She was “the most peculiar common denominator that society, literature, art and radical revolutionaries ever found in New York and Europe.” So claimed a Chicago newspaper reporter in the 1920s of Mabel Dodge Luhan, who attracted leading literary and intellectual figures to her circle for over four decades. Not only was she mistress of a grand salon, an American Madame de Stael, she was also a leading symbol of the New Woman: sexually emancipated, self-determinin… More >>
Mabel Dodge Luhan: New Woman, New Worlds
I had read Mabel Dodge Luhan’s own books: Edge of Taos Desert and Winter in Taos and enjoyed them immensely, but pieces of Mabel’s life were missing and this biography fills in all the essential details. From what I can gather, “Mabel Dodge Luhan: New Woman, New Worlds” is the current published title of Lois Palken Rudnick’s doctoral dissertation entitled “The Unexpurgated Self: A Critical Biography of Mabel Dodge Luhan” published at Brown University in 1977. Apparently Rudnick assimilated some very thorough research at Yale University where Mabel’s papers are archived. Drawing from Mabel’s own four-volume autobiography “Intimate Memories” and numerous other sources such as friends of Mabel who wrote books and correspondence, newspaper articles and such, this study of Mabel’s life is about as complete as humanly possible. In fact, for the casual reader such as myself it can be a dull read in many places where Rudnick indulges in academic diversions from the essential narrative of Mabel’s life. There are literary critiques of books written by Mabel’s friends who used her as a symbol or type in their own works. These works are then summarized and integrated into the fabric of the book as a way of bringing new perspectives on Mabel’s character. Small separate chapters on these tangential characters can be skipped or skimmed over without missing out on the basic narrative. For example there are sections about Leo and Gertrude Stein in Paris, the painter Jacque-Emile Blanche, the writers, Carl Van Vechten and Max Eastman and of course D. H. Lawrence who came to Taos at the behest of MDL. There are also chapters on poets Witter (Hal) Bynner and Robinson Jeffers and the novelist Myron Brinig. All of these people were important in MDL’s life but a more readable and enjoyable biography might benefit from more judicious editing unencumbered by the demands of an academic dissertation. What is revealed of Mabel herself? She was a person profoundly affected by her dysfunctional family where she received little love and affection as a child. Fortunately for her, the family’s considerable fortune amassed by her two banker grandfathers supported her for the duration of her life, freeing her to live a life of leisure and adventure. In her intense search for love and identity, she had many lovers and four husbands. There is a blurry lack of personal boundaries in her life. She underwent years of psychoanalysis, and eventually found more focus as she devoted herself to writing. She was a magnetic personality with a very strong will and she drew many people to her. She was a very intelligent and curious person who lived life to the fullest, yet with the emotional ups and downs that might be described as bi-polar or manic-depressive. What I find interesting is that she approached life from a rather 21st Century style 100 years ahead of her time with a wholistic, Jungian understanding of the whole body experience. Feelings are given equal importance to thoughts. Smells are important to her as she always surrounds herself with refreshing and inspiring smells. Music, dance, art and literature are central to her life. In Florence she associated with the great American art historian Bernard Berenson and the great English art critic John Ruskin. She developed a keen appreciation of art and spent eight years decorating her Florentine villa with her second husband Edwin Dodge. From that time and throughout her long life, MDL entertained many guests from all walks of life. She personally knew and hosted at her house people such as the great actress Eleanor Duse, the writer Gertrude Stein, the dancer Isadora Duncan and many, many more. During her years in New York City she had an intense affair with the intellectual, poetic, communist radical, John Reed who later died in the Soviet Union soon after the revolution. (He was the subject of the movie “Red” starring Warren Beatty). MDL supported many radical causes during her time in NYC. Shortly after her third marriage, to artist Maurice Sterne, she then moved to Taos where she remained for the duration of her life, with many trips to New York and California interspersed throughout. Of course the great love of her life became Tony Luhan from the Taos Pueblo. Their relationship lasted over forty years. All together, this is a fascinating woman and a good read.
Rating: 4 / 5
Ah Mabel! I have been to your house in Taos, slept in your bed, and bathed in that wonderful bathroom where you painted the window panes with flowers. Lois Rudnick reveals your life brilliantly. Here is a book alive with heartache and joy, some meaness, and much searching and discovery. Mable Dodge Lujan–an amazing life; a complex and talented woman who, indeed, was a “mover and shaker”. “Her desire for self-importance attracted her to some of the most stimulating and creative talents in America.” Lois Rudnick details a wonderful biography of who, what, when, and where. Thank you, Lois. You made Mable’s house come to life and her life fill the house.
Rating: 5 / 5