Somerset Maugham. Somerset Maugham and His Secret Life Maugham Novels

William Somerset Maugham was born on January 25, 1874 at the British Embassy in Paris. This birth of a child was more planned than accidental. Because at that time a law was written in France, the essence of which was that all young men born on French territory had to be drafted into the army upon reaching adulthood. Naturally, the very thought that their son, with English blood flowing in his veins, could soon join the ranks of the army that would fight against England frightened the parents and required decisive action. There was only one way to avoid this kind of situation - by giving birth to a child on the territory of the English embassy, ​​which, according to existing laws, was equivalent to birth on the territory of England. William was the fourth child in the family. And from early childhood, he was predicted to have a future as a lawyer, because both his father and grandfather were prominent lawyers, two brothers later became lawyers, and the most successful was the second brother, Frederick Herbert, who later became Lord Chancellor and Peer of England. But, as time has shown, the plans were not destined to come true.

Being born in Paris could not but affect the child. For example, a boy up to the age of eleven spoke only French. And the reason that prompted the child to start learning English was the sudden death of his mother Edith from consumption when he was eight, and his father died two years later. As a result, the boy finds himself in the care of his uncle Henry Maugham, who lived in the city of Whitstable in England, in the county of Kent. My uncle was a parish priest.

This period of life was not happy for little Maugham. My uncle and his wife were very callous, boring and rather stingy people. The boy also faced an acute problem of communicating with his guardians. Not knowing English, he could not establish relationships with new relatives. And, in the end, the result of such ups and downs in the young man’s life was that he began to stutter and Maugham would have this disease for the rest of his life.

William Maugham was sent to study at the Royal School, which was located in Canterbury, an ancient town located southeast of London. And here little William had more reasons for concern and worry than for happiness. He was constantly teased by his peers for his natural short stature and stuttering. English with a distinctive French accent was also a reason ridicule.

Therefore, moving to Germany in 1890 to study atHeidelberg University was an indescribable, indescribable happiness. Here he finally begins to study literature and philosophy, trying with all his might to get rid of his inherent accent. Here he will write his first work - a biography of the composer Meyerbeer. True, this essay will not cause a “storm of applause” from the publisher and Maugham will burn it, but this will be his first conscious attempt at writing.

In 1892, Maugham moved to London and entered medical school. This decision was not caused by a craving or inclination for medicine, but was made only because a young man from a decent family needed to get some more or less decent profession, and his uncle’s pressure also had an influence in this matter. He would subsequently receive a diploma as a physician and surgeon (October 1897), and even work for some time at St. Thomas's Hospital, which was located in one of the poorest areas of London. But the most important thing for him during this period was literature. Even then he clearly understands that this is precisely his calling and at night he begins to write his first creations. On weekends, he visits theaters and the Tivoli music hall, where he will watch all the performances that he could watch from the very back seats.

We will later see the period of life associated with his medical career in his novel “Lisa of Lambeth,” which was published by"Fischer An Win" will be released in 1897. The novel was accepted by both professionals and the general public. The first editions sold out in a matter of weeks, which gave Maugham confidence in the correctness of his choice towards literature rather than medicine.

1898 reveals William Maugham Somerset as a playwright, he writes his first play, “Man of Honor,” which will premiere on the stage of a modest theater only five years later. The play did not cause any furor, it was performed only for two evenings, and the reviews from critics were, to put it mildly, terrible. In fairness, it is worth noting that later, a year later, Maugham would remake this play, radically changing the ending. And already in the commercial theater The Avenue Theater will perform the play more than twenty times.

Despite his relatively unsuccessful first experience in drama, within ten years William Somerset Maugham would become a widely known and recognized playwright.

The comedy Lady Frederick, which was staged in 1908 on the Court Theater stage, enjoyed particular success.

A number of plays were also written that raised issues of inequality in society, hypocrisy, and corruption of representatives of different levels of government. These plays were received by society and critics differently - some sharply criticized them, others praised them for their wit and theatricality. However, despite the mixed reviews, it should be noted that on the eve of the First World War, Maugham Somerset became a recognized playwright, performances based on whose works were successfully staged both in England and abroad.

At the beginning of the war, the writer served with the British Red Cross. Subsequently, employees of the well-known British intelligence service MI5 recruit him into their ranks. So the writer becomes an intelligence officer and goes first to Switzerland for a year and then to Russia to carry out a secret mission, the purpose of which was to prevent Russia from leaving the war. He met with such famous political players of the time as A.F. Kerensky, B.V. Savinkov. etc.

