Somerset Maugham: biography, personal life, works, photos

2024 Author: Leah Sherlock | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 05:25

In the 30s of the twentieth century, the name of Somerset Maugham was known in all circles of European society. A talented prose writer, a brilliant playwright, a politician and a British intelligence officer… How did all this fit together in one person? Who is he - Maugham Somerset?

English born in Paris

On January 25, 1874, the future famous writer Somerset Maugham was born on the territory of the British Embassy in Paris. His father, who comes from a dynasty of lawyers, planned such an unusual birth in advance. All boys born in those years in France, having reached the age of majority, had to go to serve in the army and take part in hostilities against England. Robert Maugham could not allow his son to fight against the homeland of his ancestors. Born in the British Embassy, little Somerset automatically became a British citizen.

Childhood injuries

Somerset Maugham's father and grandfather were confident that the boy would follow in their footsteps and become a lawyer. But fate went against the wishes of the relatives. William lost his parents early. His mother died in 1882 from consumption, and afterFor two years, cancer took my father's life. The boy was raised by English relatives from Whitstable, a small town located near Canterbury.

Until the age of 10, the boy spoke only French, and, in fact, it was difficult for him to master his native language. The uncle's family did not become native for William. Henry Maugham, who served as vicar, and his wife treated the new relative coldly and dryly. The language barrier did not add mutual understanding. The stress of losing his parents early and moving to another country turned into a stutter that the writer had for life.

Study

In the UK, William Maugham studied at the Royal School. Due to his fragile physique, small stature and strong accent, the boy was ridiculed by classmates and avoided people. Therefore, he accepted admission to the University of Heidelberg in Germany with relief. In addition, the young man took up his favorite thing - the study of literature and philosophy. Another hobby of Maugham was medicine. In those years, every self-respecting European man had to have a serious profession. So in 1892 Maugham entered the London Medical School and became a certified surgeon and general practitioner.

During the First World War

The prose writer met the beginning of the First World War by serving in the British Red Cross. Then he was recruited by British intelligence MI5. Throughout the year, Maugham performed intelligence assignments in Switzerland. In 1917, under the guise of an American correspondent, he arrived with a secretmission to Russian Petrograd. Somerset's task was to keep Russia out of the war. Despite the fact that the mission failed, Maugham was pleased with the trip to Petrograd. He fell in love with the streets of this city, discovered the work of Dostoevsky, Tolstoy, Chekhov. For the sake of reading their works, I began to learn Russian.

Between the wars

Since 1919, in search of thrills, Maugham began to travel around Asia and the Middle East. Visited China, Malaysia, Tahiti. The prose writer drew inspiration from travels, which led to fruitful work. Over the course of two decades, many novels, plays, short stories, essays, and essays have been written. As a new direction - a series of socio-psychological dramas. Eminent writers often gathered at his villa, bought in 1928 on the French Riviera. She was visited by Herbert Wells and Winston Churchill. In those years, Maugham was the most successful English writer.

During World War II

The writer met the beginning of this war in France. There he was supposed to monitor the mood of the French and write feature articles that the country would not give up its military positions. After the defeat of France, Somerset Maugham was forced to leave for the United States. There he lived all the years of the Second World War, working on writing scripts for Hollywood. Returning home after the war, the playwright watched with regret the picture of devastation and ruin, but continued to write further.

After the war

In 1947, the Somerset Prize was approvedMaugham . She was awarded to the best English writers under 35 years old. In 1952, Maugham was awarded a doctorate in literature. He no longer traveled and devoted much time to writing essays, preferring them to drama and fiction.

About personal life

Maugham made no secret of his bisexuality. He tried to start a traditional family by marrying Siri Wellcome in 1917. She was an interior decorator. They had a daughter, Mary Elizabeth. Due to frequent travels in the company of his secretary and lover, Jerold Haxton, Somerset was unable to save the marriage. The couple divorced in 1927. Throughout his life, the writer had novels with both women and men. But after Hexton's death in 1944, the playwright did not feel such warm feelings for anyone.

Departure

William Somerset Maugham passed away at the age of 91 (1965-15-12). The cause of death was pneumonia. The ashes of the prose writer were scattered at the walls of the Maugham Library, located in the Royal School of Canterbury.

The beginning of the creative path

The first work of Somerset Maugham was writing a biography of the opera composer Giacomo Meyerbeer. It was written during the university years. The essay was not properly evaluated by the publisher, and the young writer burned it in his hearts. But to the delight of future readers, the first failure did not stop the young man.

