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32-444: By Love Possessed may refer to: By Love Possessed (novel) , a 1957 novel by James Gould Cozzens By Love Possessed (film) , a 1961 adaptation of the novel, directed by John Sturges Topics referred to by the same term [REDACTED] This disambiguation page lists articles associated with the title By Love Possessed . If an internal link led you here, you may wish to change

64-559: A feature film in which Lana Turner co-starred. By Love Possessed was one of Cozzens's "professional novels", whose stories presented fully developed characters and placed a special emphasis on the details of their work. The novel is set in the small town of Brocton, Pennsylvania, in roughly the mid-1950s. The story follows Arthur Winner Jr., an attorney , through 49 hours of his life. During this time, he frequently reminisces about earlier times, remembering town residents who have been dead for years, such as Arthur Winner Sr. Arthur Jr.

96-505: A condescending attitude towards African-Americans, represented in the Revere family, which had provided servants to only the "best families" in town for generations. The charge of anti-Semitism was the strongest, and was reinforced by the most critical article on the book appearing in Commentary . Cozzens's defenders point out that Cozzens, far from being discriminatory, had a fairly low opinion of

128-482: A daylong visit to Sellers Field, Mississippi , aboard an AT-7 navigation trainer . It concerns the activities of a fictional administrative command named Army Air Forces Operations and Requirements Analysis Division , acronymed AFORAD. This organization is a fictional amalgamation of its real-life counterparts, the office of the Assistant Chief of Air Staff for Operations, Commitments, and Requirements (OC&R) and

160-448: A dramatic recreation of the incident but as backdrop for his analysis of the relationship between fate and the character and personality of leaders. Although several African-American characters appear in Guard of Honor , none are point-of-view figures. Guard was one of Cozzens' "professional novels", in which he drew detailed portraits of individuals, centering on their professional lives and

192-595: A new pastor in the Episcopal Church, who is asking him to take a role in the leadership of the parish. Arthur also meets with one of Marjorie's friends, a woman named Pratt who wants to discuss Marjorie's interest in converting to Catholicism. (Julius, though not an especially religious Protestant, is fiercely opposed to Catholicism.) Many years earlier, a trolley line had been built in the town, and Noah Tuttle had encouraged such clients as Michael McCarthy to invest in it. The trolley company went bankrupt, however, due to

224-406: A surprise birthday parade ceremony for General Beal on Saturday using numerous military aircraft and troops in a flyover. The opening segment ends when the general's AT-7, in the midst of the harrowingly described turbulence of a nighttime thunderstorm, barely avoids a mid-air collision with a B-26 bomber landing at Ocanara. After an angry exchange with his own co-pilot, in which he impetuously has

256-441: Is a Pulitzer Prize -winning novel by James Gould Cozzens published during 1948. The novel is set during World War II, with most of the action occurring on or near a fictional Army Air Forces base in central Florida. The action occurs during a period of approximately 48 hours. The novel is chapterless in form, using three progressively longer parts entitled "Thursday", "Friday" and "Saturday". From dates on various memoranda quoted,

288-525: Is a partner in the law firm his father founded in partnership with Noah Tuttle. As a young man, Arthur married Noah's daughter, Hope; they had three children, two sons and a daughter. The elder son, Warren, died during World War II. Hope died a few years later after giving birth to Arthur's daughter. Arthur is now married to a somewhat younger woman named Clarissa, who had been his daughter's tennis coach. The law practice currently consists of Arthur, Noah, and another man named Julius Penrose. It gradually emerges in

320-414: Is highly praised by some critics and derided by others. Arthur Winner, Senior (deceased) – Arthur's father and (with Noah Tuttle) founder of his law firm. He is referred to as the "Man of Reason". Warren Winner (deceased) - Arthur's elder son, whom he found ungovernable. He was expelled from boarding school for striking a teacher. The flashback scene where Arthur is told the circumstances of Warren's death