Later, S. Maugham would write that this idea was doomed to failure in advance and he turned out to be a poor agent. The first positive aspect of this mission was Maugham’s discovery of Russian literature. In particular, he discovered Dostoevsky F.M., and was especially amazed by the works of Chekhov A.P., even began to learn Russian in order to read Anton Pavlovich in the original; the second moment was Maugham’s writing of a collection of stories “Ashenden or British Agent” (original title “Ashenden or British Agent”), dedicated to espionage themes.

During the period between the two world wars, the writer wrote a lot and also traveled often, which gave him the basis for writing new and new works. Now these are not only novels or plays, but also a number of short stories, sketches, and essays have been written.

A special place in the writer’s work is the autobiographical novel “The Burden of Human Passions” (1915). Writers of that time like Thomas Wolfe and Theodore Dreiser recognized the novel as brilliant.

During the same period of time, Maugham gravitated towards a new direction for him - socio-psychological drama. Examples of such works are “The Unknown” (1920), “For Merit” (1932), “Sheppie” (1933).

When World War II began, Maugham was in France. And it was not by chance that he ended up there, but by order of the Ministry of Information he was supposed to study the mood of the French and visit ships in Toulon. The result of such actions were articles that give the reader complete confidence that France will fight to the end and will survive this confrontation. The same sentiments permeate his book “France at War” (1940). And just three months after the book’s publication, France would surrender, and Maugham would need to urgently leave the country for England, as there were rumors that the Germans had blacklisted his name. From England he travels to the USA, where he arrives until the end of the war.

Returning to France after the war was full of sadness - his house was looted, the country was in complete devastation, but the main positive point was that the hated fascism was not just stopped, but destroyed to the ground and it was possible to live and write further.

It is no coincidence that during this post-war period Somerset Maugham wrote historical novels. In the books “Then and Now” (1946), “Catalina” (1948), the writer talks about power and its influence on people, about rulers and their policies, and pays attention to true patriotism. In these novels we see a new style of writing novels; there is a lot of tragedy in them.

“The Razor's Edge” (1944) is one of the last, if not the last, significant novel of the writer. The novel was definitive in many respects. When Maugham was once asked: “How long did it take him to write this book,” the answer was “All his life.”

In 1947, the writer decides to approve the Somerset Maugham Prize, which should be awarded to the best English writers under the age of 35.

In June 1952, the writer was awarded an honorary Doctor of Letters degree at Oxford.

In recent years, the writer has been immersed in writing essays. And the book “Great Writers and Their Novels,” published in 1848. is a clear confirmation of this. In this book the reader meets such characters as Tolstoy and Dostoevsky, Dickens and Emily Bronte, Fielding and Jane Austen, Stendhal and Balzac, Melville and Flaubert. All these great people accompanied Maugham throughout his long life.

Later, in 1952, his collection Changeable Moods was published, consisting of six essays, where we see memories of such novelists as G. James, G. Wells and A. Bennett, with whom Somerset Maugham was personally acquainted.

On December 15, 1965, the writer passed away. This happened in Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat (a city in France). The cause of death was pneumonia. The writer does not have a burial place as such; it was decided to scatter his ashes under the wall of the Maugham Library, at the Royal School in Canterbury.

Among the twenty novels published Somerset Maugham between 1897 and 1948, both readers and critics - in this sense there is no disagreement - recognize four as the best: The burden of human passions (1915), Moon and penny (1919), Pies and beer (1930) and razor edge (1944). It seems a very good idea to compare novels Pies and beer And razor edge , separated by a decade and a half, completely dissimilar in everyday, social and psychological situations, but still related to each other precisely in that they both reveal to the reader a slightly different Maugham, enriching our understanding of him. If such a paradoxical image is possible as Maugham the lyricist, Maugham, who looks with tenderness and trust at the human being emerging under his pen, then in both books, in each of them in its own way, this image is present. Of course, in each of them there is also Maugham the satirist, the skeptic, leading his calmly caustic commentary from the fair of everyday vanity - be it the London literary salon of the turn of the century, or the Chicago aristocratic the living room, or the hot spots of Paris. But an unusually soft, unusually excited intonation constantly makes its way to the surface, as if dividing our perception.

Another common feature of these novels: each of them was associated with certain circumstances of the author’s biography. And finally, both of them had a special readership resonance, although for completely different reasons. Title Pies and beer, or Skeleton in the closet immediately introduces us to the writer’s intention: it contains both humor and parody. The first half of it is borrowed from Shakespeare's Twelfth Night (Sir Toby's words to Malvolio: Do you think that if you are such a saint, there will be no more pies or intoxicating beer in the world?). The second is a common English idiom meaning a scandalous family secret. The idea, as was often the case with Maugham, was originally intended for a story. An early diary entry outlines the plot: ...I am asked to write memoirs about a famous novelist, a friend of my childhood, living in U. with his wife, an ordinary woman who is by no means faithful to him. There he writes his great works. He later marries his secretary, who babysits him and gradually turns him into an outstanding personality.. In the 1880s, an unknown writer and his family lived in Whitestable, a good-natured and sociable man who led a rather bohemian lifestyle and one fine day disappeared from the city with all his household, leaving a lot of debts. The story was never written, but the figure of the unknown writer served his purpose in Pies and beer - it was partly from her written off Edward Driffield in his obscurity.