The first serious work of Somerset Maugham was the novel "Lisa of Lambeth". It was written after the author's work at St. Thomas Hospital and was well received.critics and readers. This made the writer believe in his talent and try himself as a playwright by writing the play "Man of Honor". The premiere did not make a splash. Despite this, Maugham continued to write and after a few years became successful in drama. The comedy "Lady Frederic", staged at the "Court Theater" in 1908, deserved special love from the public.

Creative Dawn

After the resounding success of "Lady Frederick", the best works of Somerset Maugham began to be born one after another:

• fantastic novel "The Magician", published in 1908;
• "Catalina" (1948) - a mystical novel about a girl who miraculously got rid of a terrible disease, but never became happy;
• "The Theater" (1937) - an ironically described story of a middle-aged actress who tries to forget her age in the arms of a young boyfriend;
• The Patterned Veil (1925) is a beautiful and tragic love story, filmed three times;
• "Mrs. Craddock" (1900) - another life story about the relationship between a man and a woman;
• "The Conqueror of Africa" (1907) - an action-packed novel about love while traveling;
• "Summing up" (1938) - biography of the author in the form of notes about his work;
• "On the Chinese Screen" (1922) - a story full of Maugham's impressions of visiting China's Yangtze River;
• "Letter" (1937) - dramaticplay;
• "The Sacred Flame" (1928) - a detective drama with a philosophical and psychological meaning;
• "The Faithful Wife" (1926) - witty comedy about gender inequality;
• "Shappy" (1933) - social drama about a little man in a world of big politics;
• "For services rendered" (1932) - a play about the state of society before the threat of fascism and World War II;
• "Villa on the Hill" (1941) - a romantic story about the life of a young widow in anticipation of happiness;
• Then and Now (1946) historical novel set in early sixteenth century Italy;
• "Close Corner" (1932) - a crime novel containing reflections on Buddhism;
• collections of short stories "On the Outskirts of the Empire", "Open Opportunity", "The Trembling of a Leaf", "Six Stories Written in the First Person", "Ashenden, or the British Agent", "A King", "Still the same mixture", "Casuarina", "Toys of fate";
• collections of essays "Scattered Thoughts", "Changing Moods", "Great Writers and Their Novels".

Along with major works, the stories of Somerset Maugham were also popular:

• "Unbowed";
• "Something human";
• "The Fall of Edward Barward";
• "The Scarred Man";
• "Bag of books".

Somerset Maugham. Best Essays

Particularly noteworthy is Somerset Maugham's novel "The Burden of Human Passions". It was written in 1915 and is considered autobiographical. The protagonist of the work goes through many life tests, but, in spite of everything, finds his place in life. He was left an orphan early, and lameness did not add to his happiness. But this did not stop the hero from desperately searching for the meaning of life. As a result, he finds happiness in a simple human life without unnecessary passions. In the 60s, the author removed a significant number of scenes from the novel, presenting to the literary world a new creation by Somerset Maugham, The Burden of Passions. The work was filmed three times.

The next work that won the reader's love was the novel "Pies and Beer, or the Skeleton in the Cupboard", written in 1930. It is noteworthy that Somerset Maugham borrowed the title of the novel from Shakespeare's Twelfth Night. The novel is full of sarcasm towards the British literary environment and describes the life of a young talented writer. Along with this, the plot is marked by all manifestations of life - relationships between people, the delusions of youth, the influence of gossip and prejudice on human destiny. One of the heroines of the novel is the prototype of a real woman with whom Maugham had a romantic relationship. "Pies and Beer" became the author's favorite work. In the 70s, a TV series based on the book was released.

Somerset Maugham's "The Moon and the Gross" is a world-famous novel. It is a biography of the French painter Eugene Henri Paul Gauguin. For the sake of painting, the protagonist of the novel sharplychanges his life at the age of 40. He leaves his family, home, permanent job, despite illness, depression and poverty, completely devoted himself to creativity. "Moon and a Penny" makes you wonder if everyone dares to change their habitual way of life in order to achieve a high goal.

Another bestseller from the British novelist - "On the Razor's Edge". The novel was published in 1944. It describes the life of different sections of society between the First and Second World Wars. The author covers a large period of time, makes his characters make choices, look for the meaning of life, rise and fall. And of course, love. "On the Razor's Edge" is Maugham's only work in which the writer touches on deeply philosophical topics.

This is how one of the most controversial English writers appears before readers and critics. A little extravagant, skeptical in some things, somewhere a satirist, in some ways a philosopher. But in general, a brilliant, inimitable and one of the most widely read authors of world literature - Somerset Maugham, who presented his fans with more than 70 works and 30 plays, many of which were made into excellent adaptations.