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the birth of william
William Golding was born in September 19, 1911, in Saint Columb Minor, Cornwall England. He was raised in a 14th-century house next door to a graveyard. His mother, Mildred, was an active suffragette who fought for women’s right to vote. His father, Alex, worked as a schoolmaster. William was educated at the school his father ran, Marlborough Grammar School. -
Education of william
William had attended Brasenose College at Oxford University. His father wished that he would become a scientist, but he switched paths half way through the year
and studied English literature instead. -
started teaching English literature
After college, Golding worked in settlement houses and the theater for a time. Eventually, he decided to follow in his father’s footsteps. In 1935 Golding took a position teaching English and philosophy at Bishop Wordsworth’s School in Salisbury. Golding’s experience teaching unruly young boys would later serve as inspiration for his novel Lord of the Flies.(biography.com) -
published poems
In 1934, a year before he graduated, William published his first work, a book of poetry aptly entitled Poems. The collection was largely overlooked by critics (biography.com). -
joined the royal navy
He temporarily abandoned the profession to join the Royal Navy and fight in World War. Golding spent the better part of the next six years on a boat, except for a seven-month stint in New York, where he assisted Lord Cherwell at the Naval Research Establishment. While in the Royal Navy, Golding developed a lifelong romance with sailing and the sea. -
marriage
Golding was engaged to Molly Evans, a woman from Marlborough, who was well liked by both of his parents. However, he broke off the engagement and married Ann Brookfield, an analytical chemist, on 30 September 1939. They had two children, David (born September 1940) and Judith (born July 1945). -
end of WW2
During World War II, Golding joined the Royal Navy in 1940. He served on a destroyer which was briefly involved in the pursuit and sinking of the German battleship Bismarck. Golding participated in the invasion of Normandy on D-Day, commanding a landing craft that fired salvoes of rockets onto the beaches. After World War II had ended, Golding went back to teaching and writing -
published the Lord of the Flies
In Lord of the Flies, Golding combined that perception of humanity with his years of experience with schoolboys. It wasn't the first novel he wrote, Lord of the Flies was the first to be published after having been rejected by 21 different publishers. -
awarded the Nobel Prize for literature
The Nobel Prize in Literature 1983 was awarded to William Golding. "for his novels which, with the perspicuity of realistic narrative art and the diversity and universality of myth, illuminate the human condition in the world of today" (William Golding). -
Williams death
Golding spent the rest of his days quietly living with his wife, Ann Brookfield, at their house near Falmouth, Cornwall. The couple had married in 1939 and had two children, David and Judith. He passed away of a heart attack in Perranarworthal.