William Makepeace Thackeray’s Followers (1,379)

William Makepeace Thackeray

Born

in Calcutta, Bengal Presidency, British India

July 18, 1811

Died

December 24, 1863

Genre

Fiction

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William Makepeace Thackeray was an English novelist, satirist, and journalist, best known for his keen social commentary and his novel Vanity Fair (1847–1848). His works often explored themes of ambition, hypocrisy, and the moral failings of British society, making him one of the most significant literary figures of the Victorian era.
Born in Calcutta, British India, he was sent to England for his education after his father’s death. He attended Charterhouse School, where he developed a distaste for the rigid school system, and later enrolled at Trinity College, Cambridge. However, he left without earning a degree, instead traveling in Europe and pursuing artistic ambitions.
After losing much of his inheritance due to bad investments, Thackera William Makepeace Thackeray was an English novelist, satirist, and journalist, best known for his keen social commentary and his novel Vanity Fair (1847–1848). His works often explored themes of ambition, hypocrisy, and the moral failings of British society, making him one of the most significant literary figures of the Victorian era.
Born in Calcutta, British India, he was sent to England for his education after his father’s death. He attended Charterhouse School, where he developed a distaste for the rigid school system, and later enrolled at Trinity College, Cambridge. However, he left without earning a degree, instead traveling in Europe and pursuing artistic ambitions.
After losing much of his inheritance due to bad investments, Thackeray turned to writing for a living. He contributed satirical sketches, essays, and stories to periodicals such as Fraser’s Magazine and Punch, gradually building a reputation for his sharp wit and keen observational skills. His breakthrough came with Vanity Fair, a panoramic satire of English society that introduced the enduring character of Becky Sharp, a resourceful and amoral social climber.
Thackeray’s later novels, including Pendennis (1848–1850), The History of Henry Esmond (1852), and The Newcomes (1853–1855), continued to explore the lives of the English upper and middle classes, often focusing on the contrast between personal virtue and social ambition. His historical novel Henry Esmond was particularly praised for its detailed 18th-century setting and complex characterization.
In addition to his fiction, Thackeray was a noted public speaker and essayist, delivering lectures on the English humorists of the 18th century and on The Four Georges, a critical look at the British monarchy.
Despite his literary success, he lived with personal struggles, including the mental illness of his wife, Isabella, which deeply affected him. He remained devoted to his two daughters and was known for his kindness and generosity among his friends and colleagues.
His works remain widely read, appreciated for their incisive humor, rich characterizations, and unflinching critique of social pretensions.
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Combine Editions
William Makepeace Thackeray’s books

Average rating: 3.8 · 146,116 ratings · 6,425 reviews · 4,636 distinct works • Similar authors

	Vanity Fair 3.81 avg rating — 134,022 ratings — published 1847 — 1993 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Barry Lyndon 3.62 avg rating — 2,959 ratings — published 1844 — 777 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Rose And the Ring 3.75 avg rating — 1,254 ratings — published 1855 — 382 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The History of Henry Esmond, Esq. 3.60 avg rating — 1,134 ratings — published 1852 — 925 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Bâlciul deşertăciunilor, vol.1 by William Makepeace Thackeray, Sînziana Mihalache (Translator) 3.88 avg rating — 577 ratings — published 1848 — 136 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	Vanity Fair, Part 2 by William Makepeace Thackeray, Frederick Davidson (Narrator) 3.95 avg rating — 549 ratings — 4 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Book of Snobs 3.39 avg rating — 547 ratings — published 1848 — 773 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The History of Pendennis: His Fortunes and Misfortunes, His Friends and His Greatest Enemy by William Makepeace Thackeray, Donald Hawes (editor), J.I.M. Stewart (Editor) 3.69 avg rating — 403 ratings — published 1850 — 78 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Newcomes 3.66 avg rating — 271 ratings — published 1855 — 425 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars
	The Virginians 3.38 avg rating — 115 ratings — published 1859 — 359 editions	Error rating book. Refresh and try again. Rate this book Clear rating 1 of 5 stars 2 of 5 stars 3 of 5 stars 4 of 5 stars 5 of 5 stars

More books by William Makepeace Thackeray…

Series by William Makepeace Thackeray

Vanity Fair (3 books)
by

William Makepeace Thackeray,

John Carey (Contributor)

3.81 avg rating — 135,146 ratings

Ярмарка Тщеславия (2 books)
by

William Makepeace Thackeray,

Frederick Davidson (Narrator)

3.91 avg rating — 1,125 ratings

Mainehikkaita romaaneja (1 book)
by

William Makepeace Thackeray

3.60 avg rating — 1,134 ratings

The Adventures of Philip (4 books)
by

William Makepeace Thackeray

3.52 avg rating — 29 ratings

They're the rule breakers, the troublemakers, the ones who scoff at societal conventions. While their vicious personalities and...

Polls

2015 3rd Quarter Long Read Poll, July-September

1605, Don Quixote by Miguel de Cervantes Saavedra. 982 pages

12 votes, 29.3%

1901, Buddenbrooks: The Decline of a Family by Thomas Mann, 731 pages

10 votes, 24.4%

1872, Middlemarch by George Eliot, 904 pages

3 votes, 7.3%

1915, Of Human Bondage by W. Somerset Maugham, 684 pages

3 votes, 7.3%

1981, Midnight's Children by Salman Rushdie, 647 pages

3 votes, 7.3%

1847, Vanity Fair by William Makepeace Thackeray, 867 pages

3 votes, 7.3%

1982, North and South by John Jakes, 812 pages

2 votes, 4.9%

1943, The Fountainhead by Ayn Rand, 720 pages

2 votes, 4.9%

1984, Lincoln by Gore Vidal, 672 pages

1 vote, 2.4%

1920, The Forsyte Saga by John Galsworthy, 872 pages

1 vote, 2.4%

1972, Captains and the Kings by Taylor Caldwell, 816 pages

1 vote, 2.4%

41 total votes

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