Mary MacLane
Full Name and Common Aliases
Mary MacLane was a Canadian-American writer and poet known for her provocative writings on love, life, and identity.
Birth and Death Dates
Born on April 19, 1881, in Winnipeg, Manitoba, Canada, Mary MacLane passed away on January 6, 1929, at the age of 47.
Nationality and Profession(s)
MacLane's nationality is often debated due to her complex background; however, she identified as American. Her profession was that of a writer and poet, with notable works including autobiographical writings and poetry collections.
Early Life and Background
Growing up in Winnipeg and later moving to Montreal, MacLane's early life was marked by turmoil and emotional struggles. She was the daughter of Catholic parents from Ireland and Canada, respectively, and her family struggled financially during her childhood. This led to a sense of isolation and alienation that would influence her writing.
MacLane's early experiences with love and relationships were also tumultuous. Her first marriage at 17 ended in divorce after a year, and she went on to experience multiple short-lived romantic relationships throughout her life. These experiences are reflected in her writings, which often explored themes of love, heartbreak, and personal identity.
Major Accomplishments
MacLane's writing career was marked by several notable accomplishments:
I (1908) - Her first published work, an autobiographical novel that caused a scandal due to its explicit content.
The Story of Mary MacLane (1917) - A second collection of autobiographical writings that solidified her reputation as a provocative and confessional writer.
Notable Works or Actions
MacLane's writing is known for its raw honesty, exploring themes of love, identity, and personal growth. Her works often blur the lines between fiction and nonfiction, reflecting her own tumultuous life experiences.
In addition to her written works, MacLane was also known for her charismatic personality and public appearances. She toured extensively, giving lectures and readings from her work, which often drew large crowds and sparked controversy due to its explicit content.
Impact and Legacy
MacLane's impact on literature is multifaceted:
Influence on confessional writing: Her use of autobiographical narrative and explicit content paved the way for future generations of writers who explored similar themes.
Challenging societal norms: MacLane's work often pushed against traditional social boundaries, particularly in regards to women's roles and expressions of love and desire.
Why They Are Widely Quoted or Remembered
MacLane is widely quoted and remembered due to her:
Unflinching honesty: Her writing captured the complexities of human experience with unflinching candor.
Pioneering spirit: She broke ground for future generations of writers who explored themes of love, identity, and personal growth.
Quotes by Mary MacLane
Mary MacLane's insights on:
Surely there must be in a world of manifold beautiful things something among them for me. And always, while I am still young, there is that dim light, the Future. But it is indeed a dim, dim light, and ofttimes there’s a treachery in it.
Genius of a kind has always been with me; an empty heart that has taken on a certain wooden quality; an excellent, strong woman’s body and a pitiably starved soul.
I can think of nothing in the world like the utter littleness, the paltriness, the contemptibleness, the degradation, of the woman who is tied down under a roof with a man who is really nothing to her; who wears the man’s name, who bears the man’s children – who plays the virtuous woman. There are too many such in the world now.
However great one’s gift of language may be, there is always something that one cannot tell.
I shall have to miss forever some beautiful, wonderful things because of that wretched, lonely childhood. There will always be a lacking, a wanting – some dead branches that never grew leaves. It is not deaths and murders and plots and wars that make life tragedy. It is day after day, and year after year, and Nothing. It is a sunburned little hand reached out and Nothing put into it.
One’s thoughts are one’s most crucial adventures. Seriously and strongly and intently to contemplate doing murder is everyway more exciting, more romantic, more profoundly tragic than the murder done.