Tag: biography

Oscar Wilde – A Short Biography

Oscar Fingal O’Flahertie Wills Wilde was an Irish poet and playwright. After experimenting with different forms, he became one of the most accomplished playwrights in London in the early 1890s. It is quite difficult to encapsulate Wilde’s brilliance in a few short sentences as there is no dearth of literary accomplishments when it comes to him. In his lifetime, he carved a niche for himself churning out several, critically acclaimed masterpieces, the relevance of which are even profound to this day. He went on to make eminent contributions during the aesthetic and decadent movement, making him one of the most prolific writers of his era.

Early life 

Oscar Wilde was born to an Anglo – Irish couple in Dublin, Ireland on October 16, 1856. He had two siblings, an older brother named Willie, and a sister, Isola, who unfortunately died at the age of 10. Wilde’s mother, identified as an Irish nationalist and wrote under the alias, Speranza. She attracted many other intellectuals and artists who frequented her place. The seeds of art, culture and literature were sown in the Wilde kids’ lives quite early on. They learnt to appreciate scholarly conversations by mingling with the guests. Wilde’s childhood left a lasting impression on his life.

Till the age of nine, Wilde was homeschooled. He joined his brother later on at the Portora Royal School. His peers were awed by his disposition, while many considered him a prodigy for his speed reading abilities. 

Contributions to Literature

Wilde is most fondly remembered for the iconic novel, The Picture of Dorian Gray. He found great fame and fortune after releasing three very successful comedies-  Lady Windermere’s Fan, An Ideal Husband and The Importance of Being Ernest. Also, he authored critical essays like Intentions (1891), and his long letter to Lord Alfred Douglas, De Profundis, several fairy tales and various proses. Later on, he diversified into shorter tales, publishing works like The Happy Prince and Other Tales. In 1891 he published two more collections, Lord Arthur Savile’s Crime and Other Stories, and A House of Pomegranates. Wilde poured his unmatched wit and dazzling flamboyance into his stories which made his work incredibly engaging for the readers. His illustrious career made him a Victorian celebrity. 

Trial and Conviction 

Wilde’s life was riddled with problems as well as scandals. Although he was married and had two children, he led a double life by being a frequent visitor of male brothels. Homosexuality was a crime in the United Kingdom until the 1960s and the punishment meted out, if convicted, was severe. Lord Alfred Douglas and Oscar Wilde began an affair in secret. Douglas was a British poet and aristocrat, and also 16 years his junior. The romantic tryst was eventually uncovered and Douglas’ father put forth a public accusation by calling Wilde a ‘sodomite’. Wilde sued him for libel, subsequently lost and was found guilty of gross indecency arising from indulgence in homosexuality. Soon he was rounded up and sent to prison, where he spent two very difficult years. He first arrived at Newgate Prison in London and was later shifted to Pentonville Prison. The court had sentenced him to hard labour, which comprised of picking oakum and several hours of walking on the treadmill. After a few months, he was again moved to a different prison where the grueling conditions started taking a toll on his fragile health. On one such day, he collapsed from illness and hunger. The fall ruptured his ear drum, which played a major role in his eventual death.

Later Years 

Following his imprisonment, Wilde was shunned by society and left bankrupt. His immaculate public image was tarnished after the invasive court trials. He spent his last years in Europe, strolling in boulevards and drowning in his miseries. The little money he had was spent on alcohol. Wilde soon died of cerebral meningitis which stemmed majorly from his prison injury, leaving behind a rich legacy. He is a celebrated figure even today.

Enid Blyton: A Titan of Children’s Literature

 Introduction

When it comes to children’s books, probably no other English author can come close to the popularity of Enid Blyton. Enid Mary Blyton is one of Britain’s most popular authors, with numerous publications of stories, poems and plays targeted towards children.

Early life

Enid Blyton was born on the 11th of August 1897 in the eastern part of Dulwich in London, England. Her father was a salesman while her mother was a homemaker. She was the eldest of three siblings, having two younger brothers. As a child, she adored her father and shared a special bond with him. Her father had a keen interest in music, literature, theatre, gardening and nature. These interests were passed to her as well. Her father eventually walked out of the family when she was thirteen. This incident and its effects put a blow on her relationship with him and worsened her relationship with her mother. Unfortunately, Enid would never try to repair either relationship and remained distant the rest of her life.

In the September of 1916, she decided to enroll in a teacher training course at Ipswich High School, Ipswich. After finishing and getting her degree in 1918, she taught in a boys-school for a brief amount of time, before working as a nursery governess. She finally started writing as a profession in 1920.

Career

Enid Blyton showed an interest in writing from a young age. At the age of 14, she made her first foray into the literary world through a poetry competition. Her first publication was in March 1916 with a poetry submission in a children’s magazine called Nash’s Magazine. She actively started writing in 1920 and her work began to be noticed by quite a few publications. Her first published book was a twenty-four-page collection of poems. It was called Child Whispers and was published in 1922. She gained momentum as a writer in 1923, when her work of poems was published in the publication Teachers’ World alongside famous writers like Rudyard Kipling, Walter de la Mare and G.K. Chesterton.

Her first full length book and first series was Adventures of the Wishing Chair of the ‘Wishing Chair’ series. It was published in 1937. This would see the beginning of several of her famous series of books such as fantasy series like the Faraway Tree series and Wishing Chair series, the boarding school series like the Naughtiest Girl series, the St. Clare series, and the Malory Towers series along with detective series like the Secret Seven series, the Famous Five series and the Secret series. They continue to be popular and a sight seen in children’s section of libraries even today.

Apart from writing books, Enid Blyton was also had regular columns in magazines where she wrote about the mundane aspects of her life, along with her observations of her surrounding nature, an interest she had since childhood.

Death

In her mid-sixties, Enid Blyton began to show symptoms of dementia. She spent the final months of her life in a nursing home in London and passed away on the 28th of November 1968.