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George Meredith

British novelist and poet (1828-1909) · United Kingdom · On the map · Writers · Died at 81

George Meredith was an English novelist and poet of the Victorian era. At first, his focus was poetry, influenced by John Keats among others, but Meredith gradually established a reputation as a novelist. The Ordeal of Richard Feverel (1859) briefly scandalised Victorian literary circles.

George Meredith is read about 118 times a day, in 39 languages.

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George Meredith

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Awards

Order of Merit1905

About this person

Of his later novels, the most enduring is The Egoist (1879), though in his lifetime his greatest success was Diana of the Crossways (1885). His novels were innovative in their attention to characters' psychology, and also portrayed social change. His style, in both poetry and prose, was noted for its syntactic complexity; Oscar Wilde likened it to "chaos illumined by brilliant flashes of lightning". Meredith was an encourager of other novelists, as well as an influence on them; among those to benefit were Robert Louis Stevenson and George Gissing. Meredith was nominated for the Nobel Prize in Literature seven times.

Country
United Kingdom
Category
Writers
Type
Writer / Author
Status
Deceased
Dates
Lived 1828 to 1909 · aged 81

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