He married Catharine Kerlin in 1935. They had two children, Catharine Dix and Amos Tappan. Thornton Wilder’s oldest sister Charlotte Wilder (1898-1980) was a poet who shared the Shelley Memorial Award for Poetry in 1937 with Ben Belitt.

What did Thorton Wilder write?

Thornton Wilder (1897–1975) was a pivotal figure in the literary history of the twentieth-century. He is the only writer to win Pulitzer Prizes for both fiction and drama. He received the Pulitzer for his novel The Bridge of San Luis Rey (1927) and the plays Our Town (1938) and The Skin of Our Teeth (1942).

Why did Thornton Wilder live in China?

The teenager attended the English China Inland Mission School at Cheefoo but returned with his mother and siblings to California in 1912 because of the unstable political conditions in China at the time. While in high school, Wilder became interested in theater and began regularly attending performances of plays.

Where does Thornton Wilder live?

After graduating from Yale University in 1920, Wilder studied archaeology in Rome. From 1930 to 1937 he taught dramatic literature and the classics at the University of Chicago.

Who were Thornton Wilder’s parents?

Thornton Niven Wilder was born in Madison, Wisconsin on April 17, 1897, the son of Amos Parker Wilder and Isabella Niven Wilder.

Where was Thornton Wilder born?

Wilder’s principal message in Our Town— that people should appreciate the details and interactions of everyday life while they live them —became critical at a time when political troubles were escalating in Europe. World War II was on the horizon when the play hit theaters in 1938.

What inspired Thornton Wilder?

Wilder was the author of Our Town, a popular play (and later film) set in fictional Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire. It was inspired by his friend Gertrude Stein’s novel The Making of Americans, and many elements of Stein’s deconstructive style can be found throughout the work.

Did Thornton Wilder write our town?

Thornton Wilder works in a Berlin hotel in 1931. His titles include the plays Our Town (1938) and The Skin of Our Teeth (1942), as well as the novels Heaven’s My Destination (1935) and The Bridge of San Luis Rey (1927).

Is Thornton Wilder related to Gene Wilder?

He took his new first name from a character in a Thomas Wolfe novel, and his last from the playwright Thornton Wilder.

What is the most frequent criticism of our town?

The most frequent criticism of Our Town is that Wilder gave only a romantic view of small town life, failing to show the unpleasant side of this lifestyle. Wilder presented exposition in Our Town through the monologue by the Strange Manager. The play is set in Grover’s Corners, New Hampshire, May 7, 1938.

Who was Thornton Wilder’s wife?

He married Catharine Kerlin in 1935. They had two children, Catharine Dix and Amos Tappan. Thornton Wilder’s oldest sister Charlotte Wilder (1898-1980) was a poet who shared the Shelley Memorial Award for Poetry in 1937 with Ben Belitt.

What is the significance of the way the day of Emily’s twelfth birthday began?

Before taking her place among the dead for eternity, Emily is allowed to “relive” the happiest day of her ife. She chooses her twelfth birthday. First, she sees people going about the business of the day, and then her family has gifts for her. She notices how young her parents look to her now.

What are the three acts of our town?

When Emily looses her life in childbirth, the circle of life portrayed in each of the three acts of Our Town– growing up, adulthood, and death –is fully realized. Wilder offers a couple of chairs on a bare stage as the backdrop for an exploration of the universal human experience.