∎ [PDF] Letters to Monica Philip Larkin Anthony Thwaite Books

Letters to Monica Philip Larkin Anthony Thwaite Books

Download As PDF : Letters to Monica Philip Larkin Anthony Thwaite Books

Letters to Monica Philip Larkin Anthony Thwaite Books

I have long enjoyed dipping into books of letters, but only two or three times before have I managed to read one cover to cover. Although it took me about two months to make my way through Philip Larkin's LETTERS TO MONICA, it never really became a chore -- for three reasons, I think. First, I am intrigued by Larkin's perspective on life (much of which is of course presented in his poetry). Second, his letters are often witty or even slapstick funny. Third, the letters adumbrate thirty years of a poignant relationship between two dissatisfied souls who, if they had not been quite so individuated, might have married, possibly happily.

Larkin was bedeviled by women, beginning with his mother (indeed, she may have been the principal reason he never married). While a librarian at the University of Leicester in the late 1940's, he became friends with Monica Jones, a lecturer in English at Leicester. Larkin moved on to Belfast and then, later, to Hull. Aside from periodic holidays together, he and Monica maintained a long-distance relationship by mail. On several occasions they considered marriage, but always one of them (Philip, it appears) ultimately balked. Meanwhile, he had at least two affairs that caused Monica emotional distress but did not squelch her own affair with Philip. In 1983, Monica, at the time rather ill, finally moved in with Philip so that he could care for her. He died a little more than two years later.

More than 1400 letters and 500 postcards from Larkin to Jones survive. The letters of this volume date from December 1946 to April 1984, with the bulk of them from October 1950 to January 1973. Anthony Thwaite, a friend and literary executor of Larkin's, selected the letters included in the book and made many internal cuts. He also contributes helpful footnotes, including occasional explanations to provide context to things Larkin is writing about and even a few excerpts from letters of Monica to which Philip is responding. The editing and presentation are exceedingly well done. (I did not notice any typographical errors, which is extraordinary for such a detailed book published in 2010; on a related note, I cannot conceive the book being successfully converted to an e-book.) There are two useful appendices, an index, and reproductions of some of the cartoons with which Larkin decorated some of his letters (Monica appearing as a rabbit and Philip as a seal).

The themes of Larkin's letters include the burden of work; fears of commitment, including fear of marriage; jazz; cricket; sex; Larkin's strained relationship with his mother; his own poetry as well as poetry in general; and various notables of English literature, especially Thomas Hardy and D.H. Lawrence.

A few excerpts: * "Life IS hard: disease, disappointment & the big snuffer of death hold all the cards: but what I rail against is my sense that for want of -- what? courage? initiative? love? -- I am losing the few chances of happiness it does offer."

* "I never got the hang of sex, anyway. If it were announced that all sex wd cease as from midnight on 31 December, my way of life wouldn't change at all."

* "I've no friends. Really I feel like a plant in a pot that nobody waters."

* "I feel the only thing you can do about life is to preserve it, by art if you're an artist, by children if you're not."

* [Regarding whether he should make a will:] "I suppose you & mother & my sister are the only people I need consider, unless I want to leave funds to provide a bottle of Guinness on my birthday for anyone who calls at Hardy's birthplace."

What is the audience for this book? Obviously, it includes those who are intensely interested in Philip Larkin and/or his poetry. Beyond them, I think LETTERS TO MONICA should also be of interest to students and connoisseurs of the soon-to-be-extinct art of letter writing. Larkin's letters to Monica Jones are not scintillating, and frequently they are not especially literary, but I daresay that the future will bring us precious few other books of letters at all comparable to them.


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Letters to Monica Philip Larkin Anthony Thwaite Books Reviews

This marvellous book is the closest we'll ever get to an autobiography of Larkin, and is fitting consolation for those infamous diaries that he had burned, the contents of which will forever remain a mystery. Actually he mentions the diaries and his intention to eventually have them burned quite early on in these letters; and he forbids Monica from staying at his flat in Hull, when he was ill in hospital, out of fear that she may read them.