Maugham rarely depicted the literary milieu in his prose, Pies and beer - and in this sense, an unusual book: in addition to the fact that a good part of the story is devoted to scenes from the life of literary London of the late 19th - early 20th centuries, its three main characters are writers. These are: Edward Driffield, Elroy Keir and the narrator himself Willie Ashenden - another literary mask of Somerset Maugham. Here he appears at his own age, as a dry, sarcastic, insightful gentleman, an author with a strong, if not sensational, reputation. In Elroy Keir - a fashionable and insightful fiction writer, a snob, a good-natured self-lover and a careerist (all these qualities successfully replace his talent) - with horror he recognized himself as Hugh Walpole, a very popular novelist in his time. Obviously, the portrait was eerily similar - many recognized the original. (Maugham denied that Walpole was the inspiration for this character, but later admitted this in private conversations.) But while Elroy Keir was greeted in literary circles with cheerful good nature, Edward Driffield turned out to be a source of great trouble for Somerset Maugham. In 1928 - two years before the release of the novel - Thomas Hardy died, by which time this title had been quite long and thorny. In Driffield both criticism and readership learned Thomas Hardy, which caused general and noisy indignation. The shocking analogies were largely justified: Driffield's appearance - both in mature years and in old age, the position of a patriarchal writer, which came only in his declining years, two marriages, and finally, the harsh realism of his later life. rural novels, at one time condemned as excessive, - all this was really associated with the author Tess And Jude the Unnoticed . On the other hand, there were fundamental differences between the literary image and the real person: Driffield's plebeian origins, his past as a sailor, his inclinations to simple entertainment, lack of scrupulousness in financial matters, and both of his wives - all this had nothing in common with Hardy’s life and character. This time Maugham's categorical statements that Edward Driffield is a collective and fictitious person and in his plan there is no encroachment on honor there was no English classic, they corresponded to the truth. Nevertheless, the success of the novel was accompanied by a scandalous aftertaste, which did much harm to it. The second part of the book’s title is connected with the Driffield-Ashenden line: ...or Skeleton in the Closet . It seems that it could be more incongruous in the application of the word skeleton to the heroine of the book - the charming Rosie, bursting with health and love of life? However, it was she, a former barmaid from a sailor's tavern, and then Driffield's legal wife, who later ran away from him, who turns out to be the one skeleton in the closet, with whom both the biographer and the second wife of the famous elder do not know what to do. After all, the time of Driffield’s creative heyday is associated with this “vulgar woman” - after she left her husband for a coal merchant from Blackstable, Driffield no longer wrote anything significant - he only turned into a “living monument” under the auspices of literary ladies like Mrs. Barton Trafford and well-meaning critics like Elroy Keir.

Rosie Driffield is also directly related to Ashenden, as it turns out in the course of his memories, but her relationship to Maugham himself remained hidden for decades. And the real name of the woman who was her prototype became known only after the death of the writer. In the preface to the reissue Pies and beer (1950) Maugham made a confession that was unexpected for everyone - he so carefully encrypted at one time the real person depicted under the name Rosie:

In my youth I was intimate with a young woman whom I named Rosie in this book. She had serious flaws that could be infuriating, but she was beautiful and honest. Our connection eventually fell apart, like all connections of this kind, but the memory of this woman lived in me year after year. I knew that sooner or later I would introduce her into the novel. The heroine's real name was discovered in the late 60s by artist Gerald Calley, who had known her since the early 1900s. This was Ethelwynn Jones, the daughter of the famous playwright Henry Arthur Jones, an actress - she also played in Maugham's plays. She was distinguished by an unartificial, open and friendly disposition, was very pretty and in her youth led a very free lifestyle. Her affair with Maugham lasted about eight years; she could, but did not want to become his wife and subsequently married an English aristocrat. This was the prototype, or rather, the prototype of Rosie Driffield, a peasant girl from Kent who could not stand the role of the wife of a venerable writer. It is not surprising that Rosie was considered a completely fictional figure, given how carefully the author disguised her real-life model. But for Maugham, the secret connection between Rosie and Ethelwinn was absolutely real: he knew his beloved so well that her appearance - unusually soft, feminine, shining with an even light of sweet kindness and calmness - very naturally molded into the appearance of Rosie Driffield. And the most amoralism Ashenden perceives this unfaithful wife and mistress of Maugham as something natural and almost immaculate, something akin to the generosity of nature. Of course, all this does not exclude suffering, but while suffering, neither Ashenden nor Driffield shows rancor. Rosie is not a destroyer, not a tormentor, like Mildred from The burden of human passions , - she is simply kind and humane. Warm, major sound Rosie tunes finds echoes in other themes of the novel. It is curious that Blackstable itself, and the parish priest’s family, in which the orphan young Ashenden lives, and even the closed school in neighboring Terkenbury (read: Canterbury) appear here in a completely different light than in Burden of passions , although the writer is based on the same personal memories that tormented Maugham for a long time. Everything took on a lighter nostalgic-humorous coloring, and instead of the unhappy, difficult-growing Owl Carey, in Ashenden’s retrospective story there appears a funny, awkward, snobbery-filled teenager who was tamed and warmed up suspicious in the eyes of respectable ordinary people, Driffields. And the present Ashenden - a generally unsympathetic personality, a writer, experienced in everyday affairs and the secrets of his career - shows true fidelity to their memory and has absolutely no intention toss Elroy Kier appropriate material for a biography Driffield Monument- that is, to defame his first wife.

