Mahan's long late-Victorian paragraphs can conceal an argument until a short passage makes its purpose clear. Corbett had practised several kinds of writing as a barrister, political reporter, and novelist before turning fully to history. Armstrong therefore expects a midshipman to understand more from a random ten-page sample of Corbett on a first reading. That is a judgment about accessibility, separate from either writer's strategic intelligence. It helps explain students' preference for Corbett without making difficult prose a measure of intellectual depth.
Notable Point · 34:17-38:28
Why Corbett is often easier to read than Mahan
Corbett's more accessible prose can give students a clearer first reading, while Mahan often requires patience to locate the argument.