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William Golding was born on September 19, 1911, in Saint Columb Minor, Cornwall, England.
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His Life.
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In 1934, a year before he graduated, William published his first work, a book of poetry aptly entitled Poems. The collection was largely overlooked by critics.
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Golding took a position teaching English and philosophy at Bishop Wordsworth’s School in Salisbury.
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He married Ann Brookfield
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Although passionate about teaching from day one, in 1940 Golding temporarily abandoned the profession to join the Royal Navy and fight in World War II.
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His first son David was born.
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During World War II, he fought battleships at the sinking of the Bismarck, and also fended off submarines and planes. Lieutenant Golding was even placed in command of a rocket-launching craft.
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Judith, his daughter was born.
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In 1954, after 21 rejections, Golding published his first and most acclaimed novel, Lord of the Flies.
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In 1963, the year after Golding retired from teaching, Peter Brook made a film adaptation of the critically acclaimed novel
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Rites of Passage (winner of the 1980 Booker McConnell Prize)
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Golding was awarded the 1983 Nobel Prize for Literature.
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In 1988, he was knighted by England’s Queen Elizabeth II.
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In 1990 a new film version of the Lord of the Flies was released, bringing the book to the attention of a new generation of readers.
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On June 19, 1993, Golding died of a heart attack in Perranarworthal, Cornwall. After Golding died, his completed manuscript for The Double Tongue was published posthumously.