If The burden of human passions - the most confessional book Somerset Maugham, Moon and penny - the most temperamental, Pies and beer - the most cheerful and lyrical, then razor edge - the most philosophical; or rather, this is his only work of art in which the end-to-end action is determined by the hero’s spiritual quest. After razor edges Maugham published only two historical novels ( Then and now , 1946, and Catalina , 1948), not of serious interest, so this book can be considered the completion and, to some extent, the result of his writing journey. The result, at first glance, is unexpected: not only the content of the novel is unexpected, but also the very position of the narrator, here as close as possible to the author.

Somerset Maugham, a pragmatist, an agnostic, completely alien to any mysticism, introduces into his narrative the theme of Vedanta - an ancient Indian religious teaching and sets out through the lips of his hero the foundations of this teaching. Some facts of the writer's literary biography indicate that his interest in religious and philosophical quests, or rather religious and moral ones, was not something completely new or accidental. Modern Saints- kind and unselfish people, ridiculed and scolded by their neighbors, he meets repeatedly, starting with the story Bad example (1899) and ending with his last play Shappy (1933). Crime-melodramatic novel Tight corner (1932) with authentic Maugham's a play of dark passions unfolding against an exotic backdrop, contains reflections on Buddhism, and at the center of the action is the figure of the idealistic romantic Christessen. In the novel Painted veil (1925) the heroine is a vain young woman who admires the quiet dedication of Catholic nuns who nurse sick and abandoned children in an epidemic-ridden Chinese city. Let us note, by the way, that the ominous figure of missionary Davison from the story Rain most of all it repels with its merciless intolerant fanaticism; according to Davison, he is not a hypocrite or a hypocrite, but a man of passionate conviction, not sparing himself in anything: he is ready to send him to prison fallen woman, but for the fall he will execute himself by death.

Thus, although Maugham was never - nor did he become - a religious writer, this aspect of the novel razor edge prepared by the previous history of creativity and not for the sake of one thing, only for the effect on the question: how long did he work on The edge of a razor , - the writer replied: Sixty years.

Somerset Maugham was the author of 21 novels, a short story writer and playwright, a critic and socialite who moved in the highest circles of London, New York and Paris. The writer created in the genre of realism, focusing on the traditions of naturalism, modernism and neo-romanticism.

Childhood and youth

William Somerset Maugham was born on January 25, 1874. The son of a lawyer at the British Embassy in Paris, he spoke French before he mastered English. Somerset was the youngest child in the family. The three brothers were much older, and at the time of their departure to study in England, the boy was left alone in his parents’ house.

Somerset Maugham with his dog

He spent a lot of time with his mother and was attached to her. The mother died of tuberculosis when the child was 8 years old. This loss was the greatest shock in Maugham's life. The experiences provoked a speech impediment: Somerset began to stutter. This feature remained with him throughout his life.

The father died when the boy was 10 years old. The family broke up. The older brothers studied to become lawyers at Cambridge, and Somerset was sent under the tutelage of a priest uncle, in whose house he spent his youth.

The child grew up lonely and withdrawn. Children raised in England did not accept him. The French-speaking Maugham's stutter and accent were ridiculed. On this basis, shyness became more and more intense. The boy had no friends. Books became the only outlet for the future writer, who studied at a boarding school.

At the age of 15, Somerset persuaded his uncle to let him go to Germany to study German. Heidelberg was the place where he first felt free. The young man listened to lectures on philosophy, studied drama and became interested in theater. Somerset's interests concerned creativity, Spinoza, and.

