William Stryon - 1925
|
By Lesley OwensChilhowie High School, Virginia
I. Biography
William Clark Styron, Jr. was born on June 11, 1925 in Newport News, VA. He was the only child of William Clark Styron, a shipyard engineer, and Pauline Margaret Abraham Styron. His childhood name, given to him by his parents, was Billy (West 20).
William began his career in writing at an early age.
Growing up as an only child in the South, he turned to writing as a hobby. He possessed an early aptitude for language and reading (Center/Bio 1). When he was five years old, Sally Cox Hayes, a
former grade school teacher and the Styron's neighbor, volunteered to teach him how to read (West 21). This was after he "[began] to show unusual verbal ability" (West 21). His parents were
proud of their son's accomplishment, and showed off his skill whenever possible to family and visitors (West 21).
Billy's formal education started in the fall of 1931 when he entered John W. Daniel Grammar School (West 21). He was more advanced than the other students. His first grade teacher took him to the principal's office shortly after he had spelled the word formaldehyde for her during class (West 22). Here "he read aloud from the seventh-grade text" (West 22). He attended Hilton Valley Elementary School during the fall of 1932, after his family moved to this neighborhood. He excelled in reading so much that he was permitted to skip a grade (West 24).
During the latter stage of his mother's illness (breast cancer), Billy moved in with the Hayes family. This moved occurred in the summer of 1938, when he was thirteen years old. In the fall of this year, he entered Morrison High School. Writing seemed to be the answer for him during high school because he never fit in, due to the fact that he had skipped a grade early in school. He wrote and published a short story at the age of thirteen in his high school newspaper (Sirius.com 1). He was inspired to write his article, "Typhoon and the Tor Bay" for The Sponge by the Joseph Conrad novel he was reading (West 47). He did not write any more stories.
Stamp collecting occupied most of his time during high school. Also during high school, Billy made up for his lack of size and athletic ability with the use of sarcasm and ridicule. Although he had a large collection of obscure words, he did not apply them to his high school curriculum. The only subject he performed well in was history. The history of Virginia was all around him. Despite this fact, he knew that "large areas of Virginia history were skimmed over or ignored in his textbooks" (West 51). He was most interested in the lives of the slaves in Virginia. At the time, he did not have the means for obtaining all the information he wanted, but he wished to learn more.
Pauline Styron died on the evening of July 20, 1939 (West 52). Billy was not at the house when she died, but was at the Hayes's house. William Styron is not able to recall his reaction to his mother's death. He was restrained in his grieving because of the fact that "the Styron's were a dignified family" (West 53). During this day and time, sorrow and grief was either expressed in private or not expressed at all (West 53). "[His mother's] deterioration during his adolescence and her painful death left permanent marks on [William's] personality" (Center/Bio 1).
"W.C. Styron [decided] that his son should go away to prep school for the remained of his high school career" (West 60). Christchurch was the prep school of choice. Christchurch is "a small Episcopal boys' school not far to the north of Newport News" (West 61). Billy would attend Christchurch in September of 1940. Although the school was affiliated with the Episcopalian church, "the curriculum did not contain a heavy religious element" (West 64). William Styron was often called Bill at Christchurch. Bill's recollection of his two years at the prep school was that "they were happy and satisfying" (West 65).
William's college education would begin at Davidson College, a Presbyterian institution located just above Charlotte, North Carolina (West 77). He arrived on campus in June of 1942, "only a few days after graduating from Christchurch" (West 79). During his first year at Davidson, "he became a Phi Delta [Theta] pledge in October" (West 83). Also in his first year he began writing seriously (Sirius.com 1). He published a comic verse entitled "The Terrible Case of Theodore Twaddle's Hiccups" in the December issue of Scripts 'n Pranks. His next work, "Get All You Can," appeared in the May issue (West 88). This poem "is a verse parody of Coleridge, Shakespeare, Shelley, Kipling, and Tennyson" that refers to the advice the enlisted students were receiving (West 88). He published in the school's newspaper an account of the Army Air Force cadets and their invasion of the Davidson campus for temporary training during February and March (West 88). This was only one aspect of the changing life at Davidson because of the war.
