Ivy Compton-Burnett
Encyclopedia
Dame Ivy Compton-Burnett, DBE (5 June 188427 August 1969) was an English
novelist, published (in the original hardback editions) as I. Compton-Burnett. She was awarded the 1955 James Tait Black Memorial Prize
for her novel Mother and Son.
doctor, Compton-Burnett grew up in Hove and London
. Her father had twelve children by two wives and Ivy's mother (the second wife) sent all her stepchildren away to boarding school as soon as possible.
In the author blurb of the old Penguin
editions of her novels there was a paragraph written by Compton-Burnett herself:
This omits the fact that her favourite brother, Guy, died of pneumonia
; another, Noel, was killed on the Somme
, and her two youngest sisters, Stephanie Primrose and Catharine (called "Baby" and "Topsy"), died in a suicide pact by taking veronal in their locked bedroom on Christmas Day, 1917. Not one of the twelve siblings had children, and all eight girls remained unmarried.
She spent much of her life as companion to Margaret Jourdain
(died 1951), a leading authority on the decorative arts and the history of furniture, who shared the author's Kensington
flat from 1919. For the first ten years, Compton-Burnett seems to have remained unobtrusively in the background, always severely dressed in black. When Pastors and Masters appeared in 1925, Jourdain claimed to have been unaware that her friend was writing a novel.
Compton-Burnett was appointed a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire
(DBE). She died in 1969 and was cremated at Putney Vale Crematorium
.
), a traditional novel she later rejected as something "one wrote as a girl", Compton-Burnett's fiction
deals with domestic situations in large households which, to all intents and purposes, invariably seem Edwardian
. The description of human weaknesses and foibles of all sorts pervades her work, and the family that emerges from each of her novels must be seen as dysfunctional in one way or another. Starting with Pastors and Masters (1925
), Compton-Burnett developed a highly individualistic style. Her fiction relies heavily on dialogue and demands constant attention on the reader's part: there are instances in her work where important information is casually mentioned in a half sentence. Her use of punctuation is deliberately perfunctory: there are no colons or semi-colons, no exclamation marks, no italics.
wrote: "It is astonishing, amazing. It is like nothing else in the world. It is a work of genius."
In her essay collection L'Ère du soupçon (1956), an early manifesto for the French nouveau roman
, Nathalie Sarraute
hails Compton-Burnett as an "one of the greatest novelists England has ever had".
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
novelist, published (in the original hardback editions) as I. Compton-Burnett. She was awarded the 1955 James Tait Black Memorial Prize
James Tait Black Memorial Prize
Founded in 1919, the James Tait Black Memorial Prizes are among the oldest and most prestigious book prizes awarded for literature written in the English language and are Britain's oldest literary awards...
for her novel Mother and Son.
Life
The daughter of a well-known homeopathicHomeopathy
Homeopathy is a form of alternative medicine in which practitioners claim to treat patients using highly diluted preparations that are believed to cause healthy people to exhibit symptoms that are similar to those exhibited by the patient...
doctor, Compton-Burnett grew up in Hove and London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
. Her father had twelve children by two wives and Ivy's mother (the second wife) sent all her stepchildren away to boarding school as soon as possible.
In the author blurb of the old Penguin
Penguin Books
Penguin Books is a publisher founded in 1935 by Sir Allen Lane and V.K. Krishna Menon. Penguin revolutionised publishing in the 1930s through its high quality, inexpensive paperbacks, sold through Woolworths and other high street stores for sixpence. Penguin's success demonstrated that large...
editions of her novels there was a paragraph written by Compton-Burnett herself:
"I have had such an uneventful life that there is little information to give. I was educated with my brothers in the country as a child, and later went to Holloway CollegeRoyal Holloway, University of LondonRoyal Holloway, University of London is a constituent college of the University of London. The college has three faculties, 18 academic departments, and about 8,000 undergraduate and postgraduate students from over 130 different countries...
, and took a degree in ClassicsClassicsClassics is the branch of the Humanities comprising the languages, literature, philosophy, history, art, archaeology and other culture of the ancient Mediterranean world ; especially Ancient Greece and Ancient Rome during Classical Antiquity Classics (sometimes encompassing Classical Studies or...
. I lived with my family when I was quite young but for most of my life have had my own flat in London. I see a good deal of a good many friends, not all of them writing people. And there is really no more to say."
This omits the fact that her favourite brother, Guy, died of pneumonia
Pneumonia
Pneumonia is an inflammatory condition of the lung—especially affecting the microscopic air sacs —associated with fever, chest symptoms, and a lack of air space on a chest X-ray. Pneumonia is typically caused by an infection but there are a number of other causes...
; another, Noel, was killed on the Somme
Battle of the Somme (1916)
The Battle of the Somme , also known as the Somme Offensive, took place during the First World War between 1 July and 14 November 1916 in the Somme department of France, on both banks of the river of the same name...