352-489: Is one of the more controversial parts of the book. By Love Possessed was an immediate commercial and critical success. It was on The New York Times Best Seller list for 34 weeks, holding the number-two position below Peyton Place and then number 1 for several months, before Anatomy of a Murder displaced it. Over 500,000 copies were initially sold. The Reader's Digest Condensed version sold over 3,000,000. Initial reviews were overwhelmingly favorable. However, there

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384-448: Is set at a base similar to that of Guard of Honor , an earlier Cozzens novel. Warren's death, along with that of several others, was a direct result of his reckless flying in disobedience of orders. (He is reminiscent of Lieutenant Colonel Benny Carricker, one of the key characters in Guard of Honor .) Julius Penrose – Arthur's partner. Julius's long commentary on why he detests Catholicism

416-845: Is still cited as one of the high points of Macdonald's career, and one of the best examples of a damning book review. Macdonald's review did not prevent the American Academy of Arts and Letters from awarding By Love Possessed the William Dean Howells Medal in 1960, for the most prestigious work of fiction in the last five years. However, the Commentary article itself became a significant part of American literary history, as it resulted in By Love Possessed being best known to many people from Macdonald's review. William Dean Howells Medal , 1960 Guard of Honor Guard of Honor

448-511: The afternoon from the Pentagon , one bearing a high decoration to be presented to the black pilot for prior heroism, the other investigating the suicide. Guard of Honor then begins to examine the motivations behind and interlocking effects of these problems (and those of a tragic accident yet to come) on General Beal, Colonel Ross, and Nathaniel Hicks as each tries to juggle his part in them with as little consequence as possible while still "doing

480-492: The assault and the arbitrary decision of the AFORAD Executive Officer to create a separate officer's club for them results in a protest being organized. General Beal has calmed and wants to ignore his co-pilot's behavior. A black newspaper reporter shows up on base at an inopportune moment. The alcoholic base commander of Sellars Field has committed suicide after General Beal's visit. Two generals are due to arrive in

512-412: The central character. Hope Winner (deceased) - Arthur's first wife, who died giving birth to his now teenage daughter. Clarissa Winner – Arthur's second wife, who was his daughter's tennis coach, is considerably younger than Arthur. She is a more passionate lover than his first wife was, and he feels somewhat guilty about enjoying himself so much. An extended love-making passage about Arthur and Clarissa

544-474: The chapter is spent examining Colonel Ross' thoughts while he perfunctorily reviews his seemingly routine daily paperwork, which he has brought with him on the brief visit. Two memoranda foreshadow major incidents in the storyline: the arrival of officers of Project 0-336-3, a group of African-American pilots slated to form a bombardment squadron; and an ever-expanding grandiose plan by another problem colonel (this one General Beal's own Executive Officer) to hold

576-438: The co-pilot arrested, General Beal is distracted while mollifying Colonel Ross; his co-pilot confronts the bomber's crew, who are all African-American, and punches the black pilot in the face. Events quickly begin to happen early the next morning. A local newspaper, using leaks from classified memos, skewers AFORAD both for the coming parade and its many old colonels. Indignation among the newly arrived African-American pilots over

608-402: The course of the story that Arthur had a brief but intense affair with Marjorie Penrose, Julius' wife, after Hope's death. Two cases preoccupy Arthur during the course of the novel. The first concerns the probate of the estate of Michael McCarthy; the second is the arrest of Ralph Detweiler (brother of the firm's dedicated secretary Helen Detweiler) for rape. Arthur is also called on to deal with

640-500: The details of their work. He expertly recreates the feel of the stateside Army Air Forces, accurately recalls historical facts pertinent to the story line without becoming academic, and references airplanes and technical aspects without excessive explanation and without bogging down the action. All characters in the novel, except Nathaniel Hicks, are named throughout using their rank or title and last name. The novel begins with seven characters flying to Ocanara Army Air Base, Florida, after

672-481: The dioceses. During a hearing which Arthur supervises, Noah has an outburst when questioned about the assets of the McCarthy estate. Arthur concludes that Ralph Detweiler, though selfish and cowardly, is probably innocent of the rape charge, and he expects to have the case dismissed. But Ralph jumps bail and flees to New York. Ralph's sister Helen, obsessed with respectability, commits suicide in shame. As Arthur examines

