The High Calling

Charles Monroe SheldonProject Gutenberg · United StatesDec 2019

3.0

Word count: 473K words
Chapters: 48

Summary

Project Gutenberg was the first provider of free electronic books, or eBooks. Michael Hart, founder of Project Gutenberg, invented eBooks in 1971 and his memory continues to inspire the creation of eBooks and related technologies today.The High Calling by Charles M. SheldonAuthor: Sheldon, Charles M., 1857-1946,Language: English, Class: PS: Language and Literatures: American and Canadian literature, Release Date: Aug 14, 2008

Editor's review

The High Calling is by the American author Charles M. Sheldon, a major novelist of the late nineteenth-century Social Gospel movement known for bringing Christian ethics into themes of everyday work and city life. The book continues that concern, centering on how an individual responds to the call of faith and duty within a secular vocation, in a plain style with clear moral stakes. As a public-domain ebook, it is moderate in length and serves as an accessible introduction to American Social Gospel literature and nineteenth-century religious fiction. While reading, note how the author embeds questions of faith in ordinary people's career choices and family life, which helps illuminate the values of the American middle class of the time. Readers who prefer strong plots or modern narrative pacing may find the didactic tone heavy.

Who it's for

A good fit for

Readers interested in the American Social Gospel movement and religious fiction
Scholars of late nineteenth-century American literature and ethics
Readers seeking historical perspective on questions of vocation and belief
Those accustomed to public-domain English novels and plain narrative style

Not a good fit for

Genre-fiction readers seeking strong plots and fast pacing
Readers put off by overtly didactic religious tone
Readers who need a Chinese translation and prefer not to read the English original

Reading tips

Start with a basic grasp of Social Gospel ideas before entering the text to better understand the characters' motives.
Set the protagonist's career choices against contemporary workplace ethics and keep brief reading notes.
Pay attention to how the author handles faith and daily life in the narration, rather than following plot alone.
Read alongside other works by Sheldon to observe the consistent thread of his ethical concern.

About the publisher

Project Gutenberg United States · Founded in 1971

Project Gutenberg is a digital publishing project focused on public-domain ebooks. Its publishing direction centers on classic literary works whose copyright has expired, covering genres such as poetry, drama, fiction, and epic. Representative books include Lyrical Ballads by Wordsworth and Coleridge, Proust's Du côté de chez Swann, Shakespeare's Macbeth and The Complete Works of William Shakespeare, Homer's The Iliad, Dante's La Divina Comèdia: Purgatòri, Cervantes's The History of Don Quixote, Volume 2, and Grahame's The Wind in the Willows. Its author resources consist mainly of classic Western writers such as Wordsworth, Proust, Shakespeare, Homer, Dante, Cervantes, Grahame, and Tolstoy. Its publishing feature is the provision of freely accessible ebooks in EPUB and Kindle formats; it is not a traditional publisher, and publicly available information is limited.

FAQ

How does this book relate to the author's other famous work?

Sheldon is known for works such as In His Steps, and this book likewise reflects his approach of applying Christian ethics to daily life. The themes are similar, but the characters and plots differ; reading them together reveals his consistent moral concern, though this book should not be treated as a sequel to any other.

Can I understand it without a religious background?

Yes. The narrative is fairly direct, and its core is ordinary people's choices between vocation and duty. Some familiarity with nineteenth-century American Protestantism will enrich the reading, but it is not necessary for understanding the basic plot and characters.

Is this book suitable as English-learning material?

It can serve as advanced reading material. The style is plain and sentence structures are not very complex, but it carries nineteenth-century usage and religious vocabulary that may challenge beginners. Intermediate or higher reading ability is recommended, with a dictionary and background notes at hand.

What should I keep in mind when reading the electronic edition?

This is a public-domain ebook from Project Gutenberg, chiefly plain text and possibly lacking modern notes and introductions. Look up historical background as needed and note the chapter divisions; progressing chapter by chapter is easier to absorb than reading straight through.

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About the author

Charles Monroe Sheldon Author · American · 1857–1946

Charles M. Sheldon (1857–1946) was an American Congregational minister and inspirational writer. He graduated from Brown University and Andover Theological Seminary, and from 1889 served as pastor of Central Congregational Church in Topeka, Kansas. His best-known work, In His Steps (1897), is built around the question "What would Jesus do?" and remained a bestseller for decades, making him an important figure in the American Social Gospel movement. His writings often center on the union of faith and everyday ethics. Besides In His Steps, they include The Crucifixion of Philip Strong, Robert Hardy's Seven Days, The High Calling, and The Redemption of Freetown, dealing with ideals and reality, duty and sacrifice in a plain, earnest style with a moral exhortatory tone. Five of his works are held in the collection, commonly classified as inspirational growth.