In February of 1943, Styron took the first step in entering the war (West 90). "He enlisted in the Marine Corps Reserves, Class IIId, Officer's Candidate Class" (West 90). In the spring he learned that he would be transferred to Duke University and enter officers' training in a Navy V-12 program (Center/Bio 1). This program allowed the candidates to study some necessary subjects and also mature a little. Styron entered near the end of June 1943, only a few days after his birthday. Here, he met his mentor William Blackburn (Center/Bio 1). His advice to Styron was, "To write one must read" (West 99). Styron began reading everything he could from poetry to prose. He started writing short stories for "The Archive," Duke's literary magazine. He published 5 short stories and a poem, under the pseudonym Martin Kostler.
In October of 1944, Styron was ordered to boot camp at Parris Island in South Carolina (Center/Bio 1). His experiences at Parris Island lead him to write the play "In the Clap Shack." After spending the winter at Parris Island, Styron was sent to Camp Lejeune in North Carolina in February for further military preparations. At Camp Lejeune, he learned "the fundamentals of command and [studied] tactics they would use in the assault on mainland Japan" (West 119-120). In May, Styron was ordered to Platoon Commander School at Quantico. By July of 1945, Styron was a Marine Second Lieutenant (Center/Bio 1). He was "saved from the planned assault on mainland [that he had studied for at Camp Lejeune] by the atomic bombs that were dropped in August of 1945 on Hiroshima and Nagasaki" (Center/Bio 1).
After the war was over, Styron was transferred to the Naval Disciplinary Barracks on Harts Island in the Long Island Sound. In November, he was sent to Portsmouth for discharge. His discharge was completed in December, and he waited until the spring of 1946 to return to Duke.
In August, with his desire to become a writer, he attended a two-week writing conference sponsored by Middlebury College at the Bread Loaf Inn in Vermont. He did not accomplish very much in the way of his own writing at this conference; instead he wanted to observe the techniques of other writers. While at Duke during his second enrollment, two of his short stories were published in "The Archive," in addition to two sketches about faculty members, a book review, and a column of campus conversations. Despite his publications and growing interest in writing, he wanted a larger audience.
Styron began a career in publication in the spring of 1947 as an associate editor at McGraw-Hill Publishers in New York City, with Blackburn helping him land the job (Center/Bio 1). He was dismissed from his duties when Edward C. Aswell was brought in to serve as editor in chief. Despite his bad luck at McGraw-Hill, Styron was aided by Blackburn once again. Blackburn contacted a former student, Hiram Haydn, the leader of a fiction-writing seminar at New School, about Styron (West 148). In turn, Styron was invited to join Haydn's seminar. He began the task of writing his first novel in the fall of 1947. He was not able to complete the majority of this work until he moved to Valley Cottage, the home of his friends Aggie and Sigrid de Lima, in Nyack, New York (West 180). In late July, he signed a contract with Bobbs-Merril for his manuscript. Near the end of the completion of his novel, he was called and ordered to report to Camp Lejeune by March 3. This order was extended until early May by connections one of Haydn's publishing friends had to a high-ranking Pentagon officer (West 186). The manuscript for Lie Down in Darkness was completed hurriedly by May of 1951. After its completion, Styron departed for Camp Lejeune. On August 10, 1951, Styron's hopes had come true; he was released from the Marine Corps (West 201).
Lie Down in Darkness won the Prix de Rome of the American Academy of Arts and Letters. This award sent Styron to Europe in the spring of 1952. He became a part of the American expatriate community in Paris during the 1950's (Britannica.com 1). Styron helped found the Paris Review in the summer of 1952. He was named advisory editor for the literary magazine during his stay in Paris.
While in Paris, William became reacquainted with an old friend named Rose Burgunder, whom he had met at Johns Hopkins University only a year before (Center/Bio 1). Rose, a published poet from Baltimore, and William fell in love and were married in Rome in May of 1953. The new couple returned to the United States in December to live in New York City only for a short period. They moved to Roxbury, Connecticut, a small village located in the mountains of the western portion of the state (West 270). Rose and William had four children: Susanna, Paola, Thomas, and Alexandria. The Styrons still make their residence in Roxbury and also own a home in Vineyard Haven, Massachusetts. Currently William Styron is writing a novel about his World War II experiences (Center/Bio 1).
II. Where William Styron Wrote
William Styron's works are frequently set in his native tidewater Virginia region. Although he did not write in this portion of the state, he does remain true to his roots when he decides upon the settings of his works.
