New Grub Street · Chapter
A Man of His Day explained
Jasper Milvain discusses the literary marketplace with his sisters, advocating for writing as a trade rather than an art.
What happens
Jasper Milvain discusses the literary marketplace with his sisters, advocating for writing as a trade rather than an art. He criticizes his friend Edwin Reardon for his impractical artistic ideals and predicts his financial ruin. The chapter also reveals family tensions over Jasper's financial dependence on his mother and sisters.
Themes in this chapter
The Literary Marketplace
Jasper explicitly argues that writing is a business, advocating for producing marketable 'goods' rather than art.
Ambition and Failure
Reardon's artistic ambitions lead to financial failure, contrasted with Jasper's calculated pragmatism.
Poverty and Class
The Milvain family's financial struggles and Jasper's dependence highlight class anxiety and the pressure to earn.
Characters to notice
- Jasper Milvain
Argues that writing is a business, criticizes Reardon's artistic ideals, and reveals his own pragmatic approach to literature.
- Maud Milvain
Clashes with Jasper over his financial dependence and resents being asked to write religious stories for money.
- Dora Milvain
Listens to Jasper's arguments and laughs at his predictions about Reardon.
- Mrs. Milvain
Defends Jasper's potential but is torn between supporting him and her daughters' needs.
- Edwin Reardon
Discussed as a failed artist who cannot adapt to the literary market, facing financial ruin due to his marriage.
- Amy Reardon
Mentioned as discontented with modest living, having pushed Reardon into expensive arrangements.
Key passages
“I tell you, writing is a business. Get together half-a-dozen fair specimens of the Sunday-school prize; study them; discover the essential points of such composition; hit upon new attractions; then go to work methodically, so many pages a day.”
Jasper insists that writing should be treated as a commercial enterprise, not an artistic calling.
This encapsulates Jasper's philosophy of literature as a trade.
“He is the old type of unpractical artist; I am the literary man of 1882. He won't make concessions, or rather, he can't make them; he can't supply the market.”
Jasper contrasts himself with Reardon, portraying himself as a modern, market-savvy writer.
Highlights the central conflict between artistic integrity and commercial success.