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<blockquote data-quote="Raven Crowking" data-source="post: 3971922" data-attributes="member: 18280">Most of REH's stories contain elements of civilization vs. barbarism, with the idea that excessive civilization is harmful to the full appreciation of human life.&nbsp; There is a lot of &quot;we are just the most recent inhabitants on a world long ruled by forces malign&quot; that was shared by REH's close correspondent &amp; admirer, H.P. Lovecraft.&nbsp; There is also, however, a major theme involving the futility of life, the melancholy notion that our triumphs only stave off the inevitable, and this is probably the most important theme in Howard's work.&nbsp; Another common theme is the individual who believes that he acts for good, but fails to understand his own essential nature.In his own time, REH was accused of writing about characters who failed to become fully adult.&nbsp; Many modern critics, reading REH with perhaps a bit more objectivity, have discovered instead that REH tends to write about people who are old before their time.&nbsp; Certainly, 90% of his poetry is about this sense of age and futility.&nbsp; It is not surprising that he committed suicide.RC</blockquote>

[QUOTE="Raven Crowking, post: 3971922, member: 18280"] Most of REH's stories contain elements of civilization vs. barbarism, with the idea that excessive civilization is harmful to the full appreciation of human life. There is a lot of "we are just the most recent inhabitants on a world long ruled by forces malign" that was shared by REH's close correspondent & admirer, H.P. Lovecraft. There is also, however, a major theme involving the futility of life, the melancholy notion that our triumphs only stave off the inevitable, and this is probably the most important theme in Howard's work. Another common theme is the individual who believes that he acts for good, but fails to understand his own essential nature. In his own time, REH was accused of writing about characters who failed to become fully adult. Many modern critics, reading REH with perhaps a bit more objectivity, have discovered instead that REH tends to write about people who are old before their time. Certainly, 90% of his poetry is about this sense of age and futility. It is not surprising that he committed suicide. RC [/QUOTE]

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