William Styron wrote his works while in his home in Roxbury, Connecticut, Village Cottage in New York, and also in Paris. The majority of his writing took place in his home in Connecticut.
In Lie Down in Darkness, Styron sets the story in a Richmond clinic and also Newport News. He does not call the place Newport News in the text, but he uses the name Port Warwick. This name is a combination of Portsmouth and Warrick, which are located near Newport News. This novel takes place during World War II. Styron wrote this novel at the home of his friends, Valley Cottage.
The Long March was written in Paris during the 1950's. This novel is about the experiences he had while in the Marine Corps at Camp Lejeune.
The remainder of Styron's works was written at his home in Roxbury, Connecticut. In The Confessions of Nat Turner, Styron uses the historical event of Nat Turner's rebellion in Southampton County in 1831 as the basis and setting of the novel. Southampton County is located in Southside Virginia, near Newport News.
The novella connected most with the Tidewater region of Virginia is Styron's A Tidewater Morning
. Although this novella is not strictly autobiographical, one can see the obvious connection between the places in the last two of the three stories and the actual places in Styron's
childhood. In the second story, the setting is the Tidewater region in the year 1935. The third story is set in the house in which William grew up. The neighborhood is given the same name as the one in which he grew up.
In Sophie's Choice, Stingo and Sophie leave New York to go to the Tidewater region of Virginia. This area is Stingo's boyhood home.
The main city in the Tidewater region that Styron sets his stories in is Newport News. This was his childhood home. It is located where the James River and the Chesapeake Bay meet, along the Hampton Roads Harbor. Newport News, a city that is twenty miles long and three and a half miles wide, has a population of more than 180,000 people.
The city is known for its military and technological facilities. In addition to this, Newport News is also one of the world's largest shipbuilding centers.
Many historical sites are near the city of Newport News. Most are within a short drive. These sites were influential in William Styron's works.
III. The Works of William Styron
A. Novels
Lie Down in Darkness (1951)
The Long March (1953)
Set this House on Fire (1960)
The Confessions of Nat Turner (1967)
Sophie's Choice (1976)
This Quiet Dust and Other Writings (1982)
Darkness Visible: A Memoir of Madness (1990)
A Tidewater Morning: Three Tales from Youth (1993)
B. Plays
In the Clap Shack (1973)
C. Articles
"Letter to an Editor," Paris Review, 1 (Spring 1953):9-13.
"The Prevalence of Wonders," Nation, 176 (2 May 1953):370-371.
"The Paris Review," Harper's Bazaar, 87 (August 1953):370-371.
"What's Wrong with the American Novel?" American Scholar, 24 (Autumn 1955):464-503.
"If You Write for Television..." New Republic, 140 (6 April 1959):16.
"The McCabes," Paris Review, 6 Autumn-Winter 1959):12-28.
"Mrs. Aadland's Little Girl, Beverly, Esquire, 56 (November 1961):142,189-191.
"The Death-in-Life of Benjamin Reid," Esquire, 57 (February 1962):114,1410145.
"As He Lay Dead, a Bitter Grief," Life, 53 (20 July 1962):39-42.
"Aftermath of Benjamin Reid," Esquire, 58 (November 1962): 79.
"Two Writers Talk it Over," Esquire, 60 (July 1963):57-59.
"This Quiet Dust," Harper's, 230 (April 1965)135-146.
"Runaway," Partisan Review, 33 (Fall 1966):574-582.
"Virginia: 1831," Paris Review, 9 (Winter 1966): 13-45.
"The Confessions of Nat Turner," Harper's, 235 (September 1967): 51-102
"Novel's Climax: the Night of the Honed Axes, Life, 63 (13 October 1967):54-60.
"Truth and Nat Turner: An Exchange," Nation, 206 (22 April 1968):544-547.
"Oldest America," McCall's, 95 (July 1968):94,123.
"Symposium: Violence in Literature, American Scholar, 37 (Summer 1968):482-496.
"In the Jungle," New York Review of Books, 26 (September 1968):11-13.
"My Generation," Esquire, 70 (October 1968):123-124.
"On Creativity," Playboy, 15 (December 1968):138.
"The Uses of History in Fiction," Southern Literary Journal, 1 (Spring 1969):57-90.
"Marriott, the Marine," Esquire, 76, (September 1971):101-104.
