The most striking feature of this book is that it makes it clear I don't really like Colin Wilson. I first heard about him at the melbourne existential society via Howard Dosser, who features in this auto biography and impressed me as an excellent speaker and philosopher. The main problem I find in dealing with Wilson's ideas is the question of class. Dosser inspired me with 'overcoming' in his descriptions of not letting class identity limit anyone in what they might wish to do. In the spirit of Wilson, he preached that if kids from the working class suburbs want to become Supreme Court judges, then they shouldn't let anything stop them. Reading Wilson's depictions of his struggles with poverty and grinding away at jobs he hated, was depressing, but his eventual escape to the middle classes could have been more of a triumph. Hand to mouth on a higher plane is the way it looked.
A working class hero? Sure not a traitor. I found Wilson very unlikeable. Starting with his sexuality, a product of the 50's, not entirely unsympathetic, yet deeply repugnant. At least honest, he was also a terrible gossip, sparing no one in any little personal detail he happened to come across.
No one can doubt he was a hard worker. But is workaholism really a virtue? The quantity was there, but I have my doubts about the quality. And he had an opinion on everything. I struggled to see the relevance of quite a bit of his judgementalism. He had many interesting ideas but couldn't seem to separate between important an unimportant observations. He would seem to just make some stuff up, and call it a discovery. A lot of the urgency and confidence in obscure theories seems dated now.
His emphasis on will, and ideas about dominance are a bit unpalatable to me, and his research on murder and sexuality just seems a bit creepy. Not to defend bourgeoise morality, but his interests are not really to my taste.
He led an interesting life, and as an historic document, the 60's to 80's are rendered in so much squeamish detail it is quite fascinating. That he believed in himself despite the critics is inspiring, and I don't think anyone could doubt that he deserved the success he had. The global publishing industry is very different now, but Wilson's story despite my misgivings, still inspires with a tale of effort rewarded, and an intellect exercised.