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Article: T.E. Lawrence and The English Patient.(Critical essay)
- Article from:
- Notes on Contemporary Literature
- Article date:
- May 1, 2006
- Author:
CopyrightCOPYRIGHT 2006 Notes on Contemporary Literature. This material is published under license from the publisher through the Gale Group, Farmington Hills, Michigan. All inquiries regarding rights should be directed to the Gale Group. (Hide copyright information)
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The life of T.E. Lawrence and his epic account of the Arabian campaign, Seven Pillars of Wisdom (1926), though not mentioned in the acknowledgments, had a powerful influence on Michael Ondaatje's The English Patient (1992). Both Lawrence and Ladislaus de Almasy (the eponymous hero) are aristocrats: Lawrence the illegitimate son of Sir Thomas Chapman, Almasy a Hungarian count. Like Lawrence, Almasy is well read and learned, and has a great deal of specialized technical knowledge. Both love the Histories of Herodotus. In 1930 Lawrence wrote that "Herodotus is a marvelous fellow.... Also he is preeminently human. A first-rate Herodotus would be a most useful book" (The ...
Related newspaper, magazine, and journal articles:
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Article: The English Patient.
National Review;
December 31, 1996 ;
700+ words
... ... the Hungarian Count Laszlo Almasy (a historical figure, though ... sprinkling of David Lean's Lawrence of Arabia, comprises also Madox, a Britisher and intimate of Almasy's, and his friend Geoffrey ... horror film -- is, of course, Almasy, and is played by Ralph Fiennes ...
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