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Thomas Lanier "Tennessee" Williams III (March 26, 1911 – February 25, 1983) was an American playwright and author of many stage classics. Along with Eugene O'Neill and Arthur Miller he is considered among the three foremost playwrights in 20th century American drama.〔Harold Bloom, ''Tennessee Williams'', Chelsea House Publishing.〕 After years of obscurity, he became suddenly famous with ''The Glass Menagerie'' (1944), closely reflecting his own unhappy family background. This heralded a string of successes, including ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' (1947), ''Cat on a Hot Tin Roof'' (1955), and ''Sweet Bird of Youth'' (1959). His later work attempted a new style that did not appeal to audiences, and alcohol and drug dependence further inhibited his creative output. His drama ''A Streetcar Named Desire'' is often numbered on the short list of the finest American plays of the 20th century alongside ''Long Day's Journey into Night'' and ''Death of a Salesman''.〔 Much of Williams' most acclaimed work was adapted for the cinema. He also wrote short stories, poetry, essays and a volume of memoirs. In 1979, four years before his death, Williams was inducted into the American Theater Hall of Fame. ==Childhood== Thomas Lanier Williams III was born in Columbus, Mississippi of English, Welsh, and Huguenot ancestry, the second child of Edwina Dakin (1884-1980) and Cornelius Coffin (C. C.) Williams (1879-1957).〔Hale, Allean; Roudané, Matthew Charles (ed.), ''The Cambridge Companion to Tennessee Williams'', Cambridge Univ. Press (1997)〕 His father was an alcoholic traveling shoe salesman who spent much of his time away from home. His mother, Edwina, was the daughter of Rose O. Dakin, a music teacher and the Reverend Walter Dakin, an Episcopal priest who was assigned to a parish in Clarksdale, Mississippi shortly after Williams' birth. Williams' early childhood was spent in the parsonage there. Williams had two siblings, sister Rose Isabel Williams (1909–1996) and brother Walter Dakin Williams (1919〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://wps.ablongman.com/long_kennedy_lfpd_9/22/5820/1490001.cw/index.html )〕–2008).〔(【引用サイトリンク】url=http://www.upi.com/Entertainment_News/2008/05/21/Tennessee-Williams-brother-dead-at-89/UPI-24131211418362/ )〕 As a small child Williams suffered from a case of diphtheria which nearly ended his life, leaving him weak and virtually confined to his house during a period of recuperation that lasted a year. At least in part as a result of his illness, he was less robust as a child than his father wished. Cornelius Williams, a descendant of hardy east-Tennessee pioneer stock (hence Williams' professional name), had a violent temper and was a man prone to use his fists. He regarded his son's effeminacy with disdain, and his mother Edwina, locked in an unhappy marriage, focused her overbearing attention almost entirely on her frail young son. Many critics and historians〔 note that Williams found inspiration for much of his writing in his own dysfunctional family. When Williams was eight years old his father was promoted to a job at the home office of the International Shoe Company in St. Louis, Missouri. His mother's continual search for what she considered to be an appropriate address, as well as his father's heavy drinking and loudly turbulent behavior, caused them to move numerous times around the city. He attended Soldan High School, a setting he referred to in his play ''The Glass Menagerie''. Later he studied at University City High School.〔Tennessee Williams and John Waters (2006), ''Memoirs'', New Directions Publishing, 274 pages ISBN 0-8112-1669-1〕〔(USgennet.org )〕 At age 16, Williams won third prize (five dollars) for an essay published in ''Smart Set'' entitled, "Can a Good Wife Be a Good Sport?" A year later, his short story "The Vengeance of Nitocris" was published in the August 1928 issue of the magazine ''Weird Tales''. That same year he first visited Europe with his grandfather. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Tennessee Williams」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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