Humboldt's Gift: Hope, History and Humanism

Humboldt's Gift: Hope, History and Humanism <Tab/>In the modern period literature is confronted by numerous rivals, generally in the form of social questions and broad philosophical, political and religious discussion. As a result, the challenge for creative artists is to find new methods of dealing with the tension between public distraction and the private sphere of the individual. In Humboldt's Gift Saul Bellow explores the predicament of the artist struggling …

…embodiment of traditional artistic ideals, his continual effect upon Citrine implies the importance of past consciousness on the present generation. Bellow further exemplifies this notion by structuring the novel around Critine's personal meditations as he retrieves moments of solace from that past, from individuals whom he has loved. Apart from Fleisher, his parents and Demmie Vonghel are resurrected from the past to suggest the infinite possibilities of life and the immortality of the human spirit.