"John Wilmot, Second Earl of Rochester (1647-1680), was the most notorious of the Restoration rakes. He was also a fine lyrical and satirical poet whose work---in Graham Greene's opinion--has been underestimated because it was overshadowed by his life of lechery and drunkenness, wild pranks and practical jokes, and death-bed repentance. At Court, King Charles II suffered but respected Rochester's biting satires, joined in some of his erotic escapades, forgave his embarrassing japes, and rewarded him with distinctions. The heiress Elizabeth Mallet succumbed to his charm, eloped with him, and remained constant, though not always happy, throughout thirteen years of marriage. Elizabeth Barry, his favorite mistress, owed to him her success on the stage and gained his sincere devotion. Yet the last thirteen years of Rochester's short life were 'clouded by the fumes of drink' and were marked by outrageous buffoonery, an abortive duel, and literary quarrels that threatened to wreck his undoubted gifts of friendship. These notorious episodes, no less than the religious scruples that culminated in his deathbed call to Dr. Burnet in 1680, characterize the mental and psychological conflict which was the source of Rochester's finest poetry. His friend Etherege depicted him in the stage character of Dorimant: 'I know he is a Devil, but he has something of the Angel yet undefac'd in him.' "--Dust jacket.
Book Details
Format
hardcover
ISBN-10
0670440558
ISBN-13
9780670440559
Publication Date
Sep 1974
Item Weight
0.99 pounds
Length
20.00 inch
Width
20.00 inch
Height
20.00 inch
Subtitle
Being the Life of John Wilmot, Second Earl of Rochester
Henry Graham Greene (2 October 1904 – 3 April 1991) was an English writer and journalist regarded by many as one of the leading novelists of the 20th century. Combining literary acclaim with widespread popularity, Greene acquired a reputation early in his lifetime as a major writer, both of serious Catholic novels, and of thrillers. He was shortlisted for the Nobel Prize in Literature several times. Through 67 years of writing, which included over 25 novels, he explored the conflicting moral and political issues of the modern world. *The Power and the Glory* won the 1941 Hawthornden Prize and *The Heart of the Matter* won the 1948 James Tait Black Memorial Prize and was shortlisted for the Best of the James Tait Black. Greene was awarded the 1968 Shakespeare Prize and the 1981 Jerusalem Prize. Several of his stories have been filmed, some more than once, and he collaborated with filmmaker Carol Reed on *The Fallen Idol* (1948) and *The Third Man* (1949). He converted to Catholicism in 1926 after meeting his future wife, Vivien Dayrell-Browning. Later in life he took to calling himself a "Catholic agnostic".
Source: [Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Graham_Greene)
