T.F. Powys
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Theodore Francis Powys (20 December 1875 – 27 November 1953) – published as T. F. Powys – was a British novelist and short-story writer."Powys, Theodore Francis" in Christine L. Krueger, ''Encyclopedia of British Writers, 19th and 20th Centuries'' Infobase Publishing, 2009 (p. 303) He is best remembered for his allegorical novel '' Mr. Weston's Good Wine'' (1927), where Weston the wine merchant is evidently God. Powys was influenced by the
Bible The Bible is a collection of religious texts that are central to Christianity and Judaism, and esteemed in other Abrahamic religions such as Islam. The Bible is an anthology (a compilation of texts of a variety of forms) originally writt ...
,
John Bunyan John Bunyan (; 1628 – 31 August 1688) was an English writer and preacher. He is best remembered as the author of the Christian allegory ''The Pilgrim's Progress'', which also became an influential literary model. In addition to ''The Pilgrim' ...
,
Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish writer, essayist, satirist, and Anglican cleric. In 1713, he became the Dean (Christianity), dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, and was given the sobriquet "Dean Swi ...
and other writers of the 17th and 18th centuries, as well as later writers such as
Thomas Hardy Thomas Hardy (2 June 1840 – 11 January 1928) was an English novelist and poet. A Literary realism, Victorian realist in the tradition of George Eliot, he was influenced both in his novels and in his poetry by Romanticism, including the poetry ...
and
Friedrich Nietzsche Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (15 October 1844 – 25 August 1900) was a German philosopher. He began his career as a classical philology, classical philologist, turning to philosophy early in his academic career. In 1869, aged 24, Nietzsche bec ...
.


