In the American Grain Chapter Summary & Analysis - Introduction Summary

Introduction Summary

Horace Gregory introduces William Carlos Williams' collection of essays by giving accolades, defining the writer's goals, and suggesting warnings. Gregory pursues the notion that history is an ancient and dangerous pit of truths that few return alive from visiting. He implies that only the strong and imaginative can survive studying and writing about history. For him, William Carlos Williams is one of those individuals, bringing as he does to these essays a creative, personalized look into early America. It is dangerous learning about and writing about history, Gregory insists, and too many would-be history writers try. He believes that Williams, however, achieves the goal of capturing "that happier world that so often seems to elude us. . ." For Gregory, Williams makes the American discoveries seem alive and new, and does so in spite of how many have tried in a field that is too full of would-be historians and...
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