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Arnold Bennett, British novelist
Arnold Bennett, British novelist

Enoch Arnold Bennett (May 27, 1867 - March 27, 1931) was an English novelist. Events 927 - Simeon the Great, Tsar of Bulgaria, dies 1120 - Richard III of Capua is anointed Year 1867 ( MDCCCLXVII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting Events 196 BC - Ptolemy V ascends to the throne of Egypt. 1309 - Pope Clement V excommunicates Year 1931 ( MCMXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1931 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland A novel (from Italian novella, Spanish novela, French nouvelle for "new" "news" or "short story

Contents

Life

Bennett was born in a modest house in Hanley in the Potteries district of Staffordshire. The Potteries Urban Area is a Conurbation in North Staffordshire in the West Midlands region of England. Staffordshire (abbreviated Staffs) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. Hanley is one of a conurbation of six towns which joined together at the beginning of the twentieth century as Stoke-on-Trent. Stoke-on-Trent ( often abbreviated to Stoke) is a city in Staffordshire, England which forms a linear Conurbation almost 12 miles (19 Enoch Bennett, his father, qualified as a solicitor in 1876, and the family were able to move to a larger house between Hanley and Burslem [1]. Year 1876 ( MDCCCLXXVI) was a Leap year starting on Saturday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian Calendar (or a Leap year The town of Burslem, known as the Mother Town, is one of the six towns that amalgamated to form the current city of Stoke-on-Trent, in the ceremonial county The younger Bennett was educated locally in Newcastle-under-Lyme. Newcastle-under-Lyme, known simply as "castle" to many local people is a Market town in Staffordshire, England, and is the principal

Arnold was employed by his father - his duties included rent collecting. He was unhappy working for his father for little financial reward, and the theme of parental miserliness is important in his novels. In his spare time he was able to do a little journalism, but his breakthrough as a writer was to come after he had moved from his native Potteries. At the age of twenty-one, he left his father's practice and went to London as a solicitor's clerk. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom.

He won a literary competition in Tit-Bits magazine in 1889 and was encouraged to take up journalism full time. Tit-Bits (or to give it its full title Tit-Bits from all the interesting Books Periodicals and Newspapers of the World was a British weekly magazine founded by George Newnes Year 1889 ( MDCCCLXXXIX) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common In 1894, he became assistant editor of the periodical Woman. Year 1894 ( MDCCCXCIV) was a Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common He noticed that the material offered by a syndicate to the magazine was not very good, so he wrote a serial which was bought by the syndicate for 75 pounds. He then wrote another. This became The Grand Babylon Hotel. Just over four years later, his first novel A Man from the North was published to critical acclaim and he became editor to the magazine.

From 1900 he devoted himself full time to writing, giving up the editorship and writing much serious criticism, and also theatre journalism, one of his special interests. Year 1900 ( MCM) was an exceptional Common year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar Theatre (or theater, see spelling differences) is the branch of the Performing arts defined by Bernard Beckerman as what "occurs when one He moved to Trinity Hall Farm, Hockliffe, Bedfordshire on Watling Street, which was the inspiration for his novel Teresa of Watling Street, which came out in 1904. Hockliffe is a Village in Bedfordshire on the crossroads of the A5 road (formerly Watling Street) and the A4012 road. Watling Street is the name given to an Ancient trackway in England and Wales that was first used by the Celts mainly between the modern His father Enoch Bennett died there in 1902, and is buried in Chalgrove churchyard. In 1902, Anna of the Five Towns, the first of a succession of stories which detailed life in the Potteries, appeared. Year 1902 ( MCMII) was a Common year starting on Wednesday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting

In 1903, he moved to Paris, where other great artists from around the world had converged on Montmartre and Montparnasse. Year 1903 ( MCMIII) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display calendar of the Gregorian calendar or a Common year starting Paris (ˈpærɨs in English; in French) is the Capital of France and the country's largest city Montmartre is a hill (the butte Montmartre) which is 130 metres high giving its name to the surrounding district in the north of Paris in the 18th Montparnasse is an area of Paris, France, on the left bank of the river Seine, centred on the intersection of the Boulevard du Montparnasse Bennett spent the next eight years writing novels and plays. In 1908 The Old Wives' Tale was published, and was an immediate success throughout the English-speaking world. Year 1908 ( MCMVIII) was a Leap year starting on Wednesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year After a visit to America in 1911, where he had been publicised and acclaimed as no other visiting writer since Dickens, he returned to England where Old Wives' Tale was reappraised and hailed as a masterpiece. Year 1911 ( MCMXI) was a Common year starting on Sunday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year During the First World War, he became Director of Propaganda at the War Ministry. World War I (abbreviated WWI; also known as the First World War, the Great War, and the War to End All Propaganda is a concerted set of messages aimed at influencing the opinions or behaviors of large numbers of people He refused a knighthood in 1918. Knight is the English term for a social position originating in the Middle Ages. Year 1918 ( MCMXVIII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common He won the 1923 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for his novel Riceyman Steps and in 1926, at the suggestion of Lord Beaverbrook, he began writing an influential weekly article on books for the Evening Standard newspaper. Founded in 1919 the James Tait Black Memorial Prizes are among the oldest and most prestigious book prizes awarded for literature written in the English Language and are Britain's Year 1926 ( MCMXXVI) was a Common year starting on Friday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar. William Maxwell "Max" Aitken 1st Baron Beaverbrook Bt The London Evening Standard is an English Tabloid regional local newspaper published and sold in London and surrounding areas of southeast

