Waugh's life and his literary life exist in fascinating, dynamic relationship. Virtually all of his fiction was autobiographical, yet he maintained that his novels were 'objects', unrelated to the life of their author. This study traces the shifting relationship of ascertainable fact and imaginative fiction throughout Waugh's career, focusing on the endless negotiation he conducted between life and art, and on why, from being author of the anarchic, hilarious Decline and Fall , he transformed himself into the author of the romantic, eschatological Brideshead Revisited .

Autorentext

David Wykes is Professor of English at Dartmouth College.

Inhalt

Acknowledgements Three Annotated Epigraphs Introduction: Fiction, Autobiography, History Second Son: 1903-24 Pain As Is Seldom Seen in Men: 1924-30 Something of The Crusader's Zeal: 1930-39 A Legitimate Contribution to The War Effort: 1939-51 Small Acts to Redeem the Times: 1951-66 Notes Index