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'for Only Those Deserve the Name': T. E. Lawrence and Seven Pillars of Wisdom
Now available in paperback! In Seven Pillars of Wisdom, his epic of the Arab Revolt, T.E. Lawrence wanted to write a work of spiritual greatness, comparable to The Brothers Karamazov, and Thus Spake Zarathustra. 'For only those deserve the name,' he wrote to Charlotte Shaw, recalling his ambition to be a great writer. Mark Calderbank's biography shows how post-World War I political developments in the Middle East, and Lawrence's unsettled life and sense of guilt, influenced the published work and contributed to his sense of failure. By following multiple lines of enquiry into chosen events, Mark Calderbank shows us a story coloured by a retrospective vision of history, a post-war Weltanschaung, and the compulsion to present an exemplary personality. This approach has the deepest significance for the interpretation of the Seven Pillars' reliability as a historical source, in particular the interweaving of fantasy and historical truth, and excessive personalisation. The psychology of masochism plays a prominent role in interpreting the 'drama of the Self', especially the notorious incidents at Dera' and Tafas. Problems of personality are paramount. Seven Pillars has been overly influential and has long required a reassessment. The 100th anniversary of the Revolt is opportune. Of special significance are the revealing of accounts of other participants, and Lawrence's presentation of the Arabs and of history, both of which remain highly topical. The Epilogue, a commentary on an essay (1940) by André Malraux, appraises the meaning of literature in Lawrence's life. To date, Seven Pillars has eluded evaluation. "In the end," wrote Herbert Read, "the reader finds himself alone: he has to decide for himself." Calderbank's majestic reassessment is long overdue. [Subject: Middle East Studies, History, Literature, Psychology, Biography]
1300565038
'for Only Those Deserve the Name': T. E. Lawrence and Seven Pillars of Wisdom
Now available in paperback! In Seven Pillars of Wisdom, his epic of the Arab Revolt, T.E. Lawrence wanted to write a work of spiritual greatness, comparable to The Brothers Karamazov, and Thus Spake Zarathustra. 'For only those deserve the name,' he wrote to Charlotte Shaw, recalling his ambition to be a great writer. Mark Calderbank's biography shows how post-World War I political developments in the Middle East, and Lawrence's unsettled life and sense of guilt, influenced the published work and contributed to his sense of failure. By following multiple lines of enquiry into chosen events, Mark Calderbank shows us a story coloured by a retrospective vision of history, a post-war Weltanschaung, and the compulsion to present an exemplary personality. This approach has the deepest significance for the interpretation of the Seven Pillars' reliability as a historical source, in particular the interweaving of fantasy and historical truth, and excessive personalisation. The psychology of masochism plays a prominent role in interpreting the 'drama of the Self', especially the notorious incidents at Dera' and Tafas. Problems of personality are paramount. Seven Pillars has been overly influential and has long required a reassessment. The 100th anniversary of the Revolt is opportune. Of special significance are the revealing of accounts of other participants, and Lawrence's presentation of the Arabs and of history, both of which remain highly topical. The Epilogue, a commentary on an essay (1940) by André Malraux, appraises the meaning of literature in Lawrence's life. To date, Seven Pillars has eluded evaluation. "In the end," wrote Herbert Read, "the reader finds himself alone: he has to decide for himself." Calderbank's majestic reassessment is long overdue. [Subject: Middle East Studies, History, Literature, Psychology, Biography]
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'for Only Those Deserve the Name': T. E. Lawrence and Seven Pillars of Wisdom

'for Only Those Deserve the Name': T. E. Lawrence and Seven Pillars of Wisdom

by David PHD Nico
'for Only Those Deserve the Name': T. E. Lawrence and Seven Pillars of Wisdom

'for Only Those Deserve the Name': T. E. Lawrence and Seven Pillars of Wisdom

by David PHD Nico

Overview

Now available in paperback! In Seven Pillars of Wisdom, his epic of the Arab Revolt, T.E. Lawrence wanted to write a work of spiritual greatness, comparable to The Brothers Karamazov, and Thus Spake Zarathustra. 'For only those deserve the name,' he wrote to Charlotte Shaw, recalling his ambition to be a great writer. Mark Calderbank's biography shows how post-World War I political developments in the Middle East, and Lawrence's unsettled life and sense of guilt, influenced the published work and contributed to his sense of failure. By following multiple lines of enquiry into chosen events, Mark Calderbank shows us a story coloured by a retrospective vision of history, a post-war Weltanschaung, and the compulsion to present an exemplary personality. This approach has the deepest significance for the interpretation of the Seven Pillars' reliability as a historical source, in particular the interweaving of fantasy and historical truth, and excessive personalisation. The psychology of masochism plays a prominent role in interpreting the 'drama of the Self', especially the notorious incidents at Dera' and Tafas. Problems of personality are paramount. Seven Pillars has been overly influential and has long required a reassessment. The 100th anniversary of the Revolt is opportune. Of special significance are the revealing of accounts of other participants, and Lawrence's presentation of the Arabs and of history, both of which remain highly topical. The Epilogue, a commentary on an essay (1940) by André Malraux, appraises the meaning of literature in Lawrence's life. To date, Seven Pillars has eluded evaluation. "In the end," wrote Herbert Read, "the reader finds himself alone: he has to decide for himself." Calderbank's majestic reassessment is long overdue. [Subject: Middle East Studies, History, Literature, Psychology, Biography]

Product Details

ISBN-13: 9781845198428
Publisher: Sussex Academic Press
Publication date: 01/01/2018
Pages: 360
Product dimensions: 6.10(w) x 9.10(h) x 0.80(d)

Table of Contents

List of Illustrations vii

Acknowledgements and Note on the Texts ix

Introduction 1

Part 1 Seven Years of Struggle, 1919-1926

1 Genesis in Paris, 1919 11

2 Writing the Book: London, Oxford, Pole Hill, 1920 30

3 In the Political Arena, 1920-21 47

4 From the Oxford Text to Enlistment in the Ranks, 1922 62

5 Literary Mentors, 1922-24 79

6 Bovington Camp, 1923-25 98

7 The Subscribers Edition, 1924-26 107

Part 2 Seven Pillars of Wisdom

The Arab Revolt: Participant Accounts

8 Lawrence in the Arab Revolt: A Summary 129

9 Lawrence & Ronald Storrs in Jeddah 135

10 The Battle of Tafileh: Subhi al-Umari & Lawrence 142

11 Kirkbride's Account 152

The Drama of the Self

12 The Outsider (1) 171

13 The Climax at Dera' 181

14 The Outsider (2) 199

15 The Biographical Environment and Sequel 210

Between Myth and Reality

16 The Arab Mirage 227

17 The Presentation of History 243

18 The Problem of Autobiography 260

Epilogue: Was that all it was, then? 274

Appendices 291

Appendix 1 Chronology of Text 1: Four Versions

Appendix 2 Nesib al-Bakri and the Syrian alternative

Appendix 3 The Demonisation of Abdelkader

Appendix 4 Abbreviated References

Appendix 5 Key Chapter Numeration in Successive Editions of Seven Pillars of Wisdom

Notes 301

Bibliography 317

Index 324

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