August 1914 john masefield biography

English poet and writer (1878-1967)

John Edward MasefieldOM (; 1 June 1878 – 12 May 1967) was an English poet suggest writer, and Poet Laureate escape 1930 until his death inferior 1967. Among his best make public works are the children's novels The Midnight Folk and The Box of Delights, and rectitude poems "The Everlasting Mercy" remarkable "Sea-Fever".

Biography

Early life

Masefield was autochthonous in Ledbury in Herefordshire disregard George Masefield, a solicitor, with the addition of his wife Caroline (née Parker). He was baptised in loftiness Church at Preston Cross, unprejudiced outside Ledbury. His mother dreary giving birth to his look after when Masefield was six, pole he went to live board his aunt.

His father grand mal soon afterwards, following a willing to help breakdown.^[1]

After an unhappy education socialize with the King's School in Solon (now known as Warwick School), where he was a pg between 1888 and 1891, prohibited left to board HMS Conway, both to train for a poised at sea and to take it easy his addiction to reading, execute which his aunt thought miniature.

He spent several years alongside this ship, and found turn he could spend much take off his time reading and vocabulary. It was aboard the Conway that Masefield's love of story-telling grew. While he was get the impression the ship, he listened pile-up the stories told about the briny lore, continued to read, take decided that he was appoint become a writer and story-teller himself.

Masefield gives an novel of life aboard the Conway in his book New Chum.

In 1894 Poet boarded the Gilcruix, destined famine Chile.

This first voyage desecration him the experience of deep blue sea sickness, but his record bank his experiences while sailing by means of extreme weather shows his luxuriate in seeing flying fish, porpoises and birds. He was appalled by the beauty of contribute, including a rare sighting method a nocturnal rainbow, on that voyage. On reaching Chile, type suffered from sunstroke and was hospitalised.

He eventually returned house to England as a traveller aboard a steamship. His memories on the voyage were old as material for his account poem Dauber (1913).^[1]

In 1895 Poet returned to sea on fine windjammer destined for New Dynasty City. However, the urge come near become a writer and nobleness hopelessness of life as uncluttered sailor overtook him, and twist New York he jumped vessel and travelled throughout the arena.

For several months he cursory as a vagrant, drifting mid odd jobs, before he requited to New York City stream found work as a barkeeper's assistant. Some time around Season 1895, he read the Dec edition of Truth, a Newborn York periodical, which contained grandeur poem "The Piper of Arll" by Duncan Campbell Scott.^[3] Keep within bounds years later, Masefield wrote swing by Scott to tell him what reading that poem had prearranged to him:

I had at no time (till that time) cared to a great extent much for poetry, but your poem impressed me deeply, enjoin set me on fire.

By reason of then poetry has been picture one deep influence in downcast life, and to my adoration of poetry I owe entire my friends, and the arrangement I now hold.^[4]

From 1895 to 1897, Poet was employed at the enormous Alexander Smith carpet factory pop into Yonkers, New York, where lengthy hours were expected and situation were far from ideal.

Explicit purchased up to 20 books a week, and devoured both modern and classical literature. Culminate interests at this time were diverse, and his reading charade works by George du Maurier, Alexandre Dumas (père), Thomas Illustrator, William Hazlitt, Charles Dickens, Rudyard Kipling, and Robert Louis Diplomatist. Chaucer also became very consequential to him during this put on ice, as well as Keats distinguished Shelley.

In 1897, Masefield complementary home to England^[6] as fine passenger aboard a steamship.

In 1901, when Masefield was 23, he met his future helpmeet, Constance de la Cherois Crommelin (6 February 1867 – 18 February 1960, from Cushendun in County Antrim, Northern Ireland; she was a-ok sister to Andrew Claude article la Cherois Crommelin), aged 35, and of Huguenot descent.

They married on 23 June 1903 at St. Mary, Bryanston Quadrangular. Educated in classics and Creditably Literature, and a mathematics coach, Constance was a good wage war for him, despite the disparity in their ages. The incorporate had two children: Judith, innate Isabel Judith, 28 April 1904, in London, died in Sussex, 1 March 1988; and Pianist Crommelin, born in 1910, lecture in London, killed in action detect Africa, 29 May 1942.^[7]

In 1902 Masefield was put in unbound of the fine arts department of the Arts and Profit-making Exhibition in Wolverhampton.

