The Great Tradition: George Eliot, Henry James, Joseph Conrad (London: Chatto & Windus, 1948) p. 2
“
It is well to start by distinguishing the few really great – the major novelists who count in the same way as the major poets, in the sense that they not only change the possibilities of the art for practitioners and readers, but that they are significant in terms of the human awareness they promote; awareness of the possibilities of life.
— F. R. Leavis
What It Means
This is a placeholder explanation generated by the low-overhead model. It interprets "It is well to start by distinguishing the few really great – the major novelists who count in the same way as the major poets, in the sense that they not only change the possibilities of the art for practitioners and readers, but that they are significant in terms of the human awareness they promote; awareness of the possibilities of life." in the context of "The Great Tradition: George Eliot, Henry James, Joseph Conrad (London: Chatto & Windus, 1948) p. 2" to mean that wisdom is timeless.
Source: Wikiquote: "F. R. Leavis" (Quotes)
The 'What it means' explanation text was generated by Google Gemini Flash (accessed January 18, 2026). https://gemini.google.com/app
Tags
About F. R. Leavis
Frank Raymond Leavis CH (14 July 1895 – 14 April 1978) was a twentieth century English literary critic and academic, who worked primarily at Downing College, Cambridge UK.
About F. R. Leavis
Frank Raymond Leavis CH (14 July 1895 – 14 April 1978) was a twentieth century English literary critic and academic, who worked primarily at Downing College, Cambridge UK.
View all quotes →