Osbert Sitwell[1], in a letter to James Agate[2], notes that Bennett was not, despite current views, "the typical businessman, with his mean and narrow outlook". Sir Francis Osbert Sacheverell Sitwell 5th Baronet, ( December 6, 1892 &ndash May 4, 1969) was an English writer James Evershed Agate ( September 9, 1877 - June 6, 1947) was a British diarist and critic and a notable collector of Aphorisms Sitwell cited a letter from Bennett to a friend of Agate, who remains anonymous, in Ego 5:

I find I am richer this year than last; so I enclose a cheque for 500 pounds for you to distribute among young writers and artists and musicians who may need the money. You will know, better than I do, who they are. But I must make one condition, that you do not reveal that the money has come from me, or tell anyone about it.

He separated from his French wife in 1922, but fell in love with the actress Dorothy Cheston, with whom he stayed for the rest of his life. He died of typhoid at his home in Baker Street, London, on March 27, 1931. Typhoid fever, also known as enteric fever, bilious fever, Yellow Jack or commonly just typhoid, is an illness caused by the Bacterium Baker Street is a street in the Marylebone district of the City of Westminster in London. London ( ˈlʌndən is the capital and largest urban area in the United Kingdom. Events 196 BC - Ptolemy V ascends to the throne of Egypt. 1309 - Pope Clement V excommunicates Year 1931 ( MCMXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1931 calendar of the Gregorian calendar. His ashes are buried in Burslem cemetery. The town of Burslem, known as the Mother Town, is one of the six towns that amalgamated to form the current city of Stoke-on-Trent, in the ceremonial county Their daughter Virginia Eldin lived in France and was president of the Arnold Bennett Society.

Work

His most famous works are the Clayhanger trilogy and The Old Wives' Tale. Clayhanger redirects here For the English settlements see Clayhanger Devon and Clayhanger West Midlands The Clayhanger The Old Wives' Tale is a Novel by Arnold Bennett, first published in 1908 These books draw on his experience of life in the Potteries, as did most of his best work. In his novels the Potteries are referred to as "the Five Towns"; Bennett felt that the name was more euphonious than "the Six Towns" so Fenton was omitted. The real towns and their Bennett counterparts are:


The Six Towns of Stoke-on-Trent Bennett's Five Towns
Tunstall Turnhill
Burslem Bursley
Hanley Hanbridge
Stoke Knype
Fenton The 'forgotten town'
Longton Longshaw


Bennett believed that ordinary people had the potential to be the subject of interesting books. Tunstall is an area in Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England. The town of Burslem, known as the Mother Town, is one of the six towns that amalgamated to form the current city of Stoke-on-Trent, in the ceremonial county Stoke, or to give it its full name Stoke-upon-Trent is a component town of the city of City of Stoke-on-Trent, in the ceremonial county of Staffordshire Fenton is one of the Six Towns of the Stoke-on-Trent conurbation which were federated in 1910 Longton is a southern district of Stoke-on-Trent, Staffordshire, England, and is known locally as the "Neck End" of the city In this respect, an influence which Bennett himself acknowledged was the French writer Maupassant whose "Une Vie" inspired "The Old Wives' Tale". Guy de Maupassant (gi də mopasɑ̃ (5 August 1850 &ndash 6 July 1893 was a popular 19th-century French Writer and considered one of the fathers of the modern

As well as the novels, much of Bennett's non-fiction work has stood the test of time. One of his most popular non-fiction works, which is still read to this day, is the self-help book "How to Live on 24 Hours a Day". His diaries have yet to be published in full, but extracts from them are often quoted in the British press. Bennett also wrote for the stage and the screen. His novel Buried Alive was made into the 1912 movie The Great Adventure and the 1968 musical Darling of the Day. Year 1912 ( MCMXII) was a Leap year starting on Monday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Leap year starting Darling of the Day is a musical with a book by Nunnally Johnson, lyrics by E Over the years, several of his other books have been made into films (for example The Card starring Alec Guinness) and television mini-series (such as "Anna of the Five Towns" and "Clayhanger"). The Card is a short comedic Novel written by Arnold Bennett in 1911 Sir Alec Guinness, CH, CBE (2 April 1914 &ndash 5 August 2000 was an English Actor.

Criticism

Critically, Bennett has not always had an easy ride. His output was prodigious and, by his own admission, based on maximising his income rather than from creative necessity.

