Lin Yutang vs Mencken: should the writer soothe the soul or scourge the fool?

LIN YUTANG vs H. L. MENCKEN go head to head — and every jab is rooted in real history.

LIN YUTANG

The art of writing is the art of living well; I teach my readers to lie in a hammock and taste the sweetness of doing nothing.

H. L. MENCKEN

A hammock is where the booboisie naps between blunders — my pen is for puncturing them, not lulling them.

LIN YUTANG

But you exhaust yourself in contempt, my friend; the wise man laughs gently and lets the fool ripen into a philosopher.

H. L. MENCKEN

The only thing a fool ripens into is a bigger fool with tenure — I'd rather be feared for truth than beloved for tea.

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