Maugham returned to Britain at the age of 18. He had a sufficient level of education to choose a future profession. His uncle directed him towards the path of a clergyman, but Somerset chose to go to London, where in 1892 he became a student at the medical school at St. Thomas's Hospital.

Literature

The study of medicine and the practice of medicine made Somerset not only a certified physician, but also a man who saw through people. Medicine left its mark on the writer’s style. He rarely used metaphors or hyperbole.

The first steps in literature were weak, since among Maugham’s acquaintances there were no people who could guide him on the right path. He translated Ibsen's works in order to study the technique of creating drama, and wrote stories. In 1897, the first novel, “Lisa of Lambeth,” was published.

Analyzing the works of Fielding and Flaubert, the writer also focused on trends that are relevant to our time. He worked hard and fruitfully, gradually becoming one of the most widely read authors. His books sold quickly, bringing income to the writer.

Maugham studied people, using their destinies and characters in his work. He believed that the most interesting things are hidden in the everyday. This was confirmed by the novel “Lisa of Lambeth,” in which the influence of creativity was felt.

In the novel "Mrs. Craddock" the author's passion for prose was visible. For the first time he asked questions about life and love. Maugham's plays made him a wealthy man. The premiere of Lady Frederick, which took place in 1907, established him as a playwright.

Maugham adhered to the traditions glorified by the Restoration theater. Comedies were authoritative for him. Maugham's plays are divided into comic, where ideas similar to reflections are voiced, and dramatic, reflecting social problems.

Maugham's work reflected his experience of participating in the First and Second World Wars. The author reflected his vision in the works “For Military Merit” and “On the Edge of the Razor.” During the war years, Maugham was in an autosanitary unit in France, in intelligence, working in Switzerland and in Russia. In the final, he ended up in Scotland, where he was treated for tuberculosis.

The writer traveled a lot, visited different countries in Europe and Asia, Africa and the islands in the Pacific Ocean. This enriched his inner world and gave him impressions that he used in his creativity. The life of Somerset Maugham was eventful and interesting facts.

“The Burden of Human Passions” and the autobiographical work “On Human Slavery” are novels that combine these categories. In the novel “The Moon and a Penny,” Maugham talks about the tragedy of an artist, in “The Veil of Color” - about the fate of a scientist, and in “Theater” - about the everyday life of an actress.

Somerset Maugham's novellas and stories are distinguished by their sharp plots and psychologism. The author keeps the reader in suspense and uses surprise. The presence of the author’s “I” in works is their traditional feature.

Personal life

Critics and biographers have discussed the ambiguity of Maugham's persona. His first biographers described the writer as a man with a bad character, a cynic and a misogynist, unable to take criticism. An intelligent, ironic and hardworking writer purposefully paved his way to literary heights.

He focused not on intellectuals and aesthetes, but on those for whom his works were relevant. Maugham forbade the publication of personal correspondence after his death. The ban was lifted in 2009. This made some of the nuances of his life clearer.

There were two women in the writer's life. He was very fond of Ethelvina Jones, known as Sue Jones. Her image is used in the novel “Pies and Beer”. The daughter of a popular playwright, Etelvina was a successful 23-year-old actress when she met Maugham. She had just divorced her husband and quickly succumbed to the writer’s advances.

Miss Jones was famous for her easy-going nature and approachability. Maugham did not consider this vicious. At first he did not plan a wedding, but soon changed his mind. The writer’s marriage proposal was refused. The girl was pregnant from someone else.

Somerset Maugham married Siri Maugham, the daughter of a philanthropist known for his charitable work. Siri has already been married. At 22, she married Henry Wellcome, who was 48 years old. The man was the owner of a pharmaceutical corporation.

The family quickly fell apart due to his wife's infidelity with the owner of a chain of London department stores. Maugham met the girl in 1911. Their union produced a daughter, Elizabeth. At that time, Siri was not divorced from Wellcome. The connection with Maugham turned out to be scandalous. The girl attempted suicide because of her ex-husband's demands for divorce.

Maugham acted like a gentleman and married Siri, although his feelings for her quickly disappeared. Soon the couple began to live separately. In 1929, their official divorce took place. Today, Maugham’s bisexuality is no secret to anyone, which is neither confirmed nor denied by his biographers.

The alliance with Gerald Haxton confirmed the writer’s passions. Somerset Maugham was 40, and his companion was 22 years old. For 30 years, Haxton accompanied Maugham as his travel secretary. He drank, gambled, and spent Maugham's money.

The writer used Haxton's acquaintances as prototypes for his works. It is known that Gerald even looked for new partners for Maugham. One of these men was David Posner.

