How did Lytton Strachey’s Eminent Victorians change biography in the 1920s and 1930s?

Lytton Strachey’s Eminent Victorians revolutionized the biography genre by rejecting the tradition of adulatory, monumental life-and-letters volumes that characterized the Victorian era.12

Before Strachey, biographers typically maintained an awestruck distance from their subjects, viewing any criticism as disrespectful. Strachey broke this mold by adopting an irreverent, idiosyncratic approach, aiming to write with a brevity that excluded everything redundant while retaining only what was significant.21

His influence on the 1920s and 1930s included:

• Humanizing Subjects: He portrayed historical figures as multifaceted, flawed individuals rather than untouchable idols, often pricking their pretensions to reduce them to life-size.12
• Focus on Personality: He prioritized personal motives and private information over traditional political or religious narratives, which he often viewed with skepticism.12
• Emphasis on Form: By focusing on the art of the portrait, he taught subsequent biographers the importance of narrative form, background, and critical acumen.1

While his work was sometimes criticized for inaccuracy and tendentious selection of material, he successfully ushered in a new era of biographical writing that favored psychological depth over reverence.12