, and her two youngest sisters, Stephanie Primrose and Catharine (called "Baby" and "Topsy"), died in a suicide pact by taking veronal in their locked bedroom on Christmas Day, 1917. Not one of the twelve siblings had children, and all eight girls remained unmarried.
She spent much of her life as companion to Margaret Jourdain
Margaret Jourdain
Margaret Jourdain was a prominent writer on English furniture and decoration. She began her career ghost-writing as Francis Lenygon for the firm of Lenygon & Morant, dealers in furnishings with a royal appointment, who were also the fabricators of carefully crafted reproductions, especially of...
(died 1951), a leading authority on the decorative arts and the history of furniture, who shared the author's Kensington
Kensington
Kensington is a district of west and central London, England within the Royal Borough of Kensington and Chelsea. An affluent and densely-populated area, its commercial heart is Kensington High Street, and it contains the well-known museum district of South Kensington.To the north, Kensington is...
flat from 1919. For the first ten years, Compton-Burnett seems to have remained unobtrusively in the background, always severely dressed in black. When Pastors and Masters appeared in 1925, Jourdain claimed to have been unaware that her friend was writing a novel.
Compton-Burnett was appointed a Dame Commander of the Order of the British Empire
Order of the British Empire
The Most Excellent Order of the British Empire is an order of chivalry established on 4 June 1917 by George V of the United Kingdom. The Order comprises five classes in civil and military divisions...
(DBE). She died in 1969 and was cremated at Putney Vale Crematorium
Putney Vale Cemetery
Putney Vale Cemetery and Crematorium in London is surrounded by Wimbledon Common and Richmond Park, and is located within forty-seven acres of parkland. The cemetery was opened in 1891 and the crematorium in 1938...
.
Work
Apart from Dolores (19111911 in literature
The year 1911 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:*George Moore publishes the first of his three-volume Hail and Farewell .*Gallimard publishing house founded in Paris by Gaston Gallimard...
), a traditional novel she later rejected as something "one wrote as a girl", Compton-Burnett's fiction
Fiction
Fiction is the form of any narrative or informative work that deals, in part or in whole, with information or events that are not factual, but rather, imaginary—that is, invented by the author. Although fiction describes a major branch of literary work, it may also refer to theatrical,...
deals with domestic situations in large households which, to all intents and purposes, invariably seem Edwardian
Edwardian period
The Edwardian era or Edwardian period in the United Kingdom is the period covering the reign of King Edward VII, 1901 to 1910.The death of Queen Victoria in January 1901 and the succession of her son Edward marked the end of the Victorian era...
. The description of human weaknesses and foibles of all sorts pervades her work, and the family that emerges from each of her novels must be seen as dysfunctional in one way or another. Starting with Pastors and Masters (1925
1925 in literature
The year 1925 in literature involved some significant events and new books.-Events:* April: F Scott Fitzgerald and Ernest Hemingway meet in the Dingo Bar on rue Delambre, in the Montparnasse Quarter of Paris, France shortly after the publication of Fitzgerald's The Great Gatsby and shortly before...
), Compton-Burnett developed a highly individualistic style. Her fiction relies heavily on dialogue and demands constant attention on the reader's part: there are instances in her work where important information is casually mentioned in a half sentence. Her use of punctuation is deliberately perfunctory: there are no colons or semi-colons, no exclamation marks, no italics.
Critical reception
Of Pastors and Masters, the New StatesmanNew Statesman
New Statesman is a British centre-left political and cultural magazine published weekly in London. Founded in 1913, and connected with leading members of the Fabian Society, the magazine reached a circulation peak in the late 1960s....
wrote: "It is astonishing, amazing. It is like nothing else in the world. It is a work of genius."
In her essay collection L'Ère du soupçon (1956), an early manifesto for the French nouveau roman
Nouveau roman
The nouveau roman is a type of 1950s French novel that diverged from classical literary genres. Émile Henriot coined the title in an article in the popular French newspaper Le Monde on May 22, 1957 to describe certain writers who experimented with style in each novel, creating an essentially new...
, Nathalie Sarraute
Nathalie Sarraute
Nathalie Sarraute was a French lawyer and writer of Russian Jewish origin.-Life:Sarraute was born Natalia/Natacha Tcherniak in Ivanovo , 300 km north-east of Moscow in 1900 , and, following...
hails Compton-Burnett as an "one of the greatest novelists England has ever had".
Further reading
- Hilary SpurlingHilary SpurlingHilary Spurling, CBE, FRSL is a British writer, known as a journalist and biographer. She won the Whitbread Prize for the second volume of her biography of Henri Matisse in January 2006...
: Ivy: The Life of I. Compton-Burnett (1995) (combines two separate volumes originally published in 1974 and 1984) (ISBN 978-1860660269). - Cicely Greig: Ivy Compton-Burnett: a memoir Garnstone Press, London, 1972 ISBN 0855110600
- Frederick R. Karl: "The Intimate World of Ivy Compton-Burnett", A Reader's Guide to the Contemporary English Novel (1961) 201-219.