American novelist Thomas Wolf is considered one of the great American writers of the twentieth century. He is best known for the bookseller Of time and the River, and his fist novel, Look Homeward, Angel. His novels are known for being autobiographical in which he depicted his family and events in his short life.
Early Life of Thomas Wolfe
Thomas Clayton Wolfe was born on October 3, 1900 in Asheville, North Carolina, a middle-class resort town. His father, William Oliver Wolfe, was a tombstone maker and his mother, Julia E. Wolfe, a real estate speculator. Young Tom was encouraged by his father to pursue his literary interests. He enrolled in drama classes at the University of North Carolina and then Harvard Graduate School. There he began writing and directing plays, and continued to do so after he left university.
Autobiographical Novelist
One of Wolfe's friends, Aline Bernstein, encouraged him to publish his first novel, Look Homeward, Angel. She was a wealthy theatre designer whom he met in New York when he was 29. Apparent in the book were the death of his brother Ben and Wolfe's first love affair. He depicted himself through his fictional character, Eugene Gant.
In 1931 Wolfe left America and traveled to Europe over the next few years. He returned and settled in Brooklyn to write Of Time and the River. The novel traces Eugene Gant's life from leaving his hometown of Altamount (based on Asheville) to his meeting with Esther Jack (based on Aline). This huge book ran more than 900 pages. Critics had mixed reactions, nevertheless, Of Time and the River became a bestseller.
Thomas Wolfe's Final Years
In 1938 Wolfe developed pneumonia and tuberculosis of the brain and died unexpectedly on September 15, 1938, aged 37. Shortly before he died, he delivered a huge manuscript to his publisher. Several works were made from it, including The Web and the Rock, which depicts his love affair with Aline. Since his death, several other books and plays have been published.
Prominent novelist William Faulkner admired him. Wolfe's influenced writers like Jack Kerouac and Philip Roth. Thomas Wolfe's manuscripts are housed at Houghton Library in Harvard University.
Works by Thomas Wolfe
- Look Homeward, Angel, 1929
- Of Time and the River, 1935
- From Death to Morning, 1935, collection of short stories
- The Story of a Novel, 1936, autobiographical essay on writing
(Below are books published after Wolfe died)
- The Web and the Rock, 1939
- You Can't Go Home Again, 1940
- The Hills Beyond, 1941
- Mannerhouse, 1948
- The Streets of Durham, 1982
- The Hounds of Darkness, 1986
Sources:
Biographical Dictionary, edited by Una McGovern, Chambers, 2002
Dictionary of Writers, edited by Rosemary Goring, Larousse, 1994
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