Biography

Powys was born in
Shirley, Derbyshire Shirley is a small village and civil parish in Derbyshire, south-east of Ashbourne, Derbyshire, Ashbourne. The population of the civil parish as taken at the 2011 Census was 270. It is situated in the countryside on top of a small hill. History ...
, the son of the Reverend Charles Francis Powys (1843–1923), vicar of
Montacute Montacute is a village and civil parish in Somerset, England, west of Yeovil. The village has a population of 831 (2011 census). The name Montacute is thought by some to derive from the Latin "Mons Acutus", referring to the conically acute St ...
, Somerset, for 32 years, and Mary Cowper Johnson, grand-daughter of Dr John Johnson, cousin and close friend of the poet
William Cowper William Cowper ( ;  – 25 April 1800) was an English poet and Anglican hymnwriter. One of the most popular poets of his time, Cowper changed the direction of 18th-century nature poetry by writing of everyday life and scenes of the Engli ...
. He was one of eleven talented siblings, including the novelist
John Cowper Powys John Cowper Powys ( ; 8 October 187217 June 1963) was an English novelist, philosopher, lecturer, critic and poet born in Shirley, Derbyshire, where his father was vicar of the parish church in 1871–1879. Powys appeared with a volume of verse ...
(1872–1963) and the novelist and essayist Llewelyn Powys (1884–1939). Their sister Philippa Powys also published a novel and some poetry, while Marian Powys was an authority on lace and lace-making and published a book on this subject. Gertrude Powys was a painter. Another brother, A. R. Powys, was secretary of the
Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings The Society for the Protection of Ancient Buildings (SPAB) (also known as Anti-Scrape) is an amenity society founded by William Morris, Philip Webb, and others in 1877 to oppose the Victorian restoration, destructive 'restoration' of ancient bu ...
and published a number of books on architectural subjects. A sensitive child, Powys was not happy in school and left when he was 15 to become an apprentice on a farm in Suffolk. Later he had his own farm in Suffolk, but he was not successful and returned to Dorset in 1901 with plans to be a writer. Then, in 1905, he married Violet Dodd. They had two sons and later adopted a daughter. From 1904 until 1940 Theodore Powys lived in East Chaldon but then moved to Mappowder because of the
Second World War World War II or the Second World War (1 September 1939 – 2 September 1945) was a World war, global conflict between two coalitions: the Allies of World War II, Allies and the Axis powers. World War II by country, Nearly all of the wo ...
. During the
Spanish Civil War The Spanish Civil War () was a military conflict fought from 1936 to 1939 between the Republican faction (Spanish Civil War), Republicans and the Nationalist faction (Spanish Civil War), Nationalists. Republicans were loyal to the Left-wing p ...
(1936–39), Powys was one of several UK writers who campaigned for aid to be sent to the Republican side. The novels '' Mr. Weston's Good Wine'' (1927) and '' Unclay'' (1931) and the short-story collection ''Fables'' are most praised, while his early non-fiction work ''The Soliloquy of a Hermit'' (1916) also has its admirers. Powys was deeply, if unconventionally, religious; the Bible was a major influence, and he had a special affinity with writers of the 17th and 18th centuries, including
John Bunyan John Bunyan (; 1628 – 31 August 1688) was an English writer and preacher. He is best remembered as the author of the Christian allegory ''The Pilgrim's Progress'', which also became an influential literary model. In addition to ''The Pilgrim' ...
,
Miguel de Cervantes Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra ( ; ; 29 September 1547 (assumed) – 22 April 1616 Old Style and New Style dates, NS) was a Spanish writer widely regarded as the greatest writer in the Spanish language and one of the world's pre-eminent novelist ...
,
Jeremy Taylor Jeremy Taylor (1613–1667) was a cleric in the Church of England who achieved fame as an author during the Protectorate of Oliver Cromwell. He is sometimes known as the "Shakespeare of Divines" for his poetic style of expression, and he is fr ...
,
Jonathan Swift Jonathan Swift (30 November 1667 – 19 October 1745) was an Anglo-Irish writer, essayist, satirist, and Anglican cleric. In 1713, he became the Dean (Christianity), dean of St Patrick's Cathedral, Dublin, and was given the sobriquet "Dean Swi ...
, and
Henry Fielding Henry Fielding (22 April 1707 – 8 October 1754) was an English writer and magistrate known for the use of humour and satire in his works. His 1749 comic novel ''The History of Tom Jones, a Foundling'' was a seminal work in the genre. Along wi ...
. Among more recent writers, he admired
Thomas Hardy Thomas Hardy (2 June 1840 – 11 January 1928) was an English novelist and poet. A Literary realism, Victorian realist in the tradition of George Eliot, he was influenced both in his novels and in his poetry by Romanticism, including the poetry ...
,
Sigmund Freud Sigmund Freud ( ; ; born Sigismund Schlomo Freud; 6 May 1856 – 23 September 1939) was an Austrian neurologist and the founder of psychoanalysis, a clinical method for evaluating and treating psychopathology, pathologies seen as originating fro ...
, and
Friedrich Nietzsche Friedrich Wilhelm Nietzsche (15 October 1844 – 25 August 1900) was a German philosopher. He began his career as a classical philology, classical philologist, turning to philosophy early in his academic career. In 1869, aged 24, Nietzsche bec ...
. Powys has been described by C. N. Manlove as one of the three main writers – along with
C. S. Lewis Clive Staples Lewis (29 November 1898 – 22 November 1963) was a British writer, literary scholar and Anglican lay theologian. He held academic positions in English literature at both Magdalen College, Oxford (1925–1954), and Magdalen ...
and Charles Williams – of "Christian fantasy" in the 20th century. He died on 27 November 1953 in Mappowder, Dorset, where he was buried.''Dictionary of National Biography''; Lawrence Mitchell. ''T. F. Powys: Aspects of a Life'' (Bishopstone, Hertfordshire: Brynmill Press, 2005).


