At a time when the classical novel familiar to most of us, was being rejected and discarded by some as an anvhronism, two events of importance in the field of literature came to my notice. One of the these was the opportunity to read the novel “The Leopard” authored by a Sicilian aristocrat, Giuseppe di Lampedusa, a novel in the familiar classical tradition. It was a novel, which received accolades not only of Italian, but also of French, English and American critics and readers. The reasons for its unversal appeal was, I believe, the great depth and unedrstanding and artistic skill shown in the prsentation of the vicissitudes of a feudal class in a modernizing world, the microcosm of a feudal family, the ups and downs in their cricumstances, and their joys and sufferings.