipline, and admiration for Nietzschean skepticism all inform the book's impatience with sentimentality and democratic cant. This volume is recommended for readers interested in American literary criticism at its most provocative and stylistically vigorous. Though some judgments are deliberately abrasive and historically dated, Prejudices, First Series remains indispensable for understanding Mencken's influence on modern criticism, his defense of intellectual independence, and his enduring talent for making dissent rhetorically exhilarating. This enriched edition has been carefully crafted to add value to your reading experience. - A succinct Introduction situates the work's timeless appeal and themes. - The Synopsis outlines the central plot, highlighting key developments without spoiling critical twists. - A detailed Historical Context immerses you in the era's events and influences that shaped the writing. - An Author Biography reveals milestones in the author's life, illuminating the personal insights behind the text. - A thorough Analysis dissects symbols, motifs, and character arcs to unearth underlying meanings. - Reflection questions prompt you to engage personally with the work's messages, connecting them to modern life. - Hand‐picked Memorable Quotes shine a spotlight on moments of literary brilliance.

Audiobook details

Rating★★★★ 4.3 (92)
Includes Goodreads, Amazon
GenreLiterary Classics
Length7 hrs 23 mins
Narrated byListen with 1,000+ voices
FormateBook with Audio
Publish dateNov 20, 2023
LanguageEnglish

Table of contents

1Introduction
226 A Broadway Brandes
2Introduction
23XII. THE GENEALOGY OF ETIQUETTE
3Author Biography
24XIII. THE AMERICAN MAGAZINE
4Historical Context
25XIV. THE ULSTER POLONIUS
5Synopsis (Selection)
26XV. AN UNHEEDED LAW-GIVER
Mostrar todos os capítulos
6I. CRITICISM OF CRITICISM OF CRITICISM
27XVI. THE BLUSHFUL MYSTERY
7II. THE LATE MR. WELLS
281 Sex Hygiene
8III. ARNOLD BENNETT
292 Art and Sex
9IV. THE DEAN
303 A Loss to Romance
10V. PROFESSOR VEBLEN
314 Sex on the Stage
11VI. THE NEW POETRY MOVEMENT
32XVII. GEORGE JEAN NATHAN
12VII. THE HEIR OF MARK TWAIN
33XVIII. PORTRAIT OF AN IMMORTAL SOUL
13VIII. HERMANN SUDERMANN
34XIX. JACK LONDON
14IX. GEORGE ADE
35XX. AMONG THE AVATARS
15X. THE BUTTE BASHKIRTSEFF
36XXI. THREE AMERICAN IMMORTALS
16XI. SIX MEMBERS OF THE INSTITUTE
371 Aristotelean Obsequies
171 The Boudoir Balzac
382 Edgar Allan Poe
182 A Stranger on Parnassus
393 Memorial Service
193 A Merchant of Mush
40Analysis
204 The Last of the Victorians
41Reflection
215 A Bad Novelist
42Memorable Quotes
The American Credo - Interpretation of the National MindH. L. Mencken, George Jean Nathan4h 25m3.9 (125)$1.99 · $0.00
A Book of BurlesquesH. L. Mencken2h 58m3.7 (103)$1.99 · $0.00
Notes on Democracy (Annotated)H. L. Mencken6h 9m4.4 (484)$2 · $0.00
The Philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche (Annotated)H. L. Mencken10h 21m4.0 (631)$2 · $0.00
A Book of Prefaces (Annotated)H. L. Mencken7h 52m3.8 (67)$2 · $0.00
Damn! A Book of CalumnyH. L. Mencken1h 9m3.8 (383)$1 · $0.00
In Defense of WomenH. L. Mencken5h 52m3.8 (877)$2 · $0.00
The American LanguageH. L. Mencken10h 52m4.1 (554)$2 · $0.00
Prejudices, fifth seriesH. L. Mencken7h 16m4.1 (22)$1 · $0.00
Prejudices: EssaysH. L. Mencken7h 15m4.4 (110)$2 · $0.00
The American Credo (Annotated)H. L. Mencken, George Jean Nathan4h 27m3.7 (51)$2 · $0.00
The Philosophy of Friedrich Nietzsche (Summarized Edition)H. L. Mencken5h 3m4.0 (593)$2
Notes on Democracy (Summarized Edition)H. L. Mencken2h 20m4.1 (635)$2
Notes on DemocracyH. L. Mencken5h 52m4.1 (864)$2 · $0.00
In Defense of WomenH. L. Mencken4h 36m3.9 (604)$2 · $0.00
In Defense of WomenH. L. Mencken6h 7m3.7 (875)$1.99 · $0.00
The American Language (Annotated)H. L. Mencken18h 39m4.3 (889)$1.99 · $0.00
H. L. Mencken - Premium CollectionH. L. Mencken, George Jean Nathan51h 20m4.4 (11)$1.99 · $0.00
The American Language: Development of English in the United StatesH. L. Mencken18h 36m4.3 (597)$1.99 · $0.00
Demon CopperheadBarbara Kingsolver21h 3m4.5 (949.4K)$46 · $0.00
To Kill a MockingbirdHarper Lee12h 18m4.5 (7.4M)$29 · $0.00
These Precious DaysAnn Patchett11h 14m4.5 (45.2K)$29 · $0.00
Pride & Prejudice (Annotated)Jane Austen15h 10m4.7 (13.3K)$2 · $0.00
The Jeeves and Wooster Stories: The Complete Collection (33 Books)P. G. Wodehouse21h 57m4.7 (2.8K)$15 · $0.00
The Gulag Archipelago Volume 3Aleksandr I. Solzhenitsyn21h 56m4.7 (8.9K)$46 · $0.00
This Side of Paradise - The Original 1920 Edition (Annotated)F. Scott Fitzgerald11h 30m4.6 (1.6K)$2 · $0.00
The Great Gatsby: Original 1925 Edition (An F. Scott Fitzgerald Classic NovelFrancis Scott Fitzgerald4h 45m4.6 (9.3K)$15 · $0.00
TWELFTH NIGHTWilliam Shakespeare, Sidney Lee16h 38m4.6 (2.8K)$1.99 · $0.00
The Complete Histories / History Plays of William Shakespeare (Annotated)William Shakespeare29h 42m4.6 (2.3K)$1.99 · $0.00
Braving the TruthRachel Held Evans11h 31m4.7 (359)$29 · $0.00
The Old Man and the Sea (Annotated)Ernest Hemingway4h 27m4.6 (1.4K)$2 · $0.00
Henry V (The Play, Historical Background and Analysis of the Character in the Play)William Shakespeare, William Hazlitt8h 50m4.6 (1.3K)$1.99 · $0.00
H. P. LOVECRAFT Ultimate Collection: Novellas, Short Stories, Poetry & Essays (Annotated)H. P. Lovecraft12h 28m4.6 (2.3K)$2 · $0.00
Time RegainedMarcel Proust16h 8m4.5 (10.6K)$1.99 · $0.00
The Mis-Education of the NegroCarter Goodwin Woodson4h 32m4.5 (28.4K)$10 · $0.00
TORAH - Bilingual Edition: English/Hebrew (Annotated)Max Margolis, JPS28h 26m4.6 (1K)$2 · $0.00
Betty Crocker picture cooky bookBetty Crocker, Inc. General Mills2h 13m4.5 (6.5K)$1 · $0.00
The Complete Tales of Beatrix PotterBeatrix Potter3h 36m4.5 (75K)$3 · $0.00
Anne of Green GablesL. M. Montgomery11h 1m4.5 (1.2M)$2.30 · $0.00

