Paul Scott
From Biocrawler, the free encyclopedia.
Paul Mark Scott (March 25 1920 - March 1 1978) was a British novelist, playwright, and poet, best known for his monumental tetralogy the Raj Quartet. His novel Staying On won the Booker Prize for 1977.
Because of the recurrence of India in his works, many readers assume he was born there to a colonial family of the late British Raj. In truth he was born in Southgate near London, England and lived in India only from 1943 to 1946 after he was drafted into the British Army during the Second World War. In later life he made return visits to research his novels and visit friends.
The Raj Quartet, consisting of The Jewel in the Crown, The Day of the Scorpion, The Towers of Silence, and A Division of the Spoils, was made into a multi-part television drama The Jewel in the Crown in 1984 that was named one of the best British television series in history. The series was later adapted as a 9-part BBC Radio 4 dramatisation under its original title in 2005.
Scott received few accolades and little renumeration as a novelist until the end of his life. In order to support himself and his family, he took jobs as an accountant, a literary agent, a book reviewer, and a writing instructor. His writing methods involved large quantities of alcohol and cigarettes and near-total seclusion, especially during the decade spent on the Raj Quartet.
Scott's novels are known for their sensitive portrayals of female characters, especially elderly, cast-off women. Another of his recurring topics is repressed homosexuality.
