Simon Raven

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Simon Raven ( 28 December 1927 in London - 12. May 2001 ) was a British writer who many novels, plays and screenplays written and especially for his 10-volume novel cycle alms for oblivion ( Alms for Oblivion ) was known.

life and work

Simon Raven attended the elite Charterhouse School , from which he was expelled in 1945 for homosexual acts. His classmates included James Prior and William Rees-Mogg . Following his military service, which he served as an officer candidate in India, he studied classical philology at King's College in Cambridge from 1948 . After completing his studies, Raven first tried to make a living from writing, which he did not succeed, which is why he returned to the army. He was stationed in Germany, among other places. Because of “improper behavior” - he got into financial difficulties through horse racing - he was threatened with a conviction by a military court, which he could avert by quitting his service. In 1958 he was discovered by the publisher Anthony Blond, who published his novel The Feathers of Death (1959) and signed him for other novels. In the following years Raven became one of the most prominent British writers, who wrote novels, essays, polemics, theatrical works, film scripts and journalistic works. His work has been compared to that of Evelyn Waugh , Graham Greene , Anthony Powell, and Lawrence Durrell .

His 10-volume cycle of novels, Alms for Forgetting, is considered to be his main work and has been described by AN Wilson as the “most enjoyable roman-fleuve ”.

Raven became known to a larger audience primarily through his work for television. B. through the film adaptation of Anthony Trollopes The Pallisers (1974) or through the series Edward and Mrs Simpson (1978) about King Edward VIII's abdication. Raven also co-wrote the script for the James Bond film On Her Majesty's Secret Service .

Roman cycle alms for forgetting

The total of ten novels were published from 1964 to 1976 and are set between 1945 and 1973. They are about a group of characters from the English "upper" and "middle class" and form a loosely connected series. The early novels are more to be seen as satires on English society of the 1950s, the later ones tend to have a philosophical undertone and also address the supernatural.

The first German translation of the novel cycle was published by Elfenbein Verlag in spring 2020 .

In the order of appearance (in brackets: inner order of the novel happening):

  • The Rich Pay Late , Anthony Blond, 1964 (Part 4, takes place around 1955–56).
  • Friends In Low Places , Anthony Blond, 1965 (5th part, set in 1959).
  • The Saber Squadron , Anthony Blond, 1966 (3rd part, set in 1952).
  • Fielding Gray , Anthony Blond, 1967 (1st part, set in 1945).
    • Fielding Gray. Novel . Translation and epilogue Sabine Franke. Berlin: Elfenbein Verlag, 2020. ISBN 978-3-96160-013-7 .
  • The Judas Boy , Anthony Blond, 1968 (Part 6, set in 1962).
  • Places Where They Sing , Anthony Blond, 1970 (part 7, set in 1967).
  • Sound The Retreat , Anthony Blond, 1971 (Part 2, plays 1945–46).
  • Come Like Shadows , Blond & Briggs, 1972 (Part 8, set in 1970).
  • Bring Forth The Body , Blond & Briggs, 1974 (Part 9, set in 1972).
  • The Survivors , Blond & Briggs, 1976 (part 10, set in 1973).

literature

swell

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ "conduct unbecoming", Michael Barber: Simon Raven. Promiscuous chronicler of upper-class life. The Guardian, May 16, 2001 ( online )
  2. ↑ “the jolliest roman-fleuve”, quoted. based on: The Life of Simon Raven, Novelist and Brother. The Charterhouse, December 6, 2016 ( [1] )
  3. ↑ Gustav Seibt: Cold looks, educated feeling. Retrieved July 19, 2020 .
personal data
SURNAME Raven, Simon
ALTERNATIVE NAMES Raven, Simon Arthur Noël
BRIEF DESCRIPTION British writer and literary critic
DATE OF BIRTH December 28, 1927
PLACE OF BIRTH London
DATE OF DEATH May 12, 2001
Place of death London