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Summary Of Lawrence Durrell's 'Alexandria Quartet'

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The Alexandria Quartet : An Interface between Life and Art
Lawrence Durrell was first and foremost an artist and his main intention in his novel The Alexandria Quartet was to depict the artist’s view of life and reality and his final curative value. In the Quartet there is an optimistic vision of art as a mode of transcendence. Durrell made use of the scientific data like Einstein’s concept of space –time as he renounced intellect and reason as misleading and affirmed his faith in intuition, instincts and emotion. The final lesson brought out by the narrator of the novel The Alexandria Quartet is the “emotional education” of an artist, the kindness and tenderness that rises above life and transcends all barriers. Lawrence Durrell’s primary contribution to twentieth century writing is his most challenging and sublime masterpiece The Alexandria Quartet. It is the ‘summum bonum’ of all Durrell’s literary, aesthetic and philosophical theories in life.
“Guardian Books Podcast: Lawrence Durrell at 100” features presenter Claire Armistead in conversation with travel writer, Jan Morris who was specially commissioned for Durrell 2012: The Lawrence Durrell Centenary. Speaking about her encounters with Lawrence Durrell- in life and on page Morris says: This is what I think Lawrence Durrell does so brilliantly in these books. It is the intangible, indefinable spell of a particular city, on the
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