The monthly newsletter The Figure in the Carpet features articles on local literary organizations and includes the St. Louis Literary Calendar. The name of this publication—The Figure in the Carpet—comes from the title of one of Henry James’s (1843-1916) most famous short stories. The story tells of the life-long effort by a literary critic to identify the idea that inspires a particular author and stretches across his work from book to book. That is what humanists do: try to show readers those patterns in a work of art that they may not see.