This article will be dedicated to such a famous English writer as Laurence Darrell. Today it is recognized as a classic of the 20th century. It is difficult to imagine, but at the beginning of his career, criticism was rather negative about his work. Darrell was accused of miserable imitation and verbiage, and the characters were called articulated and implausible. Years passed, and time put everything in its place, today there is no longer any doubt in the literary gift of the writer.
Lawrence Darrell: biography
Lawrence George Darrell was born February 27, 1912 in northern India in a small town called Jallandhar, located near Tibet. His parents, Irish mother Louise Florence Dixie and English father Laurence Samuel Darrell, were, oddly enough, natives of India. Such a mixture of different nationalities greatly influenced the formation of the writer, and later on his work. Darrell himself believed that he had a "Tibetan mentality."
Acquaintance with England
Happiness for little Darrell ended when he was 11 years old. It was at this time that he was sent to England by ship so that he could receive a full-fledged education. The historical homeland made a depressing and gloomy impression on the teenager. He dubbed the lifestyle of local residents "English death." Remaining completely alien to the English lifestyle, Darrell did not adapt to the new conditions, resisting school regulated life with all his might. The result of this resistance was that he was not able to pass the entrance exams to the university.
This did not upset Darrell at all, because by this moment he had made a decision that had become fateful - he decided to make a career as a writer. At first, he had problems with defining his own style both in prose and in poetry, but gradually the writer decided for himself this question.
First publications
In 1931, the future writer moved to London. Here, for the first time in 1932, Laurence Darrell is published (a poetic collection, "A Bizarre Fragment"). Then, in 1933, a literary parody of the B. Bromo Bombast Show was released. Lawrence publishes this work under one of his pseudonyms - Geffer Pislake.
In 1935, Darrell, having received a substantial fee from the Greek publishing house, moved to Corfu, where he rented a house. Here Darrell comes up with another pseudonym - Charles Norden. Under this name, the writer’s first novel, The Hamelnian Pipe of Love, is published by Cassel.
Important Decisions (1935)
Two events significant for the writer took place this year, which seriously affected his career. First, Lawrence Darrell persuades his mother and wife Nancy to move to him in Corfu (Greece). He argued that they could save a little and save themselves from the English winter. Life in Greece itself became a real revelation for Darrell - he realized that his ties with India had broken. Here he sketches a book, which in the future will turn into the Alexandria Quartet series.
Secondly, Lawrence read the novel Tropic of Cancer by Henry Miller, after which he wrote a letter to the author. This began their strong friendship, which lasted 45 years. Miller and Darrell often corresponded. They were united by a love of literature and the charm of the Far East. Miller immediately appreciated the literary talent of a new friend and morally supported him when criticism was sharply expressed regarding Darrell's new works.
Literary work
In 1936, the second major work of the writer Panic Spring was published. This name cannot be translated into Russian, as it is based on a pun - this phrase simultaneously means the springs of the catapult and the panic spring (formed on behalf of Pan, the ancient Greek deity).
In parallel with this novel, Lawrence Darrell is working on his first "serious" work, which was called the Black Book. The novel was published in 1938 as part of the "Villa Seura Series", and then in the publishing house "Obelisk Press", which has a scandalous reputation. The publication was made possible thanks to the help of G. Miller.
The Second World War
Lawrence Darrell is a writer who, like many, had to survive the Second World War.
In 1939, he entered the service of one of the Greek schools under the tutelage of the British Council, an English teacher. However, his teaching career did not last long. Already in 1941, on the eve of the German capture of Korfa, the Darrell family was forced to split up. Mother, taking the two youngest sons Leslie and Gerald (who later also became a writer) goes to England. Margo, Laurence's sister, was originally planning to stay on Corfu, but was later taken out by one of the English pilots, who later became her husband. Lawrence himself with his wife and one-year-old daughter Penelope go to Crete, and then run to Cairo.