The seventeen-year-old boy met Maugham in 1943, when he was 69 years old. Haxton died of pulmonary edema and was succeeded by Alan Searle, an admirer and new lover of the writer. In 1962, Maugham officially adopted his secretary, depriving his daughter Elizabeth of inheritance rights. But the daughter managed to defend her legal rights, and the court declared the adoption invalid.

Death

Somerset Maugham died of pneumonia at the age of 92. This happened on December 15, 1965 in the provincial French town of Saint-Jean-Cap-Ferrat, near Nice. Contrary to French laws, the patient who died within the hospital walls was not subjected to an autopsy, but was transported home and an official declaration of death was made the next day.

The writer's relatives and friends said that he had found his final refuge in his beloved villa. The writer does not have a burial place, as he was cremated. Maugham's ashes were scattered near the walls of the library at the Royal School in Canterbury. This establishment bears his name.

Bibliography

• 1897 - "Lisa of Lambeth"
• 1901 - "Hero"
• 1902 - "Mrs. Craddock"
• 1904 - “Carousel”
• 1908 - “The Magician”
• 1915 - “The Burden of Human Passions”
• 1919 - “The Moon and a Penny”
• 1922 - “On a Chinese screen”
• 1925 - “Patterned cover”
• 1930 - “Pies and Beer, or Skeleton in the Closet”
• 1931 - “Six stories written in the first person”
• 1937 - “Theater”
• 1939 - “Christmas Vacation”
• 1944 - “The Razor’s Edge”
• 1948 - “Catalina”

Quotes

Quotes, aphorisms and sayings of the witty Maugham are relevant today. They comment on life situations, people’s perceptions, the author’s position and his attitude towards his own work.

“Before writing a new novel, I always re-read Candide, so that later I can unconsciously measure myself by this standard of clarity, grace and wit.”

“I would not go to see my plays at all, neither on the opening night, nor on any other evening, if I did not consider it necessary to test their effect on the public, in order to learn from this how to write them.”

“Dying is a terribly boring and painful task. My advice to you is to avoid anything like that.”

“The funny thing about life is that if you refuse to accept anything but the best, that’s often what you get.”

William Somerset Maugham is a British writer, playwright, literary critic, and screenwriter. One of the most successful prose writers of the twentieth century. Recipient of the Companion of Honor, Britain's most important award for achievements in the arts and literature. He has 78 works to his credit. Film adaptations of Somerset Maugham's novels and theatrical productions of his plays are still a huge success. The works do not lose their relevance due to light irony, English humor and psychologism. Maugham also wrote stories, essays and travel notes. We have collected the most important works of the author, which you should definitely get acquainted with.

Maugham was born into the family of a lawyer at the British Embassy in France. The birth was specially organized on the premises of the British Embassy so that the child would receive British citizenship. The writer's grandfather, father and brother were outstanding lawyers and prophesied the same fate for little William.

For the first 10 years of his life, Maugham spoke only French. He spoke English only after returning to England. This event was overshadowed by the death of both parents, which caused Somerset to stutter. The illness remained with him until the end of his life.

During World War I, Maugham served as a British intelligence agent. On instructions from MI5, he went to Russia to prevent that country from leaving the war. He spent four months in Moscow and returned to his homeland during the events of the October Revolution, failing the mission.

Literary field

Maugham created his first work while still at university. When the work was rejected by publishers, the author burned the manuscript. The play “Lady Frederick” (1907) brought real success and recognition of Maugham’s talent. At the time of publication, the author was 33 years old.

In 1915, the largely autobiographical novel “The Burden of Human Passions” was published. The main character repeated the fate of the writer. He was orphaned early, deprived of the support and love of his loved ones. However, in the end he managed to find his place in life and found peace of mind. This was followed by the novels “The Moon and a Penny” (1919), “Pies and Wine” (1930), “The Razor’s Edge” (1944).

Pay special attention to the novel “Theater” (1937) - this is an ironic story of the life of a talented actress. She experiences a midlife crisis, falls in love with her young admirer, seeks peace of mind and ultimately comes to the realization that what is most valuable in life. The novel is life-affirming and light. The film adaptation of this novel by Maugham (dir. István Szabó, 2004) was nominated for an Oscar. Leading actress Annette Bening received a Golden Globe for Best Actress.

A year later, autobiographical notes “Summing Up” (1938) were published. In this book, Maugham shares his writing experience and, in a unique ironic manner, talks about the difficulties and joys of literary activity. The book allows you to look at Maugham's work with different eyes.

Summing up

In 1940, Maugham became Britain's most famous and richest writer. He was 66 years old. He admitted in an interview that he writes “not for money, but in order to get rid of the ideas, characters, types that haunt the imagination.” But he “doesn’t mind if creativity provides the opportunity to be your own master.” Interestingly, Maugham wrote 1,500 words a day. His desk was located opposite a blank wall, so that nothing would distract from the heroes. Maugham was married, but the marriage did not last long. The writer had no children. He died at the age of 92 in Nice. His ashes were scattered at the Maugham Library in Canterbury.

