William morris autobiography

William Morris—the great 19th-century craftsman, designer, poet and writer—remains a monumental figure whose influence resonates powerfully today. As an intellectual (and author of the seminal utopian News from Nowhere), his concern with artistic and human values led him to cross what he called the “river of fire” and become a committed socialist—committed not to some theoretical formula but to the day by day struggle of working women and men in Britain and to the evolution of his ideas about art, about work and about how life should be lived.

Many of his ideas accorded none too well with the reforming tendencies dominant in the labour movement, nor with those of “orthodox” Marxism, which has looked elsewhere for inspiration. Both sides have been inclined to venerate Morris rather than to pay attention to what he said.

In this biography, written less than a decade before his groundbreaking The Making of the English Working Class, E.P. Thompson brought his now trademark historical mastery, passion, wit, and essential sympathy. It remains unsurpassed as the definitive work on this remarkable figure, by the major British historian of the 20th century.

Praise:

“Two impressive figures, William Morris as subject and E.P. Thompson as author, are conjoined in this immense biographical-historical-critical study, and both of them have gained in stature since the first edition of the book was published… The book that was ignored in has meanwhile become something of an underground classic—almost impossible to locate in second-hand bookstores, pored over in libraries, required reading for anyone interested in Morris and, increasingly, for anyone interested in one of the most important of contemporary British historians… Thompson has the distinguishing characteristic of a great historian: he has transformed the nature of the past, it will never look the same

On 24 March at Elm House, Walthamstow, William Morris was born to affluent parents Emma Morris (nee Shelton) and William Morris Snr, who by this point was a senior partner at brokers firm Sanderson & Co.

His success with the firm led to the family moving, in to Woodford Hall in Essex, with their four young children. They had eight children in total, who survived until adulthood, and moved again to the Water House in Walthamstow, following William Morris Snr’s untimely death in By all accounts, Morris enjoyed an idyllic childhood growing up in the countryside, playing with his siblings and reading books as obscure as The Arabian Nights and John Gerard’s Herball, showing his early interests in both nature and storytelling. His natural ability in reading and writing went hand-in-hand with his developing interest in the wildlife and flowers surrounding him, and this love of the natural world would have a growing influence on his work.

Morris was privately educated from 13, at Marlborogh College, before matriculating to read Theology at Exeter College, Oxford, in He was swayed from his initial intention of taking holy orders by the social commentaries of writers such as Thomas Carlyle, Charles Kingsley and John Ruskin. After university he trained as an architect, married Jane Burden, and developed close friendships with the Pre-Raphaelite artists Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Edward Burne-Jones, with whom he formed a deep and lasting friendship. The two fostered in him an increasing interest in art and architecture. This was the beginning of a remarkable career spanning several disciplines – artist, author, craftsman, and social activist.

Morris would become one of the most significant figures in the arts and crafts movement, a man of far ranging creativity and knowledge. His friend Philip Webb designed Morris a family home, Red House in Kent, where the latter lived from to , before relocating to Bloomsbury, central London. Morris founded his

English textile artist, author, and socialist (–)

For other people named William Morris, see William Morris (disambiguation).

William Morris (24 March &#;– 3 October ) was an English textile designer, poet, artist, writer, and socialist activist associated with the British Arts and Crafts movement. He was a major contributor to the revival of traditional British textile arts and methods of production. His literary contributions helped to establish the modern fantasy genre, while he helped win acceptance of socialism in fin de siècle Great Britain.

Morris was born in Walthamstow, Essex, to a wealthy middle-class family. He came under the strong influence of medievalism while studying classics at Oxford University, where he joined the Birmingham Set. After university, he married Jane Burden, and developed close friendships with Pre-Raphaelite artists Edward Burne-Jones and Dante Gabriel Rossetti and with Neo-Gothic architect Philip Webb. Webb and Morris designed Red House in Kent where Morris lived from to , before moving to Bloomsbury, central London. In , Morris founded the Morris, Marshall, Faulkner & Co. decorative arts firm with Burne-Jones, Rossetti, Webb, and others, which became highly fashionable and much in demand. The firm profoundly influenced interior decoration throughout the Victorian period, with Morris designing tapestries, wallpaper, fabrics, furniture, and stained glass windows. In , he assumed total control of the company, which was renamed Morris & Co.

Morris rented the rural retreat of Kelmscott Manor, Oxfordshire, from while also retaining a main home in London. He was greatly influenced by visits to Iceland with Eiríkur Magnússon, and he produced a series of English-language translations of Icelandic Sagas. He also achieved success with the publication of his epic poems and novels, namely The Earthly Paradise (–), A Dream of John Ball (), the Utopian News from Nowhere (), and the fantasy

Winner of the Wolfson History Prize, and described by as &#;one of the finest biographies ever published&#;, this is Fiona MacCarthy&#;s magisterial biography of William Morris, legendary designer and father of the Victorian Arts and Crafts movement.

&#;Thrilling, absorbing and majestic.&#; Independent
&#;Wonderfully ambitious &#; The definitive Morris biography.&#; Sunday Times
&#;Delicious and intelligent, full of shining detail and mysteries respected.&#; Daily Telegraph
&#;Oh, the careful detail of this marvellous book! . . . A model of scholarly biography&#;. New Statesman

Since his death in , William Morris has been celebrated as a giant of the Victorian era. But his genius was so multifaceted and so profound that its full extent has rarely been grasped. Many people may find it hard to believe that the greatest English designer of his time &#; possibly of all time &#; could also be internationally renowned as a founder of the socialist movement, and ranked as a poet with Tennyson and Browning.

In her definitive biography &#; insightful, comprehensive, addictively readable &#; the award-winning Fiona MacCarthy gives us a richly detailed portrait of Morris&#;s complex character for the first time, shedding light on his immense creative powers as artist and designer of furniture, fabrics, wallpaper, stained glass, tapestry, and books; his role as a poet, novelist and translator; on his psychology and his emotional life; his frenetic activities as polemicist and reformer; and his remarkable circle of friends, literary, artistic and political, including Dante Gabriel Rossetti and Edward Burne-Jones. It is a masterpiece of biographical art.