The slaying of his da and other recurrent problems in Shavian biography

A. M. Gibbs*

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    Abstract

    Shaw was self-admittedly an unreliable reporter in his autobiographical writings, and this is particularly true of his accounts of his immediate family. Too much credence has been given to these accounts by his biographers, and too little attention has been paid to evidence that calls them into question. Shaw himself is the sole source of negative views of his parents that have not only been unfair to them but also been deployed in weakly based theorizing and assertions about Shaw's psychological state and development in his early years. This article presents evidence that raises serious doubts about the frequently repeated negative views of Shaw's parents, and questions the idea that Shaw was beset by loneliness in his childhood and young manhood, with attendant psychological problems.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)243-254
    Number of pages12
    JournalSHAW
    Volume39
    Issue number2
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2019

    Keywords

    • Bernard Shaw
    • George Carr Shaw
    • Lucinda Elizabeth Shaw
    • Shavian
    • biography
    • autobiography

    Fingerprint

    Dive into the research topics of 'The slaying of his da and other recurrent problems in Shavian biography'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

    Cite this