W. Somerset Maugham Biography

W. Somerset Maugham, Playwright
Born asWilliam Somerset Maugham
Occup.Playwright
FromUnited Kingdom
BornJanuary 25, 1874
Paris, France
DiedDecember 16, 1965
Nice, France
CausePneumonia
Aged91 years
William Somerset Maugham was born on January 25, 1874, in Paris, France, to British moms and dads. His father, Robert Ormond Maugham, was an attorney, and also his mom, Edith Mary Snell, was the child of a diplomat. Maugham invested his very early youth in France prior to his family transferred to England.

In England, Maugham participated in King's Institution in Canterbury before participating in Heidelberg College in Germany to study viewpoint and also literature. After returning to England, he studied medicine at St. Thomas' Health Center in London but did not finish his level.

In 1897, Maugham released his very first story, Liza of Lambeth, which makes up the life of London's working-class individuals. The novel was an immediate success, and its success encouraged him to continue composing. Nevertheless, his 2nd novel, The Constructing from a Saint, was not well gotten by the public.

In 1902, Maugham embarked on a trip to the South Pacific, where he traveled to Samoa, Tonga, as well as Fiji. This trip influenced his fourth novel, The Moon and Sixpence (1919), which is a fictionalized account of the life of painter Paul Gauguin.

In 1908, Maugham published one more novel, Cakes and also Ale, which was partly based upon his connection with the author Hugh Walpole. The book was slammed for its portrayal of the literary globe, and debate bordering guide placed Maugham in the public eye.

Maugham's most successful jobs were his narratives, which included The Trembling of a Fallen Leave (1921), The Casuarina Tree (1926), as well as The Outstation (1925). His books, plays, as well as narratives often had a negative, dark view of humanity as well as explored isolation as well as alienation, which resonated with many readers.

During World war, Maugham worked as a rescue chauffeur for the Red Cross in France. After the war, he traveled thoroughly, consisting of trips to China, which influenced his play The Circle.

In the 1920s, Maugham started to create plays, consisting of the hugely effective The Constant Partner (1926) and also the questionable play about prostitution, The Letter (1927), which was banned in London temporarily.

In the 1930s, Maugham's success proceeded with his novels, plays, as well as short stories. Nevertheless, a few of his jobs, like Of Human Chains (1915), which informs the tale of the lead character's self-discovery as well as look for love, were criticized for being also autobiographical.

Maugham was also a collection agency of art as well as a prolific tourist, and also he spent much of the 1930s as well as 1940s in the USA, where he created several effective plays, consisting of Lady Frederick, The Letter, and The Circle.

After The Second World War, Maugham's creating appeal faded, as well as he committed his time to traveling and writing memoirs. His narrative, The Summing Up (1938), stated his life and ideas, as well as his last job, A Writer's Notebook (1949), was a collection of essays as well as observations.

Maugham died on December 16, 1965, in Nice, France, at the age of 91. He has been widely considered as one of one of the most effective and also significant British authors of his time, and his works remain to read as well as assessed to this day.

Our collection contains 70 quotes who is written / told by Somerset Maugham, under the main topics: Art - Friendship - Death - Imagination - Marriage.

Related authors: Paul Gauguin (Artist), Lawrence Taylor (Athlete)

W. Somerset Maugham Famous Works:
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70 Famous quotes by W. Somerset Maugham

