Edmund Wilson and the American Mind

Edmund Wilson was the journalist and literary critic who hated 'Literary Criticism,' the beneficiary of an elite education who hated elitism, a patriot who hated jingo-ism.

He was perhaps the main cheerleader of a movement among mid-century American writers and artists who wanted to create a new American culture on a par with Europe's — but more democratic, more accessible.

Friend of Wilson and biographer Lewis Dabney tells us of the life, the times and the mind of the writer whose life was at times tortured and always messy, but whose writing was clear, simple and smart.

Guests:

Lewis M. Dabney, professor of English at The University of Wyoming, author of "Edmund Wilson: A Life in Literature"

Jack Beatty, On Point News Analyst, senior editor at The Atlantic Monthly