"Non-fiction can distort; facts can be realigned. But fiction never lies."
– V.S. Naipaul, A Bend in the River
Sir Vidiadhar Surajprasad Naipaul (17 August 1932 – 11 August 2018) was a Trinidadian-born British writer of works of fiction and nonfiction in English. He is known for his comic early novels set in Trinidad, his bleaker novels of alienation in the wider world, and his vigilant chronicles of life and travels. He wrote in prose that was widely admired, but his views sometimes aroused controversy. He published more than thirty books over fifty years.
Naipaul's father, Seepersad, was an English-language journalist. In 1929, he had begun contributing stories to the Trinidad Guardian, and in 1932 he joined the staff as the provincial Chaguanas correspondent. In "A prologue to an autobiography" (1983), Naipaul describes how Seepersad's great reverence for writers and for the writing life spawned the dreams and aspirations of his eldest son. According to the genealogy the Naipauls had reconstructed in Trinidad, they were Hindu Brahmins—embraced from the knowledge of his mother's family; his father's background had remained less certain.
Earlier in 1952, at a college play, Naipaul had met Patricia Ann Hale, a history student. Hale and Naipaul formed a close friendship, which eventually developed into a sexual relationship. With Hale's support, Naipaul began to recover and gradually to write. In turn, she became a partner in planning his career. When they told their families about their relationship, the response was unenthusiastic; from her family it was hostile. In June 1953, both Naipaul and Hale graduated, both receiving, in his words, "a damn, bloody, ... second." J. R. R. Tolkien, professor of Anglo-Saxon at Oxford, however, judged Naipaul's Anglo-Saxon paper to have been the best in the university.
Naipaul wrote a monthly "Letter from London" for the Illustrated Weekly of India from 1963 to 1965.
In September 1960, Naipaul was sounded out about visiting Trinidad as a guest of the government and giving a few lectures. The following month an invitation arrived offering an all-expenses-paid trip and a stipend. In 1974, Naipaul wrote the novel Guerrillas, following a creative slump that lasted several years. His editor at André Deutsch, Diana Athill, made minor suggestions for improving the book, which led Naipaul to leave the publishing house. He returned a few weeks later. A Bend in the River, published in 1979, marks the beginning of his exploration of native historical traditions, deviating from his usual "New World" examinations. Naipaul also covered the 1984 Republican National Convention in Dallas, Texas, at the behest of Robert B. Silvers, editor of The New York Review of Books, after which Naipaul wrote "Among the Republicans", an anthropological study of a "white tribe in the United States".
In 1987, The Enigma of Arrival, a novel in five sections, was published.
Naipaul died at his home in London on 11 August 2018. Before dying he read and discussed Lord Tennyson's poem Crossing the Bar with those at his bedside. His funeral took place at Kensal Green Cemetery.
Naipaul was awarded the Booker Prize for In a Free State in 1971. He won the Jerusalem Prize in 1983. He was awarded the Trinity Cross in 1990. He was also made a Knight Bachelor in the 1990 New Year Honours. He won the Nobel Prize in Literature in 2001.
Some of his notable works include: The Mystic Masseur (1957); The Suffrage of Elvira (1958); Miguel Street (1959); A House for Mr Biswas (1961); Mr Stone and the Knights Companion (1963); The Mimic Men (1967); A Flag on the Island (1967); In a Free State (1971) – Booker Prize Winner; Guerrillas (1975); A Bend in the River (1979), and more.
Discussion Questions:
Naipaul has added a prominent phrase in one of his major works, "...the past is deep." – from a post-colonial perspective, how would you analyze this line with context to your own homeland?
There's a sense of alienation, detachment and search for identity and place in "A house for Mr. Biswas", how can we interpret Mr Biswas' journey with a common citizen's journey of finding a place for himself amid worldly crowd?
Always open to additional comments and discussions on V. S. Naipaul and his works.
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