See index for CTFT sketch: Born July 15, 1919, in Dublin, Ireland; died of Alzheimer's disease on February 8, 1999, in Oxford, England. Philosopher and author. Murdoch was known as "one of 'the four or five great novelists of the second half of this century to come out of Britain,'" according to one peer, as stated in the Los Angeles Times. Murdoch wrote more than thirty novels, many of them having to do with love. She explored loveof all kinds, including heterosexual, homosexual, and adulterous love. Writer Ian Hamilton described the love in Murdoch's books as "barely erotic" and more of a mental phenomenon, according to the Los Angeles Times. The author studied in London and explored Communism in her younger years, whichprevented her from studying in the United States at a later date. Murdoch wrote privately and did not share her writing with other writers or her husband, literary critic John Bayley. She never read reviews of her work. Murdoch once declared that for her, life's most important priorities included parents, work, and, above all, a good marriage. Her writings include The Message to the Planet(1989), Metaphysics as a Guide to Morals(1992), andExistentialists and Mystics(1997). Her plays include The Three Arrows(Arts, Cambridge, 1972) and Art and Eros(National Theatre, 1980).
April 16, 2004: Murdoch's library of books, notes, and manuscripts were acquired by Kingston University in the United Kingdom. Source: Guardian, http://books.guardian.co.uk, April 16, 2004.
OBITUARIES AND OTHER SOURCES
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