William Sansom
Encyclopedia
William Sansom FRSL (18 January 1912 – 20 April 1976) was a British novelist, travel and short story writer known for his highly descriptive prose-style. He was born in London and educated at Uppingham School
, Rutland
, before moving to Bonn
to learn German.
From 1930 Sansom worked in international banking for the British chapter of a German bank, but moved to an advertising company in 1935, where he worked until the outbreak of World War II
. At this time he became a full-time London firefighter, serving throughout The Blitz
. His experiences during this time inspired much of his writing, including many of the stories found in the celebrated collection Fireman Flower. He also appeared in Humphrey Jennings
's famous film about the Blitz, Fires Were Started
- Sansom is the fireman who plays the piano.
After the war, Sansom became a full-time writer. In 1946 and 1947 he was awarded two literary prizes by the Society of Authors, and in 1951 was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. He married actress Ruth Grundy.
As well as exploring war-torn London, Sansom's writing deals with romance (The Face of Innocence), murder ('Various Temptations'), comedy ('A Last Word') and supernatural horror ('A Woman Seldom Found'). The latter, perhaps his most anthologized story, combines detailed description with narrative tension to unravel a young man's encounter with a bizarre creature in Rome.
Sansom died in London.
, Erving Goffman
used an extended paragraph of Sansom's A Contest of Ladies to develop his model of the social role and the dramaturgical approach to sociology.
Uppingham School
Uppingham School is a co-educational independent school of the English public school tradition, situated in the small town of Uppingham in Rutland, England...
, Rutland
Rutland
Rutland is a landlocked county in central England, bounded on the west and north by Leicestershire, northeast by Lincolnshire and southeast by Peterborough and Northamptonshire....
, before moving to Bonn
Bonn
Bonn is the 19th largest city in Germany. Located in the Cologne/Bonn Region, about 25 kilometres south of Cologne on the river Rhine in the State of North Rhine-Westphalia, it was the capital of West Germany from 1949 to 1990 and the official seat of government of united Germany from 1990 to 1999....
to learn German.
From 1930 Sansom worked in international banking for the British chapter of a German bank, but moved to an advertising company in 1935, where he worked until the outbreak of World War II
World War II
World War II, or the Second World War , was a global conflict lasting from 1939 to 1945, involving most of the world's nations—including all of the great powers—eventually forming two opposing military alliances: the Allies and the Axis...
. At this time he became a full-time London firefighter, serving throughout The Blitz
The Blitz
The Blitz was the sustained strategic bombing of Britain by Nazi Germany between 7 September 1940 and 10 May 1941, during the Second World War. The city of London was bombed by the Luftwaffe for 76 consecutive nights and many towns and cities across the country followed...
. His experiences during this time inspired much of his writing, including many of the stories found in the celebrated collection Fireman Flower. He also appeared in Humphrey Jennings
Humphrey Jennings
Frank Humphrey Sinkler Jennings was an English documentary filmmaker and one of the founders of the Mass Observation organization...
's famous film about the Blitz, Fires Were Started
Fires Were Started
Fires Were Started is a British film written and directed by Humphrey Jennings, filmed in documentary style showing the lives of firefighters through the Blitz in World War II...
- Sansom is the fireman who plays the piano.
After the war, Sansom became a full-time writer. In 1946 and 1947 he was awarded two literary prizes by the Society of Authors, and in 1951 was elected a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. He married actress Ruth Grundy.
As well as exploring war-torn London, Sansom's writing deals with romance (The Face of Innocence), murder ('Various Temptations'), comedy ('A Last Word') and supernatural horror ('A Woman Seldom Found'). The latter, perhaps his most anthologized story, combines detailed description with narrative tension to unravel a young man's encounter with a bizarre creature in Rome.
Sansom died in London.
Novels
- The Body (1949)
- The Face of Innocence (1951)
- The Last Hours of Sandra Lee (1961)
- The Guilt in Wandering (1963)
- Christmas (1968)
- Hans Feet in love (1971)
- The marmalade bird (1973)
- Proust (1973)
- Skimpy (1974)
- A Young Wife's Tale (1974)
- The Cautious Heart
- The Loving Eye
- A Bed of Roses
Short story collections
- Fireman Flower (1944)
- South (1948)
- Something Terrible, Something Lovely (1948)
- The Passionate North (1950)
- A Touch of the Sun (1952)
- Lord Love Us (1954)
- A Contest of Ladies (1956)
- Among the Dahlias (1957)
- Various Temptations (1957)
Non-fiction
- "Proust" (1973)
- The Birth of a Story (1972)
- A Book of Christmas (1968)
- Westminster at War (1947)
- Blue Skies, Brown Studies
- The Icicle and the Sun
- Pleasures Strange and Simple
Citations
In his classical work The Presentation of Self in Everyday LifeThe Presentation of Self in Everyday Life
The Presentation of Self in Everyday Life is a seminal sociology book by Erving Goffman. It uses the imagery of the theatre in order to portray the importance of human – namely, social – action. The book was published in 1959. See dramaturgy for a detailed analysis.-Summary:In the center of the...
, Erving Goffman
Erving Goffman
Erving Goffman was a Canadian-born sociologist and writer.The 73rd president of American Sociological Association, Goffman's greatest contribution to social theory is his study of symbolic interaction in the form of dramaturgical perspective that began with his 1959 book The Presentation of Self...
used an extended paragraph of Sansom's A Contest of Ladies to develop his model of the social role and the dramaturgical approach to sociology.
External links
- [ftp://trf.education.gouv.fr/pub/edutel/siac/siac2/jury/2004/caplp_ext/angl-lettr7.pdf Short story 'A Woman Seldom Found']\
- Biography
- Supernatural Fiction Database entry
- Bibliography