There are many such intriguing details in these letters that will delight Larkin fans, as here we get the real man, off guard and speaking his true mind, in a way that he would only do to the love of his life. The story of the relationship runs alongside that of Larkin's rise to fame, and of the latter he is typically self-deprecating about his substantial achievements. Of the former, it is all a touch poignant and sad. After Larkin's retreat to Belfast, he gets the top job in Hull, and here is the ideal point for him and Monica to get together, to marry. He has plenty of money and could easily support the both of them, but he wriggles on the hook for too long and the moment is lost. Later when details of his dalliances with other women--notably Maeve--emerge, he is effusively apologetic to the distraught Monica, but he cannot help but go on living his double life with minimum ties, in order to maintain the right existential conditions for his writing.

We know this story from the Motion biography, but through these letters it comes over more profoundly, from the man himself. Comparing the two books yields some striking insights, such as the intimate writing to Monica on his 50th birthday, followed by drinking champagne with Maeve in his flat afterwards. Larkin urged Monica to burn his letters, but happily this remarkable archive survived to cast another unique light on his sadness and genius.
I expected this to be a real page turner but I found it to be rather slow and plodding. I suppose if you were already familiar with the author of the letters it might be more interesting.
On time and as described.
I have long enjoyed dipping into books of letters, but only two or three times before have I managed to read one cover to cover. Although it took me about two months to make my way through Philip Larkin's LETTERS TO MONICA, it never really became a chore -- for three reasons, I think. First, I am intrigued by Larkin's perspective on life (much of which is of course presented in his poetry). Second, his letters are often witty or even slapstick funny. Third, the letters adumbrate thirty years of a poignant relationship between two dissatisfied souls who, if they had not been quite so individuated, might have married, possibly happily.

Larkin was bedeviled by women, beginning with his mother (indeed, she may have been the principal reason he never married). While a librarian at the University of Leicester in the late 1940's, he became friends with Monica Jones, a lecturer in English at Leicester. Larkin moved on to Belfast and then, later, to Hull. Aside from periodic holidays together, he and Monica maintained a long-distance relationship by mail. On several occasions they considered marriage, but always one of them (Philip, it appears) ultimately balked. Meanwhile, he had at least two affairs that caused Monica emotional distress but did not squelch her own affair with Philip. In 1983, Monica, at the time rather ill, finally moved in with Philip so that he could care for her. He died a little more than two years later.

More than 1400 letters and 500 postcards from Larkin to Jones survive. The letters of this volume date from December 1946 to April 1984, with the bulk of them from October 1950 to January 1973. Anthony Thwaite, a friend and literary executor of Larkin's, selected the letters included in the book and made many internal cuts. He also contributes helpful footnotes, including occasional explanations to provide context to things Larkin is writing about and even a few excerpts from letters of Monica to which Philip is responding. The editing and presentation are exceedingly well done. (I did not notice any typographical errors, which is extraordinary for such a detailed book published in 2010; on a related note, I cannot conceive the book being successfully converted to an e-book.) There are two useful appendices, an index, and reproductions of some of the cartoons with which Larkin decorated some of his letters (Monica appearing as a rabbit and Philip as a seal).

The themes of Larkin's letters include the burden of work; fears of commitment, including fear of marriage; jazz; cricket; sex; Larkin's strained relationship with his mother; his own poetry as well as poetry in general; and various notables of English literature, especially Thomas Hardy and D.H. Lawrence.

A few excerpts * "Life IS hard disease, disappointment & the big snuffer of death hold all the cards but what I rail against is my sense that for want of -- what? courage? initiative? love? -- I am losing the few chances of happiness it does offer."

* "I never got the hang of sex, anyway. If it were announced that all sex wd cease as from midnight on 31 December, my way of life wouldn't change at all."

* "I've no friends. Really I feel like a plant in a pot that nobody waters."

* "I feel the only thing you can do about life is to preserve it, by art if you're an artist, by children if you're not."

* [Regarding whether he should make a will] "I suppose you & mother & my sister are the only people I need consider, unless I want to leave funds to provide a bottle of Guinness on my birthday for anyone who calls at Hardy's birthplace."

What is the audience for this book? Obviously, it includes those who are intensely interested in Philip Larkin and/or his poetry. Beyond them, I think LETTERS TO MONICA should also be of interest to students and connoisseurs of the soon-to-be-extinct art of letter writing. Larkin's letters to Monica Jones are not scintillating, and frequently they are not especially literary, but I daresay that the future will bring us precious few other books of letters at all comparable to them.