Bibliography


Non-fiction

* ''An Interpretation of Genesis''. N.p.: Privately printed,1907. * ''The Soliloquy of a Hermit''. New York: G. Arnold Shaw, 1916 (''Soliloquies of a Hermit'' 1918). Available onlin


Novels

* ''Black Bryony''. London: Chatto and Windus, 1923; New York: Knopf, 1923. * ''Mark Only''. London: Chatto and Windus, 1924; New York: Knopf, 1924. * ''Mr Tasker's Gods''. London: Chatto and Windus, 1925; New York: Knopf, 1925. * ''Mockery Gap''. London: Chatto and Windus, 1925; New York: Knopf, 1925. * '' Mr. Weston's Good Wine''. London: Chatto and Windus, 1927; New York: Viking, 1927. * ''Kindness in a Corner''. London : Chatto and Windus, 1930; New York: Viking, 1930. * '' Unclay''. London: Chatto and Windus, 1931; New York: Viking, 1932. * ''The Market Bell'', edited with notes by Ian Robinson, assisted by Elaine Mencher; with an afterword by J. Lawrence Mitchell. Doncaster, South Yorkshire : Brynmill Press, 1991.


Story collections

(including novellas) * ''The Left Leg''. London: Chatto and Windus, 1923; New York: Knopf, 1923. Available onlin

* ''Innocent Birds''. London: Chatto and Windus, 1926; New York: Knopf, 1926. * ''The House With the Echo: Twenty-six Stories''. London: Chatto and Windus, 1928; New York: Viking, 1928. * ''Fables''. New York: Viking, 1929; London: Chatto and Windus, 1929 (''No Painted Plumage'', 1934). * ''The White Paternoster, and Other Stories''. London, Chatto & Windus, 1930; New York: Viking,1931. * ''The Only Penitent''. London, Chatto & Windus, 1931 (The Dolphin Books series). * ''The Two Thieves'' (containing "In Good Earth", "God", "The Two Thieves"). London: Chatto and Windus, 1932; New York: Viking, 1933. * ''Captain Patch: Twenty-one Stories''. London: Chatto and Windus, 1935. * ''Bottle's Path, and Other Stories''. London: Chatto and Windus, 1946. * ''God's Eyes A-Twinkle'' (an anthology of the stories of T. F. Powys, with a preface by Charles Prentice). London, Chatto & Windus, 1947. * ''Rosie Plum, and Other Stories'', ed. F. Powys. London, Chatto & Windus, 1966. * ''Come Dine, and Tadnol'', ed. A. P. Riley. Hastings: R.A. Brimmell, 1967 * ''Father Adam''. Doncaster: Brynmill, 1990. * ''Mock's Curse: Nineteen Stories'', selected and edited by Elaine & Barrie Mencher. Norfolk: Brynmill, 1995. * ''The Sixpenny Strumpet'' (with tales from ''The Two Thieves''). Harleston: Brynmill, 1997. * ''Selected Early Works of T. F. Powys''. Brynmill Press, 2003. In addition some single stories were also published as books during the 1920s and 1930s.


Further reading

* Buning, Marius. ''T. F. Powys: A Modern Allegorist''. Rodopi: Amsterdam, 1986. * Churchill, Reginald Charles. ''The Powys Brothers''. London: Published for the British Council and the National Book League by Longmans, Green, 1962. * Coombes, H. ''T. F. Powys''. London : Barrie and Rockliff, 960 * Hunter, William. ''The Novels and Stories of T. F. Powys''. Beckenham, Kent: Trigon Press, 1977. * Graves, R. P. ''The Brothers Powys''. London: Routledge & Kegan Paul, 1983. * Hopkins, Kenneth. ''The Powys Brothers''. 1967. * Humfrey, Belinda. ''Recollections of the Powys Brothers: Llewelyn, Theodore and John Cowper''. London: Peter Owen, 1980. * Marlow, Louis ( Louis Umfreville Wilkinson). ''Welsh Ambassadors: Powys Lives and Letters'', 1936. London: Rota, 1971. * ———. ''Seven Friends''. London: The Richards Press, 1953. * Mitchell, Lawrence J. ''T. F. Powys: Aspects of a Life''. Bishopstone, Hertfordshire: Brynmill Press Ltd, 2005. * ———. "T. F. Powys, 1875–1953". Minneapolis: University of Minnesota Libraries, 1982. * Pouillard, Michel. ''T. F. Powys (1875–1953): La solitude, le doute, l'art''. Paris: Didier-érudition, 1981. * Powys, John Cowper. ''Autobiography''. New York: Simon & Schuster, 1934; London: John Lane, 1934. * Riley, Peter.
A Bibliography of T. F. Powys
'. Hastings: R. A. Brimmell, 1967. * Sewell, Brocard. ''Theodore: Essays on T. F. Powys''. ylesford, Eng.: Saint Albert's Press, 1964. * Scutt, Theodora Gay. ''Cuckoo in the Powys Nest''. Denton: Brynmill, 2000. * Ward, Richard Heron. ''The Powys Brothers''. London: John Lane, 1935.