Biography

William Somerset Maugham (English: William Somerset Maugham [ˈsʌməsɪt mɔːm]; January 25, 1874, Paris - December 16, 1965, Nice) was a British writer, one of the most successful prose writers of the 1930s, author of 78 books, British intelligence agent.

William Somerset Maugham was born on January 20, 1874 in Paris in the family of a lawyer. His father served in the British embassy, ​​and the appearance of little Somerset on the territory of the embassy, ​​according to his parents, was supposed to bring him exemption from conscription into the French army, and in case of war, from being sent to the front.

At the age of ten, the boy moved to live in England in the city of Whitstable, Kent County, with relatives due to huge losses. Due to serious illnesses, first the mother dies, then the father. It is not surprising that upon arrival in the UK, little William begins to stutter, and this will remain with him for the rest of his life. However, the family of vicar Henry Maugham paid due attention to the upbringing and education of the child. First studying at the Royal School in Canterbury, then entering the University of Heidelberg to study philosophy and literature.

Here was the first attempt at writing - a biography of the composer Meyerbeer. The work did not suit the publisher, and the upset William burned it.

In 1892, to study medicine, William entered the medical school at St. Thomas in London. Five years later, in his first novel, Lisa of Lambeth, he would tell about this. But the play “Lady Frederick” brought the writer his first real literary success in 1907.

During the First World War, Maugham served in British intelligence, as an agent of which he was sent to Russia, where he remained until the October Revolution. In Petrograd, he repeatedly met with Kerensky, Savinkov and others. The scout's mission failed due to the revolution, but was reflected in the novels. After the war, William Somerset Maugham worked hard and fruitfully in the literary field, plays, novels, and short stories were published. Visits to China and Malaysia brought inspiration to write two collections of short stories.

Another of the most interesting facts in Maugham’s biography is his purchase of a Villa in Cap Ferrat on the French Riviera. It was one of the most magnificent literary and social salons of that time, where there were such celebrities as Winston Churchill and Herbert Wells. Sometimes Soviet writers also visited there. Most of the time, the writer is exclusively occupied with creativity, which brings him worldwide fame and money. He approved the Somerset Maugham Prize. It was given to young English writers.

Second interesting fact: Maugham placed his desk opposite a blank wall. He believed that this way nothing would distract him from his work. And I always worked in the same mode: at least 1000-1500 words per morning.

William Somerset Maugham died on 12/15. 1965 at the age of 91 near Nice from pneumonia.

Somerset Maugham - list of all books

All genres Novel Prose Realism Classic prose Biography

Year	Name	Rating
2012		7.97 (
1915		7.83 (77)
1937		7.81 (69)
1925		7.66 (35)
1921		7.64 (
1921		7.59 (
1944		7.46 (18)
		7.42 (
1925		7.42 (
1943		7.42 (
1937		7.39 (
1908		7.38 (
2011		7.38 (
1898		7.38 (
1902		7.32 (
1939		7.31 (
1948		7.31 (
1921		7.31 (
1925		7.31 (
1948		7.19 (
1904		7.19 (
1930		7.15 (
1947		6.98 (
2013		6.92 (51)
1922		6.64 (
1901		6.63 (
1921		6.61 (
		0.00 (
		0.00 (

Roman (35.71%)

Prose (21.43%)

Realism (21.43%)

Classic prose (14.29%)

Biography (7.14%)

For you there is no difference between truth and fiction. You're always playing. This habit is second nature to you. You play when you receive guests. You play in front of the servants, in front of your father, in front of me. In front of me you play the role of a tender, indulgent, famous mother. You don't exist. You are only the countless roles you have played. I often ask myself: were you ever yourself or from the very beginning served only as a means of bringing to life all the characters you portrayed. When you walk into an empty room, sometimes I want to suddenly swell the door there, but I have never dared to do this - I’m afraid that I won’t find anyone there.

Irony is a gift from the gods, the most subtle way of verbally expressing thoughts. This is both armor and weapons; both philosophy and constant entertainment; food for a hungry mind and a drink that quenches the thirst for fun. How much more elegant is it to kill an enemy by pricking him with the thorn of irony than to crush his head with the ax of sarcasm or beat him off with the club of abuse. The master of irony enjoys it only when the true meaning of the statement is known to him alone, and sprinkles it into his sleeve, watching how those around him, shackled by the chains of their stupidity, take his words absolutely seriously. In a harsh world, irony is the only protection for the careless. For the writer, this is a projectile with which he can shoot at the reader in order to refute the vile heresy that he creates books not for himself, but for the subscribers of the Mudie library. Do not be misled, dear reader: a self-respecting author has nothing to do with you.

