Writers – Page 2 – Interesting Literature

10 of the Best Short Literary Epitaphs

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

Writers love to have the final word, and many great poets have composed their final lines, the lines that will crown their lifetime’s achievement and adorn the stones marking their final resting place. Some of the most memorable literary epitaphs are also the briefest, and remain witty, moving, or memorable – or all three – thanks to this brevity. Here, then, are ten of the finest short literary epitaphs that commemorate the lives, and deaths, of ten great writers.

William Shakespeare.

We may as well begin with the greatest poet in the English language. Surely Shakespeare penned one of the greatest literary epitaphs that the world can boast? Well, it’s certainly memorable, threatening to bring down a curse upon anyone who disturbs his tomb.

Five Fascinating Facts about Goethe

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

1. One of the first poems Goethe ever wrote was in English.

Although Johann Wolfgang von Goethe (1749-1832) was a German poet, novelist, and philosopher, he began writing poetry in the English language from an early age. One of his earliest efforts is, fittingly enough, about wanting to become a poet: ‘And other thought is misfortune / Is death and night to me: / I hum no supportable tune, / I can no poet be.’ But poet he would be – although not in English.

Five Fascinating Facts about Sir Richard Burton

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

1. Sir Richard Burton was a Victorian explorer, translator, author, spy, diplomat, poet, soldier, cartographer … the list goes on.

Sir Richard Burton (1821-90) has a claim to being the most remarkable Victorian of them all. His Times obituary called him ‘one of the most remarkable men of his time’. Not only did he publish some 47 books during his own lifetime, including many studies of various cultures and tribes in Africa and Asia, but he also travelled widely around the world, and spoke nearly thirty languages.

Five Fascinating Facts about Aphra Behn

By Dr Oliver Tearle (Loughborough University)

1. Aphra Behn wrote one of the first novels in English.

However, which of her works qualifies for the title ‘early novel’ is a tricky issue. The mantle usually goes to Oroonoko, her 1689 ‘true history’ of a ‘Royal Slave’, about a prince from Africa who is sold into slavery in South America, organises an uprising against the slave-owners, and is defeated and executed. But Oroonoko is short – only around 70 pages – so is often excluded from the ranks of the ‘novel’ proper. However…

Five Fascinating Facts about Molière

Facts about Jean-Baptiste Poquelin, aka Molière

1. Molière died shortly after collapsing on stage during one of his own plays. Molière’s play Le malade imaginaire, known in English as The Imaginary Invalid or, alternatively, The Hypochondriac, was first staged in February 1673. Molière acted in the production, taking the lead role of Argan (the hypochondriac of the title). Ironically, given the role he was playing in the production, Molière in fact collapsed in a fit of coughing during the performance. He insisted on finishing his performance, before suffering another massive haemorrhage and dying shortly after. He had been suffering from pulmonary tuberculosis for several years.