"The Seduction of Leslie," Esquire, 86 (September 1976):92-96
IV. Summary of A Tidewater Morning
A Tidewater Morning, published in 1993, tells about a boy's experiences during his childhood in the Tidewater region of Virginia. The novella is somewhat autobiographical. The experiences that Paul Whitehurst has reflect the ones that William had in the 1930's.
A Tidewater Morning is divided into three different stories. The connection between these tales is the fact that they are all told from the point of view of Paul Whitehurst. The first story, entitled "Love Day," is about Paul, a Marine Second Division platoon leader during World War II, and his disappointment when his platoon is not sent into combat. Paul's dream was to engage in combat, and this story is about the preparation he and his men go through, only to be let down in the end when their mission is discovered to be a diversion.
The second story is about Paul's experience with an old African American man. This man was a slave of the Dabney family. Paul was best friends with they youngest Dabney child, ???. Shadrach, the 9? year old slave, has made a courageous journey back to the Tidewater region to die on the land owned by the Dabneys. The story tells about the trip back to the Dabney home place in order to fulfill the wish of the dying man.
The last story of A Tidewater Morning A is about the death of Paul's mother. The last few days of his mother's existence are told in the saddest of the three stories. This is the most autobiographical of the three stories.
V. An Interview with the writer
The interview of William Styron performed by Sheldon Hackney is mainly centered on Darkness Visible and the biography of William Styron by James West. Hackney is a writer for Humanities . This interview, entitled "A Conversation with William Styron," appeared in the May/June issue of 1997.
When asked about Darkness Visible and its impact on future readings of his novels, Styron replies, "It could be all unwittingly that I wrote in Darkness Visible what amounted to a Rosetta stone for my other work." He also adds that he "was writing about a very prevalent, almost universal mental disorder."
When Hackney comments about the dark side of Styron's works that he failed to see until after he read Darkness Visible, he replies, "I created a work which in effect helped reveal the meaning of my other work." Hackney continues to ask about this topic. He asks if Styron believes that the melancholia has always been with him. Styron says, "I didn't realize it except that it came to the fore as I was writing Darkness Visible." To continue on the same subject, Styron believes that "It certainly has never been melancholia that has shut down my ability to perceive life on other levels…"
The conversation turns to the topic of the James West biography. Hackney asks Styron if this biography will set a standard of William Styron the literary figure. Styron comments, "I don't think it will affect me in any way at all in terms of my work. Hackney then asks him if he is worried that West will stumble across some bad times in his life. Styron tells him, "My life and work have been far from free of blemish, and so I think it would be unpardonable for a biographer not to dish up the dirt."
Hackney comments that Styron is a more popular figure in Europe. He asks Styron why he thinks this is so. "I do think it's the acceptance of the work on a very closely scrutinized level, and there is a difference there."
The conversation then shifts to his upcoming novel. Hackney asks why Stryon has never finished his "big war novel." Stryon replies, "I now have a handle on it. It is proceeding on an entirely different tack from what it originally was, but in a very direct and deliberate way and direction."
VI. Interesting Quotations from William Styron
"Let's face it, writing is hell"
William Styron, US Novelist
As one who has primarily written fiction during his career as a writer, I have always considered the writing of prose other than fiction something of a sideline. This is not to say that I have assigned a greatly diminished value to the essays, essay-reviews and incidental pieces that make up the present collection. For better or for worse, I have applied as much effort and have spent as much time, proportionately, to the crafting of these pieces as I have to the writing of the novels. It is just that the shorter nonfiction works--perhaps because of their generally topical nature--seem to linger less reverberantly in one's own mind than the novels with their large scope and multiplicity of elements and the truly memorable demands they make upon one's stamina and patience as a writer. No doubt this is why I was taken a little by surprise when--after it was suggested that I put together this volume--I discovered that I had, in the past two decades, written a far greater amount in the essay form than I remembered. Certainly I have written enough of it to demonstrate that I harbor no disdain for literary journalism or just plain journalism, under whose sponsorship I have been able to express much that has fascinated me, or alarmed me, or amused me, or otherwise engaged my attention when I was not writing a book.
"A note to the reader." This Quiet Dust and Other Writings. (New York: Random House, 1982). p. ix.
I have never been to Cuba. I was invited by Castro, and it is still possible I may go there. I've been told that he spent three nights reading Sophie's Choice. It was given him by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. And Garcia Marquez informed me that Castro told him I had an open invitation any time I wanted to go to Cuba.
