Anthony Burgess, 1917-1993 Biographical Sketch Anthony Burgess was born John Anthony Burgess Wilson on February 25, 1917, in Manchester, England. His mother and young sister died of influenza in 1919, leaving Burgess to a blue collar upbringing by his fathera cashier and piano playeran aunt, and later a stepmother. As a child, Burgess was made keenly aware of his Irish Catholic heritage. His education at the parochial Xaverian College instilled an interest in theological themes of good and evil, free will, and social authority which appeared in much of his writing years later. Burgess entered Manchester University in 1936 with the intention of studying music. Poor grades in physics blocked his acceptance into the Music Department, so he chose instead to focus on composition and language in Manchester's English Department. After graduating with a bachelor's degree in 1940, he entered the Royal Army Medical Corps, later transferring to the Education Corps. In 1942 he married Llewela Isherwood Jones, who he first met when both were students at Manchester. Burgess remained in the Army until 1946, serving in Gibraltar. After the war, he held teaching positions with Birmingham University, the Ministry of Education, and Banbury Grammar School. In 1954 he accepted a position with the Colonial Office teaching in Malaya and later Brunei. | |
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