Catherine Drinker Bowen
Catherine Drinker Bowen
==========================
Full Name and Common Aliases
--------------------------------
Catherine Drinker Bowen was an American biographer, historian, and writer, known for her engaging and meticulously researched works on historical figures. She is also recognized by her married name, Catherine Drinker.
Birth and Death Dates
-------------------------
Born: February 22, 1897, in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA
Died: October 5, 1970
Nationality and Profession(s)
---------------------------------
Nationality: American
Profession: Biographer, Historian, Writer
Catherine Drinker Bowen was a true Renaissance woman – a masterful biographer, historian, and writer who left an indelible mark on the literary world.
Early Life and Background
-----------------------------
Bowen's early life was marked by a passion for learning and writing. Born in Philadelphia, she grew up in a family that valued education and intellectual pursuits. Her father, William Drinker, was a lawyer, and her mother, Emma Drinker, was an avid reader and writer. Bowen's love affair with words began at a young age, and she spent much of her childhood devouring books on history, literature, and biography.
Major Accomplishments
---------------------------
Bowen's writing career spanned over four decades, during which she produced numerous works that showcased her remarkable talents as a biographer and historian. Some of her notable accomplishments include:
"Francis Barber: The Story of My Master George Washington" (1929): This biography marked the beginning of Bowen's illustrious writing career.
"Yankee from Olympus: Justice Holmes and His Family" (1944): Considered one of Bowen's masterpieces, this biography explores the life of Supreme Court Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. and his family.
"Patience and Pedro" (1953): This memoir-style work recounts Bowen's experiences as a biographer and offers insights into her writing process.Notable Works or Actions
------------------------------
Bowen's works not only captivated readers but also earned her numerous accolades, including:
The Pulitzer Prize for Biography in 1946 for "Yankee from Olympus"
A Guggenheim Fellowship in 1951
Election to the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
Impact and Legacy
-------------------------
Catherine Drinker Bowen's impact on the literary world is immeasurable. Her works have inspired generations of writers, historians, and biographers. Through her meticulous research and engaging writing style, she has made complex historical figures accessible to a broad audience.
Bowen's legacy extends beyond her written works. She paved the way for women in the field of biography and historiography, demonstrating that their voices and perspectives were essential to understanding the past.
Why They Are Widely Quoted or Remembered
--------------------------------------------
Catherine Drinker Bowen is widely quoted and remembered due to her:
Exceptional writing skills: Her engaging narrative style and meticulous research made her works a joy to read.
Commitment to historical accuracy: Bowen's dedication to uncovering the truth about historical figures has set a high standard for biographers and historians.
* Pioneering spirit: As one of the first women to achieve success as a biographer, Bowen broke down barriers and paved the way for future generations.
Quotes by Catherine Drinker Bowen
Catherine Drinker Bowen's insights on:
Writers seldom choose as friends those self-contained characters who are never in trouble, never unhappy or ill, never make mistakes and always count their change when it is handed to them.
People who carry a musical soul about them are, I think, more receptive than others. They smile more readily. One feels in them a pleasant propensity toward the lesser sins, a pleasing readiness also to admit the possibility that on occasion they may be in the wrong – they may be mistaken.
A woman’s biography – with about eight famous historical exceptions – so often turns out to be the story of a man and the woman who helped his career.
It is a great, a pleasant thing to have a friend with whom to walk, untroubled, through the woods, by the stream, saying nothing, at peace – the heart all clean and quiet and empty, ready for the spirit that may choose to be its guest.
All the others arts are lonely. We paint alone – my picture, my interpretation of the sky. My poem, my novel. But in music – ensemble music, not soloism – we share. No altruism this, for we receive tenfold what we give.
In writing biography, fact and fiction shouldn’t be mixed. And if they are, the fictional points should be printed in red ink, the facts printed in black ink.
I speak truth, not so much as I would, but as much as I dare; and I dare a little more, as I grown older.
Writing, I think, is not apart from living. Writing is a kind of double living The writer experiences everything twice. Once in reality and once in that mirror which waits always before or behind.