"An interview with William Styron," Sewanee Review, (Summer 1991): 463.
When, in the autumn of 1947, I was fired from the first and only job I have ever held, I wanted one thing out of life: to become a writer. I left my position as manuscript reader at the McGraw-Hill Book Company with no regrets; the job had been onerous and boring. It did not occur to me that there would be many difficulties to impede my ambition; in fact, the job itself had been an impediment. All I knew was that I burned to write a novel and I could not have cared less that my bank account was close to zero, with no replenishment in sight. At the age of twenty-two I had such pure hopes in my ability to write not just a respectable first novel, but a novel that would be completely out of the ordinary, that when I left the McGraw-Hill Building for the last time I felt the exultancy of a man just released from slavery and ready to set the universe on fire.
"Lie Down In Darkness." This Quiet Dust and Other Writings. (New York: Random House, 1982). p. 289.
I've never written any prose fiction on the typewriter. I've just always had a very comfortable relationship with No. 2 pencils and these yellow sheets, which I might add vary also in quality. Some you get are abominable: You can't erase on them, which is something that I like to do. I would be almost in deep despair if I found myself on some island on vacation and unable to get yellow sheets. I could compose on white sheets, in longhand, but it would be an added handicap...
Updike, John and Jill Krementz. "The Literary Life." Civilization, (Dec. 96-Jan 97) p. 56.
The single meaningful document having to do with the Turner revolt was a short...transcript that gave the title to my own work...Aside from Nat's own Confessions and a number of contemporary newspaper articles...there was virtually no material of that period that was useful in shedding further light on Nat Turner as a person or on the uprising. Such a near vacuum [seemed to place] me in the ideal position of knowing neither too much nor too little.
"Historical Fiction and the Facts." Wilson Quarterly , (Winter 93) p. 150.
You could...demonstrate once again the cruelty of slavery through the auction block, but how are you going to demonstrate the extraordinary moral tensions involved in slavery, the inner life of slavery, the conflicts having to do with the dilemna [sic] in the minds of so many white people about the very existence of slavery. It has to be remembered that, while slavery did exist, it's demonstrably an institution in which there was perpetual conflict on the part of the slave owners. This is what, of course, contributed to the abolition of slavery ultimately. Despite the fact that a war was fought over it, there was enormous moral conflict all over the South about its existence, which is central to the whole understanding of slavery.
Hackney, Sheldon. "Who Owns History?" Humanities, (Jan/ Feb 1995) p. 6.
I have never regarded the military profession as a villainous calling. Military life was so much a part of my background and my environment that I have sometimes marveled at the fact that I am by now what I am, instead of a senior major general in the Marine Corps with three "good" wars under my belt, dreaming nightly of becoming Commandant.
"Introduction to the Service." This Quiet Dust and Other Writings. (New York: Random House, 1982) p. 189.
VII. Link to audio of William Styron
This is a link to a Library of Congress Cybercast discussion with William Styron. This
event was originally broadcast live on Wednesday, November 4, 1998. This cybercast is a conversation about the works of William Styron and a question-and-answer session with
Susanna Styron, his daughter. This conversation is conducted by James West. VIII. Links to related topics Here is a link to the Newport News web page. Information about the region in which
William Styron grew up can be found here.
Here is a link to the Roxbury, Connecticut web page. Information about the town that William Styron lives in today can be found here.
http://www.roxburyct.com
This is a link that deals with the shipbuilding industry in Newport News.
http://www.nns.com
This is a link to the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Click here to learn more about this topic, which is the focus of Sophie's Choice.
http://www.ushmm.org
IX. Related Pictures X. Works Cited
West III, James L.W. William Styron, A Life. New York: Random House, 1998. "A Brief Biography of William Styron." n.d. West III, James L.W. "William Styron, A Biographical
Sketch." n.d. "A Selection of Quotes by William Styron." n.d. "William Styron." n.d. XI. Author of this web page
This essay was submitted by Lesley Owens, a student in Jean Hamm's Dual Credit English class at Chilhowie High School, Chilhowie, Virginia.
This is a picture of Nat Turner, a slave who led
an uprising in Virginia during August of 1831. Styron wrote a novel about this event in the voice of Nat Turner. This novel is entitled The Confessions of Nat Turner.