From the book "Mrs. Craddock" -

I won’t lie, from time to time I allowed myself to have some fun. A man cannot do without this. Women, they are built differently.

From the book “Toys of Fate” -

It seems to me that the world in which we live can be looked at without disgust only because there is beauty that man creates from chaos from time to time. The paintings, the music, the books he writes, the life he manages to live. And most of all beauty lies in a life well lived. This is the highest work of art.

From the book “Patterned Veil” -

Life has no meaning at all. On earth, a satellite of a star rushing into infinity, all living things arose under the influence of certain conditions in which this planet developed; just as life began on it, it can end under the influence of other conditions; man is just one of the diverse species of this life; he is by no means the crown of the universe, but a product of the environment. Philip remembered a story about an Eastern ruler who wanted to know the whole history of mankind; the sage brought him five hundred volumes; busy with state affairs, the king sent him away, ordering him to present all this in a more concise form; twenty years later the sage returned - the history of mankind now occupied only fifty volumes, but the king was already too old to master so many thick books, and sent the sage away again; Another twenty years passed, and the aged, gray-haired sage brought the lord a single volume containing all the wisdom of the world that he longed to know; but the king was on his deathbed and did not have time left to read even this one book. Then the sage told him the history of mankind in one line, and it read: man is born, suffers and dies. Life has no meaning and human existence is purposeless. But what difference does it make then whether a person was born or not, whether he lives or dies? Life, like death, lost all meaning. Philip rejoiced, as he had once done in his youth - then he rejoiced that he had cast off faith in God from his soul: it seemed to him that he was now freed from all the burden of responsibility and for the first time became completely free. His insignificance became his strength, and he suddenly felt that he could fight the cruel fate that pursued him: for if life is meaningless, the world no longer seems so cruel. It does not matter whether this or that person accomplished anything or failed to accomplish anything. Failure changes nothing, and success is zero. Man is only the smallest grain of sand in a huge human whirlpool that has swept over the earth’s surface for a short moment; but he becomes omnipotent as soon as he unravels the secret that chaos is nothing. Thoughts crowded into Philip's fevered brain, he was choking with joyful excitement. He wanted to sing and dance. He hadn't been this happy in months. “Oh life,” he exclaimed in his soul, “oh life, where is your sting?” The same play of imagination that had proved to him, as twice two makes four, that life has no meaning, prompted him to a new discovery: it seems that he finally understood why Cronshaw gave him the Persian carpet. A weaver weaves a pattern on a carpet not for any purpose, but simply to satisfy his aesthetic need, so a person can live his life in the same way; if he believes that he is not free in his actions, let him look at his life as a ready-made pattern that he cannot change. Nobody forces a person to weave the pattern of his life, there is no pressing need for this - he does it only for his own pleasure. From the diverse events of life, from deeds, feelings and thoughts, he can weave a pattern - the design will come out strict, intricate, complex or beautiful, and even if it is only an illusion, as if the choice of design depends on himself, even if it is just a fantasy, a pursuit of ghosts in the deceptive light of the moon - that’s not the point; since it seems so to him, therefore, for him it really is so. Knowing that nothing makes sense and nothing matters, a person can still find satisfaction in choosing the various threads that he weaves into the endless fabric of life: after all, it is a river that has no source and flows endlessly, without flowing into any seas . There is one pattern - the simplest, most perfect and beautiful: a person is born, matures, gets married, gives birth to children, works for a piece of bread and dies; but there are other, more intricate and amazing patterns, where there is no place for happiness or the desire for success - perhaps some kind of alarming beauty is hidden in them. Some lives - among them Hayward's - were cut short by blind chance, when the pattern was still far from complete; I could only console myself with the fact that it didn’t matter; other lives, such as Cronshaw's, form such an intricate pattern that it is difficult to understand it - you need to change your perspective, abandon your usual views, in order to understand how such a life justifies itself. Philip believed that by giving up the pursuit of happiness, he was saying goodbye to the last illusion. His life seemed terrible while happiness was the criterion, but now that he decided that it could be approached with a different standard, he seemed to have increased strength. Happiness mattered as little as grief. Both of these, along with other small events of his life, were woven into its pattern. For a moment he seemed to rise above the accidents of his existence and felt that neither happiness nor grief could ever influence him as before. Everything that happens to him next will only weave a new thread into the complex pattern of his life, and when the end comes, he will rejoice that the pattern is close to completion. It will be a work of art, and it will not become less beautiful because he alone knows about its existence, and with his death it will disappear. Philip was happy.