TOW #15 - Softly; A Legend Passes by Harlan Ellison - Written

Harlan Ellison is a prolific writer, writing primarily in memoirs, essays, and short stories. The genres range from primarily science fiction to his own experiences. This particular piece, Softly; A Legend Passes, is an obituary for Julius Schwartz, agent, writer, editor, and overall creator. Ellison intends to both remember all of the great things that Schwartz did in his lifetime, and to use those events as evidence for his status as a legend amongst the world of writers. With this being an argument that is based on the quantity and quality of one's actions, not many types of evidence are available to Ellison in his writing than the use of anecdotes; this one-track mindedness is acceptable due to the restricitons placed upon him by his implied thesis. He organizes his points chronologically, starting with Schwartz's early career. He started his career as an agent, and Ellison outlines the two main authors whom he helped catapult into fame and popularity, starting with getting H.P. Lovecraft's At the Mountains of Madness to be Lovecraft's biggest deal, and on to getting Ray Bradbury's first novel published at the age of 21. He then goes on to detail how Schwartz spent 45 years of his life essentially making DC comics a successful company through his neverending contributions such as editing, writing, creation, and marketing of DC products. I think that Ellison's essay is wholly effective in that it uses relevant and abundant evidence that connects to my background knowledge about other writers and truly convinces me of this man's massive contributions to the world of writing. All of it is written artfully, as is the norm for Ellison and his work. Overall, an effective tool in both remembering and honoring Julius Schwartz in his death.