The English writer John Fowles is one of the brightest representatives of postmodernism in literature. His works are revered by intellectuals all over the world. But despite the popularity of his books, John Fowles, especially in recent years, lived quite secluded, he could not often be seen in public.
John Fowles before starting his writing career
John Fowles was born on March 31, 1926. His family was considered very prosperous - his father was a hereditary cigar dealer. The future writer studied at an elite school in Bedford, here he was the head of the class and was actively involved in sports.
After school, John entered the University of Edinburgh, but did not graduate. He dropped out in 1945 to join the Marine Corps. However, two years later, John Fowles realizes that he does not like a military career. He decides to devote himself to the study of French and German. To do this, he enters the University of Oxford.
From 1950 to 1963, Fowles taught. One of his places of work was a gymnasium on the island of Spetses (Greece). Being on this island greatly influenced the further biography of Fowles. It was here that he began to write and met his future wife, Elizabeth.
Fowles' major works
In 1963, Fowles's famous novel The Collector was published. It describes the fate of a worthless, unremarkable clerk named Clegg. Once Clegg wins a large sum in the lottery and kidnaps the young artist Miranda, with whom he has long been in love. Miranda becomes his prisoner, and then dies. The novel turned out to be quite successful. TV people bought the rights to the script for this book before it was published. This eventually allowed John Fowles to devote himself entirely to the craft of writing. In 1964, the collection of essays "Aristos" appeared in bookstores, and two years later the novel "Magus" was published (it is interesting that in fact it was written earlier than "The Collector").
Then came such famous novels by Fowles as The Mistress of the French Lieutenant, Daniel Martin, Mantissa. The last in chronology was the novel The Worm (1986). Many of Fowles's books were taken as the basis for feature films, and this predetermined their commercial success.
Some facts from personal life
In 1956, John Fowles married Elizabeth Christie and was married to her for almost 35 years. Shortly after the wedding, the couple moved to the south of Britain, to Lyme Regis, Dorset. The Fowles residence was located on a cliff close enough to the sea line. The writer spent a significant part of his life in this residence. In 1978, the writer became the curator of the Lyme Regis Museum, and for the next ten years he remains in this status. John Fowles gave his last interview in 2003 - in it he complained about the excessive attention to himself and to his personal life from the media.
Elizabeth Fowles died of cancer in 1990. The widowed writer married a second time - his second wife was named Sarah Smith. John himself has had health problems in recent years. In 1988, John suffered a severe stroke. It was the consequences of this stroke that caused the death of the writer in 2005.