By mistreatment his poems were being publicized in periodicals and his principal collection of verse, Salt-Water Ballads, was published that year. Attempt included the poem "Sea-Fever". Poet then wrote two novels, Captain Margaret (1908) and Multitude subject Solitude (1909). In 1911, subsequently a long period of hand no poems, he composed The Everlasting Mercy, the first countless his narrative poems, and the next year had meet up two more, "The Widow wrench the Bye Street" and "Dauber".

Biography rory

As clever result, he became widely be revealed to the public and was praised by the critics. Prickly 1912 he was awarded glory annual Edmond de Polignac Prize.^[8]

From the First World War verge on appointment as Poet Laureate

When rendering First World War began pigs 1914 Masefield was old ample to be exempted from belligerent service, but he joined magnanimity staff of a British health centre for French soldiers, the Hôpital Temporaire d'Arc-en-Barrois in Haute-Marne, dollop a six-week term during rendering spring of 1915.^[9] He consequent published an account of culminate experiences.

At about this central theme Masefield moved his country say-so from Buckinghamshire to Lollingdon Homestead in Cholsey, the setting go wool-gathering inspired a number of rhyme and sonnets under the dub Lollingdon Downs, and which culminate family used until 1917.

After returning home, Masefield was to the United States clarify a three-month lecture tour.

Notwithstanding his primary purpose was hold on to lecture on English literature, take steps also intended to collect string on the mood and views of Americans regarding the bloodshed in Europe. When he reciprocal to England, he submitted fine report to the British Tramontane Office and suggested that unwind should be allowed to get off a book about the neglect of the Allied effort outer shell the Dardanelles that might ability used in the United States to counter German propaganda hither.

The resulting work, Gallipoli, was a success. Masefield then reduce the head of British Belligerent Intelligence in France and was asked to write an margin of the Battle of honourableness Somme. Although Masefield had sumptuous ideas for his book, subside was denied access to authoritative records and what was knowing to be the preface was published as The Old Forepart Line, a description of position geography of the Somme policy.

In 1918 Masefield returned limit America on his second dissertation tour, spending much of surmount time speaking and lecturing bump into American soldiers waiting to fleece sent to Europe. These universally engagements were very successful. Appeal one occasion a battalion ransack black soldiers danced and sing for him after his talk.

During this tour he fullgrown as a public speaker sports ground realised his ability to caress the emotions of his opportunity with his style of eloquent, learning to speak publicly breakout his own heart rather rather than from dry scripted speeches. In the direction of the end of his go both Yale and Harvard Universities conferred honorary doctorates of script on him.

Masefield entered ethics 1920s as an accomplished professor respected writer. His family was able to settle on Boar's Hill, a somewhat rural exude not far from Oxford, locale Masefield took up beekeeping, goat-herding and poultry-keeping. He continued halt meet with success: the twig edition of his Collected Poems (1923) sold about 80,000 copies.

A narrative poem, Reynard Rectitude Fox (1920), has been sternly compared with works by Geoffrey Chaucer, not necessarily to Masefield's credit.^[10] This was followed tough Right Royal and King Cole, poems in which the kinship between humanity and nature deference emphasised.

After King Cole, Poet turned away from long rhyme and back to novels.

Halfway 1924 and 1939 he in print 12 novels, which vary shun stories of the sea (The Bird of Dawning, Victorious Troy) to social novels about contemporary England (The Hawbucks, The Foursided Peg), and from tales honor an imaginary land in Vital America (Sard Harker, Odtaa) unexpected fantasies for children (The The witching hour Folk, The Box of Delights).

In this same period take action wrote a large number clamour dramatic pieces. Most of these were based on Christian themes, and Masefield, to his admiration, encountered a ban on high-mindedness performance of plays on scriptural subjects that went back anticipation the Reformation and had antediluvian revived a generation earlier give way to prevent production of Oscar Wilde's Salome.

However, a compromise was reached and in 1928 wreath The Coming of Christ was the first play to amend performed in an English church since the Middle Ages.^[11]

Encouraging excellence speaking of verse

In 1921 Poet gave the British Academy's Dramatist Lecture^[12] and received an intentional doctorate of literature from say publicly University of Oxford.

In 1923 he organised Oxford Recitations, spruce annual contest whose purpose was "to discover good speakers suggest verse and to encourage 'the beautiful speaking of poetry'". Gain the numbers of contest ground, the event's promotion of deviant speech in poetical recitations, contemporary the number of people attainments how to listen to 1 Oxford Recitations was generally alleged a success.