Already in Cairo, relations with his wife deteriorate, and Darrell in 1942 sent to Alexandria, where he met with Eva Cohen, who would become the prototype of the main character of the book Justine. In Alexandria, Lawrence took over as the press officer of the British Information Service. Most of all in the writer's service he was attracted by the fact that he could observe those feelings, opinions and personalities that only military Alexandria could serve as the intersection of the West and the East.
Post-war years
In mid-1945, Laurence Darrell (photo of the writer can be seen in this article) returns to Greece again, being released, according to him, from the “Egyptian prison”. His first stop is Rhodes, where he has been director of public relations for two years. Then, in 1947, Darrell went to Argentina to take the post of director of the British Institute in Cordoba.
Since 1949, the writer lives in Belgrade (Yugoslavia), working as a press attaché at the British Embassy. In 1952, he leaves this post and moves to Cyprus, where he plans to devote all his time to literature. At that time he earns a living by teaching English. However, a year later, a war breaks out in Cyprus between the Turks, who wanted independence, the Greeks, who sought to annex the country's territory to Greece, and the British, who wanted to keep all the islands under their control. During this time, Darrell quit teaching and worked as a public relations officer in Nicosia. The events of these tragic years were reflected in the book of the writer "Bitter Lemons", published in 1957.
Main works
Even in Cyprus, the writer began to work on the book Justine, which became the first part of the Alexandria Quartet. The cycle was completed in 1956, and novels were published from 1957 to 1961. This work was a huge success not only among readers, but also critics.
In subsequent years, Darrell wrote two more major cycles: The Avignon Quintet and The Rise of Aphrodite. However, none of these works was as successful as the Quartet. The writer did not leave poetry either, in 1980 a collection of his poems called Collected Poems was published.
Personal life
Laurence Darrell was married four times. The writer's personal life turned out to be as eventful as his career.
His first wife was Nancy Myers. The exact year of their wedding is not indicated anywhere, but it is known that in 1935 they were already husband and wife. In 1940, the couple had a daughter Penelope. However, after 2 years, Darrell severed all relations with his wife and left for Alexandria. Nancy, in turn, went to Jerusalem with little Penelope.
In Alexandria, the writer meets Eva Cohen, they have an affair. Darrell everywhere takes the girl with him as a personal secretary. Despite a close relationship, Lawrence divorces Nancy only in 1946, and a year later marries Eve. In 1950, a couple was born a daughter, who is called Sappho.
Eva suffers from a mental disorder, and in 1951 her condition worsens. In 1953, a woman experiences a nervous breakdown. Relations between the writer and his wife are deteriorating.
In 1957, Darrell moved to Provence with Claude Vansendon, his new wife. And in 1966 the couple moved to Somiera, where Lawrence will live the rest of his life. Claude is diagnosed with cancer, from which she dies in 1967 in a Zurich hospital.
Darrell remarries in 1974 on Gislin de Boisson, model. However, the marriage did not last long, after 5 years the couple divorced.
The writer died on November 7, 1990 in his own house in France.
Lawrence Darrell: interesting facts from life
Strictly speaking, the whole life of a writer can be called an interesting fact - few people had the chance to travel and change professions as much as he did. Nevertheless, Darrell’s perception in our country is curious.
Despite its incredible popularity in Europe, in Russia the writer is known as the brother of Gerald Darrell, a naturalist writer.
He is also the author of several scenarios for the films of Lawrence Darrell, interesting facts about which we are now listing. In addition, he starred in a number of films, and in the films Henry Miller and Peace in War, he played himself.
The Alexandria Quartet
This is the very first cycle of a writer. Also, critics say this is the best Lawrence Darrell ever wrote. "Balthazar" - the 2nd book of the series is the most popular among readers.
The cycle itself tells about human relationships, feelings and ruthless laws of life. And if the first Justine novel is a love story, the second, Balthazar, reveals a political and detective subtext in this story. We can say that each subsequent book changes the perception of the reader, allowing you to see what is happening on the other side.
The series also includes the novels “Mountolive”, the events of which are described on behalf of David Mountolive, and “Clea”, which summarizes the logical result of everything that was described in the previous books of the series.