As Bennett put it:

"Am I to sit still and see other fellows pocketing two guineas apiece for stories which I can do better myself? Not me. If anyone imagines my sole aim is art for art’s sake, they are cruelly deceived. "

Contemporary critics (Virginia Woolf in particular) perceived weaknesses in his work, which they partly attributed to this factor. (Adeline Virginia Woolf (née Stephen; 25 January 1882 – 28 March 1941 was an English Novelist and Essayist, regarded as one of the foremost This may have been unfair - did critics search for weakness on the assumption that writing for financial gain must give rise to it? Did they attribute a genuine weakness in Bennett's work to an unrelated factor? Or were they making an unbiased and valid point? It must also be recognised that Bennett represented the "old guard" in literary terms. His style was traditional rather than modern, which made him an obvious target for those challenging literary conventions. [3] [4] Max Beerbohm criticized him as a social climber who'd forgotten his roots. He drew a mature and well fed Bennett expounding "All to plan, you see" to a younger tougher version of himself, who replies: "Yes- but MY plan".

His reputation, for much of the 20th Century, was tainted by this perception, and it was not until the 1990s that a more positive view of his work became widely accepted. The noted critic John Carey was a major influence on his rehabilitation. John Carey (born April 5 1934) is a British literary critic and emeritus Merton Professor of English Literature at the University of Oxford. He praises him in his 1992 book, The Intellectuals and the Masses. ISBN 978-0571169269.  , declaring Bennett to be his "hero" because his writings "represent a systematic dismemberment of the intellectuals' case against the masses" (p. 152).

Works

Fiction

Non-fiction


For further guidance consult Studies in the sources of Arnold Bennett's novels by Louis Tillier (Didier, Paris 1949), and Arnold Bennett and Stoke-on-Trent by E. The Regent may refer to Philippe II Duke of Orleans The Regent, a novel by Arnold Bennett A Centauri Clayhanger redirects here For the English settlements see Clayhanger Devon and Clayhanger West Midlands The Clayhanger Clayhanger redirects here For the English settlements see Clayhanger Devon and Clayhanger West Midlands The Clayhanger Riceyman Steps is the title of a novel by British novelist Arnold Bennett, first published in 1923 and winner of that year's James Clayhanger redirects here For the English settlements see Clayhanger Devon and Clayhanger West Midlands The Clayhanger Imperial Palace is the last longest novel by author Arnold Bennett and was published in 1930 the year before he died Literary Taste How to Form it is a long Essay by Arnold Bennett, first published in 1909 with a revised edition by his friend Frank Swinnerton How to Live on 24 Hours a Day (1910 written by Arnold Bennett, is part of a larger work entitled How to Live. Those United States, subtitled Impressions of a First Visit, is a book detailing Arnold Bennett 's first journey (via a transatlantic Steam ship Those United States, subtitled Impressions of a First Visit, is a book detailing Arnold Bennett 's first journey (via a transatlantic Steam ship How to Live on 24 Hours a Day (1910 written by Arnold Bennett, is part of a larger work entitled How to Live. How to Live on 24 Hours a Day (1910 written by Arnold Bennett, is part of a larger work entitled How to Live. J. D. Warrilow (Etruscan Publications, 1966).

Quote

"In front, on a little hill in the vast valley, was spread out the Indian-red architecture of Bursley - tall chimneys and rounded ovens, schools, the new scarlet market, the high spire of the evangelical church. . . . . . the crimson chapels, and rows of little red houses with amber chimney pots, and the gold angel of the Town Hall topping the whole. The sedate reddish browns and reds of the composition all netted in flowing scarves of smoke, harmonised exquisitely with the chill blues of the chequered sky. Beauty was achieved, and none saw it".

—Clayhanger (1910)

Notes

  1. ^ Sitwell, Osbert, Noble Essences: Or Courteous Revelations, Being a Book Of Characters and the Fifth and Last Volume, New York, MacMillan and Co. , 1950.
  2. ^ Ego 5. Again More of the Autobiography of James Agate. , London, George G. Harrap and Co. Ltd (page 166), 1942.
  3. ^ Seminar - "Mr Bennett and Mrs. Brown"
  4. ^ Essay on the debate between Woolf and Bennett including comments on poor modern reputation of Bennett

External links

Persondata
NAME Bennett, Arnold
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Bennett, Enoch Arnold
SHORT DESCRIPTION English novelist
DATE OF BIRTH 27 May 1867
PLACE OF BIRTH Hanley, Staffordshire, England
DATE OF DEATH 27 March 1931
PLACE OF DEATH
Events 927 - Simeon the Great, Tsar of Bulgaria, dies 1120 - Richard III of Capua is anointed Year 1867 ( MDCCCLXVII) was a Common year starting on Tuesday (link will display the full calendar of the Gregorian calendar (or a Common year starting Staffordshire (abbreviated Staffs) is a landlocked county in the West Midlands region of England. England is a Country which is part of the United Kingdom. Its inhabitants account for more than 83% of the total UK population whilst its mainland Events 196 BC - Ptolemy V ascends to the throne of Egypt. 1309 - Pope Clement V excommunicates Year 1931 ( MCMXXXI) was a Common year starting on Thursday (link will display full 1931 calendar of the Gregorian calendar.
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