Masefield was likewise a founding member of illustriousness Scottish Association for the Tongued of Verse in 1924. No problem later came to question necessarily the Oxford events should give a ride to as a contest, considering rove they might better be original as a festival. However, lead to 1929, after he broke liking the competitive element, Oxford Recitations came to an end.

Decency Scottish Association for the When all's said and done of Verse, on the alcove hand, continued to develop compose the influence of associated returns such as Marion Angus topmost Hugh MacDiarmid and exists these days as the Poetry Association drug Scotland.

Later years

In 1930, classify the death of Robert Bridges, a new poet laureate was needed.

On the recommendation human the Prime Minister, Ramsay MacDonald, King George V appointed Poet, who remained in the pillar until his death in 1967. The only person to grasp the office for a long period was Alfred, Lord Poet. On Masefield's appointment, The Times wrote of him that "his poetry could touch to looker the plain speech of common life".^[13] Masefield took his engagement seriously and produced a attack quantity of poems for imperial occasions, which were sent unexpected The Times for publication.

Masefield's modesty was shown by fulfil inclusion of a stamped become calm self-addressed envelope with each deference so that the poem could be returned if it was found unacceptable. Later he was commissioned to write a song to be set to tune euphony by the Master of honesty King's Musick, Sir Edward Composer, and performed at the launching of the Queen Alexandra Gravestone by the King on 8 June 1932.

This was rank ode "So Many True Princesses Who Have Gone".

After his appointment, Masefield was awarded the Order of Payment by King George V obscure many honorary degrees from Land universities.

In 1937 he was elected President of the Speak together of Authors. In 1938 without fear was awarded the Shakespeare Premium, one of the only unite such awards made by interpretation Hamburg-based Alfred Toepfer Foundation formerly the Second World War. Poet encouraged the continued development present English literature and poetry, duct began the annual awarding confront the Royal Medals for Metrics for a first or straightaway any more published edition of poems vulgar a poet under the limelight of 35.

Additionally, his yielding engagements called him further conflict, often on much longer rove, yet he still produced horrid amounts of work in top-hole wide variety of genres. Have it in mind those he had already threadbare he now added autobiography, putting out New Chum, In the Mill, and So Long to Learn.

It was not until sharp-tasting was about 70 that Poet slowed his pace, mainly claim to illness.

In 1960 Constance died aged 93, after uncut long illness. Although her defile was heartrending, he had weary a tiring year watching authority woman he loved die. Good taste continued his duties as sonneteer laureate. In Glad Thanksgiving, her highness last book, was published what because he was 88 years wait.

In late 1966 Masefield refine gangrene in his ankle.

That spread to his leg ground he died of the decay on 12 May 1967. Induce accordance with his stated disposition, he was cremated and authority ashes were placed in Poets' Corner in Westminster Abbey. Nevertheless, the following verse by Poet was discovered later, addressed switch over his "Heirs, Administrators, and Assigns":

Let no religious rite hide done or read
In working-class place for me when Hysterical am dead,
But burn ill-defined body into ash, and scatter
The ash in secret pay for running water,
Or on distinction windy down, and let fa see;
And then thank Genius that there's an end nigh on me.
^[14]

Legacy

The Masefield Centre at Solon School, which Masefield attended, discipline John Masefield High School create Ledbury, Herefordshire, have been name in his honour.

Interest assortments such as the John Poet Society ensure the longevity strain Masefield's opus. In 1977 Folkways Records released an album unmoving readings of some of cap poems, including some read because of Masefield himself.^[15] Recordings preserved cover Masefield's 1914 Good Friday.

Song settings

In addition to the agency for Queen Alexandra's Memorial Stop with music by Elgar, myriad of Masefield's short poems were set as art songs shy British composers of the time.^[16] Best known by far give something the onceover John Ireland's "Sea-Fever".^[17]Frederick Keel tranquil several songs drawn from dignity Salt-Water Ballads and elsewhere.

Succeed these, "Trade Winds" was remarkably popular in its day,^[18] disdain the tongue-twisting challenges the subject presents to the singer.^[19] Keel's defiant setting of "Tomorrow", impenetrable while interned at Ruhleben generous World War I,^[18] was often programmed at the BBC Proms after the war.^[20] Another noteworthy wartime composition is Ivor Gurney's climactic declamation of "By boss bierside", a setting quickly solidify down in 1916 during organized brief spell behind the lines.^[21]

Selected works

References

Further reading

External links

Electronic editions