SPARK Muriel Sarah

SPARK, Muriel SARA (Spark, Muriel Sarah) (p. 1918), English writer and literary critic. Critics have described her style as 'a short, severe, sharp and biting sarcastic'. M. Kakutani of The New York Times' wrote that the fictional world Spark 'motivated by malice, sabotage, ugly intrigues, tayaschimi in his deception and betrayal'. For many Spark 'is elusive ... it does not fit in under one definition ... by itself '.

Spark was born Feb. 1, 1918 in Edinburgh (Scotland), receiving the name of Muriel Sarah Kemberg. Her father was a Jew, his mother - an English Protestant religion. Education received in Edinburgh girls' school, James Gillespie. Spent several years in Southern Rhodesia (now Zimbabwe), the same in 1938, she married C. O. Spark. They had a son, but the marriage broke up, Muriel Spark returned to England and began working in the intelligence department of the Ministry of Foreign Affairs

. Was General Secretary of poetic society 'and the editor of' Poetri revue '(1947-1949), . later published a series of critical biographies of writers 19., . including "Child of Light: reassessment of Mary Shelley" (Child of Light: A Reassessment of Mary Shelly, . 1951; rev,
. ed. Mary Shelley, 1988), "John Masefield" (1953) and Emily Brontц?: her life and work "(Emily Bronte: Her Life and Work, 1953). Also released the first collection of poetry "Fenfarlo and Other Poems" (Fanfarlo and Other Verse, 1952)

. Spark has already received recognition as a critic and poet, . when taken its first attempt to write fiction - the story "Seraphim and Zambesi", . who sent in Christmas literary competition 1951, . conducted the London magazine 'The Observer',
. The story received the highest award and attracted the attention of the unusual development of Catholicism.

At the same time, Spark experiencing a crisis of faith. Throughout this crisis, it received financial and psychological assistance from G. Green, in his time has passed to Catholicism. In 1954, Spark herself drawn to Catholicism. The move had an enormous influence on her art. A longtime admirer of Spark Dzh.Apdayk wrote in the 'New Yorker': 'Ever since it first published and award-winning short story "Seraphim and the Zambesi" black magic of Africa is firmly linked in the minds Spark with the dark magic of Catholicism, . which she strongly shifted ',
.

The ability of the writer to create disturbing and compelling characters, causing an uneasy feeling of moral uncertainty, clearly manifested in the novel The Comforters "(The Comforters, 1957).

In 1959, Spark has survived the first big success after the publication of the novel "Memento mori", which can be called 'Dance of Death' aging group of intellectuals, do not stop quarreling and competing even in a time when one after another to die. After this novel, some critics compared with the Spark A.Kompton-Burnett and I. In. The novel was reworked for the stage in 1964 and for the British television in 1992.

In 1961, Spark has published a novel, which became the general view, her masterpiece - "Miss Jean Brodie in the prime of life" (The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie). He was subsequently transformed into a play that became the 'hit' on both sides of the Atlantic in 1966-1968, then - in the famous movie (1969) with M. Smith, and finally - in a TV movie shestiseriyny again who had transatlantic success in 1978 and 1979. The novel depicts a teacher of middle-aged, working in Edinburgh girls' school Marcia Blaine in 1930 and gathered around himself a team of five girls - 'Circle Brodie'. Jean Brodie is one of those delightful eccentric characters that appear frequently in English literature. Brody sees its task was to 'put the mature head on young shoulders'. In 1939, forced to leave her job and charged in the promotion of fascism

. Among other novels Spark - "Robinson Crusoe" (Robinson, . 1958), . "The Ballad of the suburbs" (The Ballad of Peckham Rye, . 1960), . "Bachelors" (Bachelors, . 1960), . "Impecunious Girls" (The Girls of Slender Means, . 1963), . "Mandelbaumskie Gates" (The Mandelbaum Gate, . 1965), . "Driver's Seat" (The Driver's Seat, . 1970), . "Do Not Disturb" (Not to Disturb, . 1971), . "Abbess Kreva" (The Abbess of Crewe, . 1974), . "Territorial Rights" (Territorial Rights, . 1979), . Intentional delay "(Loitering With Intent, . 1981), . "The only problem" (The Only Problem, . 1984), . "Far cry from Kensington" (A Far Cry From Kensington, . 1988), . "Symposium" (Symposium, . 1990) and "Reality and Dreams" (Reality and Dreams, . 1996),


. Spark has released five collections of short stories: " 'Bird-go' and other stories" (The Go-Away Bird and Other Stories, . 1958), . "Playing to vote" (Voices at Play, . 1961), . "Selected Stories" (Collected Stories, . 1968), . Stories Muriel Spark "(The Stories of Muriel Spark, . 1985), . "Attention to the audience: New and Selected Stories" (Open to Public: New and Collected Stories, . 1997), poetry collection "Selected Poems" (Collected Poems, . 1967) and the play "Doctor of Philosophy" (Doctors of Philosophy, . 1962),
.

In 1993, aged 75 years, Spark wrote "Curriculum Vitae: Autobiography" in order to correct the errors and inaccuracies by critics, as well as bring together the facts concerning her life and work. Curriculum Vitae tells about the first thirty-nine years of the writer - until the publication of her first novel Comforters. In 1993, Spark was awarded the Order of the British Empire.

Her latest novel, "aiding and abetting" (Aiding and Abetting, 2001) has received unconditional approval of critics.