Being one of Hamlin Garland's less famous works, no real criticism for A Member of the Third House exists. However, Garland's writing style has been thoroughly analyzed throughout the years. Classified as a realist, Garland strongly affirmed distaste for the treatment of romantic passion in fiction.Warren French, “What Shall We Do about Hamlin Garland?”, “American Literary Realism, 1870-1910, Vol. 3, No. 4, pp. 283-289”, Fall 1970 This notion clearly appears in A Member of the Third House. A host of male characters dominate the story while the few female characters retain a limited role. Garland's abundant affectionate recollections of male comrades suggest that he was incapable of exploring publicly the importance of heterosexual intercourse. This attitude could, of course, be simply a continuation of the nineteenth-century attitudes of masculine dominance in a society. Although there is a foundation in A Member of the Third House for heterosexual romance, Garland dismisses the opportunity, placing his focus on the real, political issues at stake. Nevertheless, Garland provides countless vivid descriptions of his male characters and their interactions effectively weave together the story.