You may also like

A Room of One's Own + Three Guineas (2 extended essays) (Annotated)Virginia Woolf13h 15m4.2 (5.4K)$2 · $0.00
How to Be Successful without Hurting Men's FeelingsSarah Cooper1h 39m4.1 (5.7K)$15
The Dilbert PrincipleScott Adams1h 11m4.0 (48.5K)$13 · $0.00
The Collected Plays of George Bernard Shaw (Illustrated) (Annotated)George Bernard Shaw129h 50m4.6 (335)$1.99 · $0.00
Radical Chic and Mau-Mauing the Flak CatchersTom Wolfe4h 6m3.9 (4.4K)$13
Domination and the Arts of ResistanceJames C. Scott10h 44m4.2 (819)$25
When to Rob a BankSteven D. Levitt, Stephen J. Dubner8h 14m3.7 (19.9K)$26 · $0.00
The Complete Satires & Essays of Mark TwainMark Twain24h 14m4.4 (1.1K)$1.99 · $0.00
IntentionsOscar Wilde6h 13m4.1 (993)$2 · $0.00
Dickens by Chesterton (Annotated)G. K. Chesterton16h 53m4.2 (2.5K)$2 · $0.00
Ulysses - The Original 1922 Paris Edition (Annotated)James Joyce32h 56m4.3 (1.3K)$2 · $0.00
A Book of BurlesquesH. L. Mencken2h 58m3.7 (103)$1.99 · $0.00
The Complete Speeches of Mark Twain (Annotated)Mark Twain8h 29m4.3 (23)$2 · $0.00
H. L. Mencken - Premium Collection (Annotated)George Jean Nathan, H. L. Mencken50h 57m$2 · $0.00
Pen Portraits and ReviewsBernard Shaw12h 16m$2 · $0.00
Prejudices: EssaysH. L. Mencken7h 15m4.4 (110)$2 · $0.00
BUSINESS & ECONOMICS Premium Collection: 30+ Titles in One Volume: The Theory of Business Enterprise, The Higher Learning in America, The Vested Interests and the Common Man, On the Nature of Capital… (Annotated)Thorstein Veblen93h 27m4.1 (13)$2 · $0.00
That’s Not Funny, That’s SickEllin Stein15h 22m4.0 (168)$23
Lincoln in CaricatureRufus Rockwell Wilson48m$2 · $0.00
The Complete Essays and Satires of Mark Twain (Annotated)Mark Twain23h 20m$2 · $0.00