June 13, 2003

Lionel Trilling and 'Partisan Review'

To the Editor:

It is indeed strange that Norman Birnbaum's generally sensible essay fails to mention Lionel Trilling ("In Memoriam: Partisan Review," The Review, May 9). At least 16 names associated with Partisan Review are cited. Yet Trilling, whose intellectual journey mirrors that of the periodical to an extent matched only by one or two editors, is missing. His contribution to the noted "Our Country and Our Culture" symposium, for example, was decisive.

A