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1、HenryLouisMenckenHislife:HewasbornandspentmostofhislifeinthecityofBaltimore,Maryland.HewasthesonofGermanimmigrantparents.Hecompletedhighschoolbutdidnotattenduniversity,onlygraduatedfromBaltimorePolytechnicInstituteat16.HebecameareporterontheBaltimoreMorningHerald.Afewyearslater
2、,hejoinedthestaffofitsrivalnewspaper,theBaltimoreSunorEveningSun,firstasareporter,thenasitsdramacriticandeditor,apositionwhichhehelduntil1941.In1930,Mencken(in50)married GermanAmerican SaraHaardt,aprofessorofEnglishat GoucherCollege inBaltimore College,butHaardtwasinpoorhealthf
3、romtuberculosisthroughouttheirmarriageandshediedin1935.Whenhewas68,Menckensufferedastrokethatlefthimawareandfullyconsciousbutnearlyunabletoreadorwrite,andtospeakwithsomedifficulty.MenckendiedinhissleeponJanuary29,1956.HisideasHewasacentralfigureinAmericanintellectuallifeduringt
4、he1920's.HelaunchedthemostcuttingattacksofanywriteragainstAmerica'smiddleclassculture.Heinventedtheword"booboisie",combiningthetwowords"bourgeoisie"and"booby"(anawkward,foolishperson).Incaustic,wittyessays,hederided(mock)theinstitutionwhichsupportedthemiddleclass.Hehatednarrow-
5、mindedreligion.Hebelievedstronglyinintellectualfreedomandfoughtallattemptstocensorliteratureanddrama.Hefeltthatthegreatestthreatofcensorshipcamefromthecountry'sreligion"fundamentalists",whoseopinionswereallbasedontheirinterpretationoftheBible.Hehatedcommercialism.Hedidnotsuppor
6、tdemocracybecauseheconsideredthemassestooignorantandgreedytoexerciseitwisely.Quotation:Ibelievethatreligion,generallyspeaking,hasbeenacursetomankind,thatitsmodestandgreatlyoverestimatedservicesontheethicalsidehavebeenmorethanovercomebythedamageithasdonetoclearandhonestthinking.
7、Ibelievethatnodiscoveryoffact,howevertrivial,canbewhollyuselesstotherace,andthatnotrumpetingoffalsehood,howevervirtuousinintent,canbeanythingbutvicious.Ibelievethatallgovernmentisevil,inthatallgovernmentmustnecessarilymakewaruponliberty.Ibelievethattheevidenceforimmortalityisno
8、betterthantheevidenceofwitches,anddeservesnomorerespec
