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Seven Deadly Sins: Common Reader Edition
This sparkling curiosity was inspired by Ian Fleming, who had the fine idea of asking eminent writers to comment on the deadly sins for THE TIMES of London. The result is a witty display of erudition as each author essays his or her assigned vice—Auden “Anger,” Connolly “Covetousness,” Wilson “Envy,” Leigh Fermor “Gluttony,” Sykes “Lust,” Sitwell “Pride,” and Waugh “Sloth.”
87 pages, Paperback
First published January 1, 1962
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About the author
Angus Wilson
89 books42 followersSir Angus Frank Johnstone Wilson, KBE (11 August 1913 – 31 May 1991) was an English novelist and short story writer. He was awarded the 1958 James Tait Black Memorial Prize for The Middle Age of Mrs Eliot and later received a knighthood for his services to literature.
Wilson was born in Bexhill, Sussex, England, to an English father and South African mother. He was educated at Westminster School and Merton College, Oxford, and in 1937 became a librarian in the British Museum's Department of Printed Books, working on the new General Catalogue. During World War II, he worked in the Naval section Hut 8 at the code-breaking establishment, Bletchley Park, translating Italian Naval codes.
The work situation was stressful and led to a nervous breakdown, for which he was treated by Rolf-Werner Kosterlitz. He returned to the Museum after the end of the War, and it was there that he met Tony Garrett (born 1929), who was to be his companion for the rest of his life.
Wilson's first publication was a collection of short stories, The Wrong Set (1949), followed quickly by the daring novel Hemlock and After, which was a great success, prompting invitations to lecture in Europe.
He worked as a reviewer, and in 1955 he resigned from the British Museum to write full-time (although his financial situation did not justify doing so) and moved to Suffolk.
From 1957 he gave lectures further afield, in Japan, Switzerland, Australia, and the USA. He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1968, and received many literary honours in succeeding years. He was knighted in 1980, and was President of the Royal Society of Literature from 1983 to 1988. His remaining years were affected by ill health, and he died of a stroke at a nursing home in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, on 31 May 1991, aged 77.
His writing, which has a strongly satirical vein, expresses his concern with preserving a liberal humanistic outlook in the face of fashionable doctrinaire temptations. Several of his works were adapted for television. He was Professor of English Literature at the University of East Anglia from 1966 to 1978, and jointly helped to establish their creative writing course at masters level in 1970, which was then a groundbreaking initiative in the United Kingdom.
Wilson was born in Bexhill, Sussex, England, to an English father and South African mother. He was educated at Westminster School and Merton College, Oxford, and in 1937 became a librarian in the British Museum's Department of Printed Books, working on the new General Catalogue. During World War II, he worked in the Naval section Hut 8 at the code-breaking establishment, Bletchley Park, translating Italian Naval codes.
The work situation was stressful and led to a nervous breakdown, for which he was treated by Rolf-Werner Kosterlitz. He returned to the Museum after the end of the War, and it was there that he met Tony Garrett (born 1929), who was to be his companion for the rest of his life.
Wilson's first publication was a collection of short stories, The Wrong Set (1949), followed quickly by the daring novel Hemlock and After, which was a great success, prompting invitations to lecture in Europe.
He worked as a reviewer, and in 1955 he resigned from the British Museum to write full-time (although his financial situation did not justify doing so) and moved to Suffolk.
From 1957 he gave lectures further afield, in Japan, Switzerland, Australia, and the USA. He was appointed a Commander of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) in 1968, and received many literary honours in succeeding years. He was knighted in 1980, and was President of the Royal Society of Literature from 1983 to 1988. His remaining years were affected by ill health, and he died of a stroke at a nursing home in Bury St Edmunds, Suffolk, on 31 May 1991, aged 77.