Theses

* Steinmann, Martin. ''T. F. Powys: A Thematic Study''. Univ. of Minnesota., 1954. Ph.D Thesis. * Goldring, Frances J. ''T. F. Powys as an Allegorical Novelist''. Dalhousie University, Dept. of English, 1969. M.A. Thesis. * Hoffman, David Edwin. ''A Comparative Study of J. C. Powys, T. F. Powys and Llewelyn Powys, with Special Reference to the Influence of Their Private Religions in Their Literary Work''. King's College, London, Department of English, 1958. M.A. Thesis.


Articles and discussion

* Allen, Walter Ernest. ''The Short Story in English''. Oxford and New York: Oxford University Press, 1981. * Cavaliero, Glen. ''The Rural Tradition in the English Novel, 1900–1939''. London and New York: Macmillan, 1977. * ———. ''The Alchemy of Laughter: Comedy in English Fiction''. Houndmills, Basingstoke, Hampshire: Macmillan Press; New York: St. Martin's Press, 2000. * Gunnell, B. "T. F. Powys's ''Unclay, or the Unconditional Gift''". ''Durham University Journal'' 85:1 (1993), 95. * Holbrook, David. "Two Welsh Writers: T. F. Powys and Dylan Thomas". In Boris Ford, ed., ''The Modern Age'', vol. 7 of ''The Pelican Guide to English Literature''. London: Penguin, 1964. * Van Kranendonk, A. G. '"T. F. Powys". ''English Studies'' 26:1 (1944), 97–107. * Rogers, John Headley. ''British Short-Fiction Writers, 1915–1945''. British short-fiction writers, 1915–1945 lectronic resource/ John Headley Rogers, editor. Detroit, Mich.: Gale Research, 1996. * Steinmann, Martin. "Water and Animal Symbolism in T. F. Powys". ''English Studies'' 41:1 (1960), 359–365. * See also ''The Powys Review

''The Powys Journal

''La letter powysienne'

and ''Powys Notes'' for further articles, etc.


Archives

*
Harry Ransom Center The Harry Ransom Center, known as the Humanities Research Center until 1983, is an archive, library, and museum at the University of Texas at Austin, specializing in the collection of literary and cultural artifacts from the Americas and Europe ...

Theodore Francis Powys Collection
* Dorset Museum, Dorchester, Correspondence and literary papers. * British Library. Letters to Vera Wainwright, Add. MS 54330. * London University Library. Letters to Charles Lahr and literary mss. * National Library of Wales. Letters to John Cowper Powys. * University of Aberdeen Library. Letters to J. B. Chapman. The Powys Society's website has a comprehensive list of archives.


References


External links


The Powys Society
* *
"Bookmarks: John Gray on T. F. Powys"
article in the ''New Statesman'' * Philosopher John Gray, "The Paradox of Immortality


"T. F. Powys, an English Tolstoy?"
article in the ''TLS'' by Michael Caines
Hermit of 'The House in the Pasture'
Obituary article about T. F. Powys by his son, Francis Powys.
Manuscripts and Book Collections relating to members of the Powys family at the University of Exeter
{{DEFAULTSORT:Powys, Theodore F. 1875 births 1953 deaths 20th-century English male writers 20th-century British short story writers 20th-century English novelists Burials in Dorset English Christians English fantasy writers English male novelists English male short story writers English short story writers People from Derbyshire Dales (district)