Julian Barnes

Early life and education

Julian Barnes was born on January 19, 1946, in Leicester, England. His parents taught French, and Julian was raised in a comfortable middle-class home. The Barnes family moved to the suburban area of Northwood outside of London when Julian was a child. This quiet, sleepy setting would serve as the setting for his debut novel Metroland (1980).

At age 10, Barnes earned a scholarship to the City of London School, after which he entered Oxford University to study Modern Languages. During his time as a student, Barnes spent a summer teaching in France and developed a deep love for the country. After graduating in 1968, he spent the next three years working as a lexicographer for the Oxford English Dictionary.

Fig. 1 - As one of the only men on the Oxford Dictionary team, Barnes often found himself assigned to "rude words and sports words."¹

Barnes moved to London in 1972 and passed the bar exam, qualifying as a lawyer; however, he had also developed a growing interest in writing. Several of his articles appeared in the illustrious Times Literary Supplement. Barnes spent the next few years publishing articles on a wide range of subject matters, from reviews of television shows to a restaurant column. He became contributing editor at New Review under the pseudonym "Edward Pygge" before gaining the position of literary editor at The New Statesman.

Early success and personal life

In 1979, Barnes married the powerful literary agent Pat Kavanagh and published his debut novel Metroland the following year. The story of a young man from the London suburbs who travels to Paris drew heavily from Barnes' experiences. The book was an instant success and helped to establish Barnes as an important new voice in the British literary scene.

His next book, Before She Met Me (1982), deals with a jealous historian trying to come to terms with his wife's previous relationships. Barnes also published a collection of detective novels under the pseudonym "Dan Kavanagh." Barnes enjoyed mainstream success with his 1984 novel Flaubert's Parrot. This experimental work deals with a man's obsession with a French novelist and explores the nature of truth and history.

In 1986 Barnes became a regular contributor for The New Yorker with his "Letter from London" column that ran for five years. He continued to use his novels to experiment with style and question ideas of narrative and truth. A History of the World in 10½ Chapters (1989) uses a nonlinear storyline to investigate the meaning of knowledge and the unreliability of commonly held beliefs.

Barnes' close affinity for France served as the basis for a short story collection entitled Cross Channel (1996), which explores the relationship between England and France. In 1998 he published England, England, which took a humorous and bleak look at the nation's future.

Fig. 2 - Barnes' translation of Daudet's In the Land of Pain (1930) was published in 2002.

Later Career

Throughout his career, Barnes has worked on the translations of famous authors, including the French novelist and diarist Alphonse Daudet (1840-1897). Barnes explored the challenges and rewards of translation in the 2010 essay "Writer's Writer and Writer's Writer's Writer."

In his later career, Barnes continues to experiment with historical fiction and ideas of memory. He is a critic of the British government's approach to funding the arts and public libraries and has campaigned for the right to assisted suicide. Barnes lives in North London.

Julian Barnes: Books

Julian Barnes has published 14 novels, three short story collections, and many non-fiction articles and essays. Here is a look at his most famous books.

Flaubert's Parrot (1984)

Geoffrey Braithwaite, a recently widowed English doctor, takes a trip to France on a tour of sites related to the novelist Gustave Flaubert (1821-1880). When Geoffrey discovers two museums, both claiming to have the parrot that inspired one of Flaubert's works, he starts investigating the writer's life and becomes obsessed with finding which one is the actual parrot.

Flaubert's Parrot is a highly experimental novel that mixes elements of fiction with non-fiction styles. Large sections of the book are written in the style of historical essays, and literary criticism as Barnes blurs the line between traditional storytelling and academic writing. The book uses style and technique to question the idea that there can ever be one fundamental truth.

England, England (1998)

A young woman is hired by a self-involved business tycoon, Sir Jack Pitman, to help him with a lavish project. Pitman wants to create a theme park version of England on the Isle of Wright. The tacky project proves to be a huge success and attracts tourists from all over the world. When the financial success allows the island to split off and become "New England," the real England is left to wither and die.

In England, England, Barnes uses biting satire and wit to explore the idea of national identity. The novel explores the problems of history and how the concept of a shared narrative can result in xenophobia.

Julian Barnes: Writing Style and Technique

Julian Barnes has a highly experimental writing style that challenges many of the classic techniques of novel writing. As a writer, Barnes is closely associated with the postmodernist movement.

Many of Barnes' works feature a nonlinear story structure as the plot jumps back and forth in time and even moves through different periods. He often uses unreliable narrators who blur the line between fact and fiction. Another critical element of postmodernism that appears throughout Barnes' work is the idea truth is subjective. Many of Barnes' characters struggle to uncover some sense of truth or reality.

Barnes often deals with ideas of history and identity, particularly in the case of his home country. Many of his works explore the idea that national identity and historical myths are harmful and reductive. He often uses humor and wit to poke fun at important institutions and social ideas. Because he combines humor and social commentary, Barnes has drawn comparisons to contemporary British writers like Martin Amis (1949-Present).

Julian Barnes: Awards

Julian Barnes is considered one of the most intellectual and literary gifted British writers. Over a career spanning five decades, Barnes has received many high-profile awards around the world. His debut novel, Metroland, earned him the Somerset Award in 1981.

Flaubert's Parrot was awarded the Geoffrey Memorial Prize (1985) and Prix Médicis (1986). In 1986, the American Academy of Arts and Letters gave Barnes the E.M Forester Award, which includes a $20,000 grant.

Barnes was slightly cynical of the prestigious Man Booker Prize; he once wrote, "the only sensible attitude to the Booker is to treat it as posh bingo." ² Having been shortlisted for the Man Booker Prize three times (Flaubert's Parrot, England, England, and Arthur & George), Barnes eventually won in 2011 for The Sense of an Ending.

Fig. 3 - The Legion d'honneur is given to civilians for outstanding contributions in all fields of life.

Barnes has enjoyed a great deal of popularity in his beloved France. His close relationship with the country was recognized in 2017 when the French government awarded Barnes the Légion d'honneur, the nation's highest order merit. In 2021, Barnes received the Jerusalem Prize, recognizing artists whose work encourages individualistic freedoms.

Julian Barnes: Quotes

Julian Barnes' novels often feature witty protagonists with significant existential issues. Here is a look at some meaningful quotes from the works of Julian Barnes.

A recurring theme in Barnes' work is the uncertainty of memory and history. In Flaubert's Parrot and The Sense of an Ending, characters struggle with the limitations of historical records and personal perspectives. Since so much of an individual's sense of self comes from memory, Barnes argues that the truth is often highly subjective and untrustworthy.

The theme of identity plays a significant role in Barnes's darkly comic novel, England, England. The collective memory that forms national identity and character is called into question as Barnes exposes the myths and reality of English history.

1. Vanessa Guignery, The Fiction of Julian Barnes (Readers' Guides to Essential Criticism), 2006.

2. Julian Barnes, "On the Booker," London Review of Books, Vol. 9 No. 20, 1987.