Ever since George Sterling (1869–1926) moved from his home on Long Island to the Bay Area, he became the unofficial “king of Bohemia” as well as a poet of increasing stature, with such volumes as The Testimony of the Suns (1903), A Wine of Wizardry (1909), and Selected Poems (1923). Sterling also excelled in the poetic drama, including Lilith (1919) and Rosamund (1920).
But it is not well known that George Sterling was also a voluminous essayist and reviewer. In this first collected edition of Sterling’s essays, we find illuminating tracts on a wide array of subjects. As a philosopher, Sterling adhered to a pessimism derived from Arthur Schopenhauer, mingled with a cosmicism derived from his study of astronomy. This perspective is reflected in the essays “Implications of Infinity” and “Pleasure and Pain!”
Sterling was an extensive commentator on literary matters, from the poetry of W. B. Yeats, Joaquin Miller, Clark Ashton Smith, and Robinson Jeffers to the work of his close friend Ambrose Bierce. In vibrant essays written for H. L. Mencken’s American Mercury, Sterling discussed Bierce, Miller, his acquaintance with the boxer Pete McCoy, and other matters. He also wrote a column for the Overland Monthly featuring commentary on issues of the day.
This volume, containing several unpublished items, is the definitive edition of George Sterling’s essays. It has been extensively annotated by S. T. Joshi and David E. Schultz, two leading authorities on Sterling.
