Tennessee Williams by Paul Ibell, Paperback, 9781780236629 | Buy online at The Nile
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Tennessee Williams

Author: Paul Ibell   Series: Critical Lives

In this gripping biography Paul Ibell discusses Williams as a poet as well as a playwright, at the same time revealing the crises of doomed relationships, promiscuous sex, alcohol and prescription drug abuse that gave the writer the raw material for his plays, but which ultimately destroyed him.

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Summary

In this gripping biography Paul Ibell discusses Williams as a poet as well as a playwright, at the same time revealing the crises of doomed relationships, promiscuous sex, alcohol and prescription drug abuse that gave the writer the raw material for his plays, but which ultimately destroyed him.

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Description

During his long career Thomas Lanier 'Tennessee' Williams iii (26 March 1911 - 25 February 1983) created several of the most iconic characters in American theatre. Though his greatest roles were for womenWilliams also brought gay relationships into the spotlight - his art, as so often is the case, reflecting his life. Williams mined his dysfunctional family for inspiration, particularly his sister, Rose, whose tragic mental instability influenced the plots of many of his plays. These often bordered (and sometimes plunged into) melodrama, for he wrote with an almost operatic intensity of feeling, but the defining characteristic of his work is the poetry of his language. In this gripping new biography Paul Ibell discusses Williams as a poet as well as a playwright, at the same time revealing the crises of doomed relationships, promiscuous sex, alcohol and prescription drug abuse that gave the writer the raw material for his plays, but which ultimately destroyed him.

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Critic Reviews

“"This biography will interest people who've read previous treatments, because few of us have read them all. . . . This latest rendition is bound to tell you things you didn't know or have forgotten. . . . Ibell's book is full of interesting details like these. And biography is in the details. Plus, the photographs are marvelous."”

"A sympathetic study of the playwright. Recommended."-- "Choice" "As well as being of interest to a general readership, the text might serve as a useful primer . . . because it surveys not only Williams's major plays but also a wide range of his lesser-known dramas, short stories, novellas and screenplays, and poems. The illustrations, which feature throughout, are a bonus. Ibell presents his arguments in a highly accessible manner, and the easy flow of his prose renders this critical biography an enjoyable introduction to one of the most important canonical figures in American theater history."-- "Journal of American Studies" -- "Gay and Lesbian Review Worldwide"

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About the Author

Paul Ibell is the author of Theatreland: A Journey through the Heart of London's Theatre (2009).

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More on this Book

In this gripping biography Paul Ibell discusses Williams as a poet as well as a playwright, at the same time revealing the crises of doomed relationships, promiscuous sex, alcohol and prescription drug abuse that gave the writer the raw material for his plays, but which ultimately destroyed him. Ibell champions the playwright's later work, whose regular and, he argues, unjustified maulings by critics drove Williams further into decline. Ibell also emphasizes the importance of Europe in the imagination of a writer who is best known for plays set in the American South.

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Product Details

Publisher
Reaktion Books
Published
1st August 2016
Pages
224
ISBN
9781780236629

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