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704-399: The embezzlement for some time. But Julius urges Arthur to keep quiet, hinting that he is aware of Arthur's affair with his wife, and that he is grateful that he has been silent about that. Arthur contemplates his position, where there are no good choices. He says, "Life, that has unfairly served so many others, at last unfairly serves me." Arthur Winner – A middle-aged small town lawyer. He is

736-513: The entire human race. They also point out that the only person he was close to was his wife, who was Jewish. Dwight Macdonald 's Commentary article, a hostile review of By Love Possessed which he titled "By Cozzens Possessed, a Review of Reviews", ignited a critical firestorm. McDonald characterized the success of By Love Possessed as "the most alarming literary news of the year." Macdonald's review has been both credited with "eviscerating" Cozzens and blamed for having ruined Cozzens's career. It

768-409: The link to point directly to the intended article. Retrieved from " https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=By_Love_Possessed&oldid=482490764 " Category : Disambiguation pages Hidden categories: Short description is different from Wikidata All article disambiguation pages All disambiguation pages By Love Possessed (novel) The novel was turned into

800-592: The organizations in Florida that OC&R supervised, the Army Air Forces Tactical Center (AAFTAC), and the Army Air Forces Board. The beginning segment, the shortest of the novel, introduces the major characters and their traits by examining their reactions to a minor subplot of the handling of the querulous base commander at Sellers Field: an old Regular Army colonel who is an alcoholic. Much of

832-421: The records that Helen had been maintaining, he discovers that Noah has been embezzling from the trusts that he managed—this was the source of the money from the bankruptcy settlement. Noah embezzled $ 200,000 from the "Orcutt bequest" and has since been manipulating the money in his trusts, robbing Peter to pay Paul while attempting to replenish the funds. Arthur also learns that Julius Penrose has been aware of

864-514: The right thing." In 1979 critic Raymond J. Wilson noted similarities between Guard of Honor and Gravity's Rainbow and suggested that Thomas Pynchon had been influenced by Cozzens's novel. Harcourt-Brace published the novel in September 1948. Reviews were quite uniformly positive. For example, Brendan Gill wrote in The New Yorker: "Every page of Guard of Honor gives the impression of a writer at

896-404: The rise of the automobile. Noah handled the bankruptcy case and, to the amazement of all, managed to return some money to the investors. The novel, however, begins to hint at a darker side to Noah's brilliance. He ridicules an elderly woman for wanting to move some of her funds from bonds into stocks. He bristles at the suggestion that the endowment of the parish could be transferred to management by

928-566: The story takes place on September 2, 3, and 4, 1943. Before entering the USAAF during 1943, Cozzens had already published 10 novels; his duties included writing speeches and articles for Henry H. Arnold , commanding general of the USAAF. Cozzens worked in the USAAF Office of Information Services, a liaison and "information clearinghouse" between the military and the civilian press (like his Guard of Honor character Nathaniel Hicks, Cozzens' first duty

960-492: Was a reaction to the book itself; the extent of the positive reviews and a Time magazine September 2, 1957, cover story about Cozzens, "The Hermit of Lambertville". Cozzens was criticized for the denseness of his style and unrealism in conversations. He was also criticized for being an upholder of "the Establishment", and having a pessimistic view of human potential. There is little dispute about him having those viewpoints. He

992-401: Was also criticized as a bigot. At one point in the book, Noah refers to "Jew lawyer tricks", and another character defends the previous generation's attitude towards Jews. Julius Penrose's extended disquisition on Catholicism, and the absurdity of Marjorie's friend named Mrs. Pratt (her explanation of "things" to Arthur) both led to charges of anti-Catholicism. There was also more than a hint of

By Love Possessed - Misplaced Pages Continue

1024-493: Was revising field manuals). One of the functions of his office was in controlling news, and it became Cozzens’ job to defuse situations potentially embarrassing to Arnold. One such incident occurred during April 1945: African-American officers protested the segregation of officer club facilities in what became known as the Freeman Field Mutiny . Cozzens included a fictional but similar incident in Guard of Honor , not as

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