Small: If you want to eat well in England, eat three breakfasts
"If you want to eat well in England, eat three breakfasts"
Small: Every production of an artist should be the expression of an adventure of his soul
"Every production of an artist should be the expression of an adventure of his soul"
Small: It wasnt until late in life that I discovered how easy it is to say I dont know.
"It wasn't until late in life that I discovered how easy it is to say "I don't know.""
Small: We have long passed the Victorian Era when asterisks were followed after a certain interval by a baby
"We have long passed the Victorian Era when asterisks were followed after a certain interval by a baby"
Small: The writer of prose can only step aside when the poet passes
"The writer of prose can only step aside when the poet passes"
Small: The love that lasts longest is the love that is never returned
"The love that lasts longest is the love that is never returned"
Small: There are two good things in life - freedom of thought and freedom of action
"There are two good things in life - freedom of thought and freedom of action"
Small: Money is like a sixth sense without which you cannot make a complete use of the other five
"Money is like a sixth sense without which you cannot make a complete use of the other five"
Small: The writer is more concerned to know than to judge
"The writer is more concerned to know than to judge"
Small: It is well known that Beauty does not look with a good grace on the timid advances of Humour
"It is well known that Beauty does not look with a good grace on the timid advances of Humour"
Small: Perfection has one grave defect: it is apt to be dull
"Perfection has one grave defect: it is apt to be dull"
Small: The essence of the beautiful is unity in variety
"The essence of the beautiful is unity in variety"
Small: You are not angry with people when you laugh at them. Humor teaches tolerance
"You are not angry with people when you laugh at them. Humor teaches tolerance"
Small: The world is quickly bored by the recital of misfortune, and willing avoids the sight of distress
"The world is quickly bored by the recital of misfortune, and willing avoids the sight of distress"
Small: People ask for criticism, but they only want praise
"People ask for criticism, but they only want praise"
Small: No egoism is so insufferable as that of the Christian with regard to his soul
"No egoism is so insufferable as that of the Christian with regard to his soul"
Small: Death doesnt affect the living because it has not happened yet. Death doesnt concern the dead because t
"Death doesn't affect the living because it has not happened yet. Death doesn't concern the dead because they have ceased to exist"
Small: At a dinner party one should eat wisely but not too well, and talk well but not too wisely
"At a dinner party one should eat wisely but not too well, and talk well but not too wisely"
Small: I can imagine no more comfortable frame of mind for the conduct of life than a humorous resignation
"I can imagine no more comfortable frame of mind for the conduct of life than a humorous resignation"
Small: It is not true that suffering ennobles the character happiness does that sometimes, but suffering for t
"It is not true that suffering ennobles the character; happiness does that sometimes, but suffering for the most part, makes men petty and vindictive"
Small: There is no explanation for evil. It must be looked upon as a necessary part of the order of the univer
"There is no explanation for evil. It must be looked upon as a necessary part of the order of the universe. To ignore it is childish, to bewail it senseless"
Small: Money is the string with which a sardonic destiny directs the motions of its puppets
"Money is the string with which a sardonic destiny directs the motions of its puppets"
Small: Impropriety is the soul of wit
"Impropriety is the soul of wit"
Small: Imagination grows by exercise, and contrary to common belief, is more powerful in the mature than in th
"Imagination grows by exercise, and contrary to common belief, is more powerful in the mature than in the young"
Small: It is an illusion that youth is happy, an illusion of those who have lost it
"It is an illusion that youth is happy, an illusion of those who have lost it"
Small: In the country the darkness of night is friendly and familiar, but in a city, with its blaze of lights,
"In the country the darkness of night is friendly and familiar, but in a city, with its blaze of lights, it is unnatural, hostile and menacing. It is like a monstrous vulture that hovers, biding its time"
Small: In Hollywood, the women are all peaches. It makes one long for an apple occasionally
"In Hollywood, the women are all peaches. It makes one long for an apple occasionally"
Small: Have common sense and stick to the point
"Have common sense and stick to the point"
Small: Habits in writing as in life are only useful if they are broken as soon as they cease to be advantageou
"Habits in writing as in life are only useful if they are broken as soon as they cease to be advantageous"
Small: Few misfortunes can befall a boy which bring worse consequence than to have a really affectionate mothe
"Few misfortunes can befall a boy which bring worse consequence than to have a really affectionate mother"
Small: Excess on occasion is exhilarating. It prevents moderation from acquiring the deadening effect of a hab
"Excess on occasion is exhilarating. It prevents moderation from acquiring the deadening effect of a habit"
Small: If you dont change your beliefs, your life will be like this forever. Is that good news?
"If you don't change your beliefs, your life will be like this forever. Is that good news?"
Small: If a nation values anything more than freedom, it will lose its freedom, and the irony of it is that if
"If a nation values anything more than freedom, it will lose its freedom, and the irony of it is that if it is comfort or money that it values more, it will lose that too"
Small: Ill give you my opinion of the human race in a nutshell... their hearts in the right place, but their h
"I'll give you my opinion of the human race in a nutshell... their heart's in the right place, but their head is a thoroughly inefficient organ"
Small: I would sooner read a time-table or a catalogue than nothing at all. They are much more entertaining th
"I would sooner read a time-table or a catalogue than nothing at all. They are much more entertaining than half the novels that are written"
Small: I made up my mind long ago that life was too short to do anything for myself that I could pay others to
"I made up my mind long ago that life was too short to do anything for myself that I could pay others to do for me"
Small: Anyone can tell the truth, but only very few of us can make epigrams
"Anyone can tell the truth, but only very few of us can make epigrams"
Small: Any nation that thinks more of its ease and comfort than its freedom will soon lose its freedom and the
"Any nation that thinks more of its ease and comfort than its freedom will soon lose its freedom; and the ironical thing about it is that it will lose its ease and comfort too"
Small: An unfortunate thing about this world is that the good habits are much easier to give up than the bad o
"An unfortunate thing about this world is that the good habits are much easier to give up than the bad ones"
Small: A man marries to have a home, but also because he doesnt want to be bothered with sex and all that sort
"A man marries to have a home, but also because he doesn't want to be bothered with sex and all that sort of thing"
Small: Considering how foolishly people act and how pleasantly they prattle, perhaps it would be better for th
"Considering how foolishly people act and how pleasantly they prattle, perhaps it would be better for the world if they talked more and did less"
Small: Beauty is an ecstasy it is as simple as hunger. There is really nothing to be said about it. It is like
"Beauty is an ecstasy; it is as simple as hunger. There is really nothing to be said about it. It is like the perfume of a rose: you can smell it and that is all"
Small: Death is a very dull, dreary affair, and my advice to you is to have nothing whatsoever to do with it
"Death is a very dull, dreary affair, and my advice to you is to have nothing whatsoever to do with it"
Small: My own belief is that there is hardly anyone whose sexual life, if it were broadcast, would not fill th
"My own belief is that there is hardly anyone whose sexual life, if it were broadcast, would not fill the world at large with surprise and horror"
Small: There are three rules for writing a novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are
"There are three rules for writing a novel. Unfortunately, no one knows what they are"
Small: Men have an extraordinarily erroneous opinion of their position in nature and the error is ineradicable
"Men have an extraordinarily erroneous opinion of their position in nature; and the error is ineradicable"
Small: Marriage is a very good thing, but I think its a mistake to make a habit out of it
"Marriage is a very good thing, but I think it's a mistake to make a habit out of it"
Small: It is unsafe to take your reader for more of a fool than he is
"It is unsafe to take your reader for more of a fool than he is"
Small: It is salutary to train oneself to be no more affected by censure than by praise
"It is salutary to train oneself to be no more affected by censure than by praise"
Small: It is not wealth one asks for, but just enough to preserve ones dignity, to work unhampered, to be gene
"It is not wealth one asks for, but just enough to preserve one's dignity, to work unhampered, to be generous, frank and independent"
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