His writing, which has a strongly satirical vein, expresses his concern with preserving a liberal humanistic outlook in the face of fashionable doctrinaire temptations. Several of his works were adapted for television. He was Professor of English Literature at the University of East Anglia from 1966 to 1978, and jointly helped to establish their creative writing course at masters level in 1970, which was then a groundbreaking initiative in the United Kingdom.
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Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews
February 20, 2025
Me faltan referencias culturales para entender del todo el libro.
Primer libro de mis 25, by mum.
Primer libro de mis 25, by mum.
December 11, 2023
Some leading lights of early-mid 20th c. British literature each reflect on one of the classic seven deadly sins, with uneven results. Highlights are Edith Sitwell’s defense of Pride as a virtue, and W.H. Auden on Envy. Cyril Connolly and Christopher Sykes also deliver entertaining entries. It’s a quick read overall.
Originally published serially in the (London) Sunday Times c. 1962, and edited by Ian Fleming of James Bond fame, who contributes an introduction.
Originally published serially in the (London) Sunday Times c. 1962, and edited by Ian Fleming of James Bond fame, who contributes an introduction.
November 10, 2019
Alain de Botton's updated afterword, for the 2002 publication, sums up my thoughts of the overall book perfectly: "We may disagree with the particular analyses of sins offered by the authors of these essays, but even so, the book will have done us all a great service -- to get us thinking about what is sinful behaviour, and so, by extension, to encourage us on the road to being good."
The sections on Lust (by Christopher Sykes) and Anger (by W.H. Auden) were my favorite: the writers' clear, observant, and thoughtful examinations remain timeless, more than 50 years after their original publication. In contrast, Edith Sitwell's essay on Pride was disappointing, dated, and ...trivializing. In her opening, she admits to "have never regarded it, except in certain cases, as a major sin." Unrelatable. Also, this line: "I regard with disfavour the natural crawler - persons like the North American Indian who... was found fondling a dead mouse, in the hope of appeasing the genius of mice" -- can I get a YIKES?? Worth commenting is the amusing caricature of Covetousness by Cyril Connolly. Extreme, but humorous.
De Botton's afterword again saved the day by both validating and appeasing whatever disappointments lingered at the end of my reading: "But the authors here aren't themselves philosophers and it soon begins to show. Their arguments are rambling, the authors assert things and don't tell us why, they are full of prejudices and unexplained quirks. And yet there's a charming English chaos to their ways of thinking." I think reading that short passage made the entire book worth it.
The sections on Lust (by Christopher Sykes) and Anger (by W.H. Auden) were my favorite: the writers' clear, observant, and thoughtful examinations remain timeless, more than 50 years after their original publication. In contrast, Edith Sitwell's essay on Pride was disappointing, dated, and ...trivializing. In her opening, she admits to "have never regarded it, except in certain cases, as a major sin." Unrelatable. Also, this line: "I regard with disfavour the natural crawler - persons like the North American Indian who... was found fondling a dead mouse, in the hope of appeasing the genius of mice" -- can I get a YIKES?? Worth commenting is the amusing caricature of Covetousness by Cyril Connolly. Extreme, but humorous.
De Botton's afterword again saved the day by both validating and appeasing whatever disappointments lingered at the end of my reading: "But the authors here aren't themselves philosophers and it soon begins to show. Their arguments are rambling, the authors assert things and don't tell us why, they are full of prejudices and unexplained quirks. And yet there's a charming English chaos to their ways of thinking." I think reading that short passage made the entire book worth it.
November 5, 2018
Let's have seven popular (in 1962) writer to each do a piece on one of the seven deadly sins. Good idea, right? Perhaps on paper but the end result is rather pointless. Most of them can't see why the sin they are writing about is a sin at all and the whole exercise quickly turns anthropocentric, which is odd considering that sin has to do with our relationship to God, not each other. The only piece I felt was worth my time was Evelyn Waugh's excellent essay about Sloth. Trust a Catholic to get the concept of sin right!
August 23, 2010
Interesting... I'd like to see someone do an updated version of this.
Displaying 1 - 5 of 5 reviews