A Dance to the Music of Time - Wikipedia A Dance to the Music of Time From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia Jump to navigation Jump to search Book series For the painting, see A Dance to the Music of Time (painting). A Dance to the Music of Time is a 12-volume roman-fleuve by Anthony Powell, published between 1951 and 1975 to critical acclaim. The story is an often comic examination of movements and manners, power and passivity in English political, cultural and military life in the mid-20th century. The books were inspired by the painting of the same name by Nicolas Poussin. The sequence is narrated by Nicholas Jenkins. At the beginning of the first volume, Jenkins falls into a reverie while watching snow descending on a coal brazier. This reminds him of "the ancient world—legionaries (...) mountain altars (...) centaurs (...)". These classical projections introduce the account of his schooldays, which opens A Question of Upbringing. Over the course of the following volumes, he recalls the people he met over the previous half a century and the events, often small, that reveal their characters. Jenkins's personality is unfolded slowly, and often elliptically, over the course of the novels. Time magazine included the novel in its TIME 100 Best English-language Novels from 1923 to 2005.[1] The editors of Modern Library ranked the work as 43rd-greatest English-language novel of the 20th century.[2] The BBC ranked the novel 36th on its list of the 100 greatest British novels.[3] Contents 1 Inspiration 2 Analysis 3 The novels 4 Principal characters 5 Adaptations 6 References 7 External links Inspiration[edit] Poussin's painting, c. 1636, which gives its name to Powell's sequence of novels, Wallace Collection, London Jenkins reflects on the Poussin painting in the first two pages of A Question of Upbringing: These classical projections, and something from the fire, suddenly suggested Poussin's scene in which the Seasons, hand in hand and facing outward, tread in rhythm to the notes of the lyre that the winged and naked greybeard plays. The image of Time brought thoughts of mortality: of human beings, facing outward like the Seasons, moving hand in hand in intricate measure, stepping slowly, methodically sometimes a trifle awkwardly, in evolutions that take recognisable shape: or breaking into seemingly meaningless gyrations, while partners disappear only to reappear again, once more giving pattern to the spectacle: unable to control the melody, unable, perhaps, to control the steps of the dance. Poussin's painting is housed at the Wallace Collection in London. Analysis[edit] Powell's official biographer, Hilary Spurling, has published Invitation to the Dance – a Handbook to Anthony Powell's A Dance to the Music of Time.[4] This annotates, in dictionary form, the characters, events, art, music, and other references. She has also calculated the timeline employed by the author: this is used in the synopses linked from the novels below. The various aspects of the novel-sequence are also analysed in An Index to 'A Dance to the Music of Time' by B. J. Moule.[5] The novels[edit] Published dates are those of the first UK publication. The narrative is rarely specific about the years in which events take place. Those below are suggested by Hilary Spurling in Invitation to the Dance – a Handbook to Anthony Powell's A Dance to the Music of Time. Order Title Story timeline Published 1 A Question of Upbringing 1921–1924 1951 2 A Buyer's Market 1928 or 1929 1952 3 The Acceptance World 1931–1933 1955 4 At Lady Molly's 1934 1957 5 Casanova's Chinese Restaurant 1928 or 1929, 1933–1937 1960 6 The Kindly Ones 1914, 1938–1939 1962 7 The Valley of Bones 1940 1964 8 The Soldier's Art 1941 1966 9 The Military Philosophers 1942–1945 1968 10 Books Do Furnish a Room 1945–1947 1971 11 Temporary Kings 1958–1959 1973 12 Hearing Secret Harmonies 1968–1971 1975 Principal characters[edit] Character Details Historical inspirations[6] Nick Jenkins Narrator A cypher, everyman; Powell himself Isobel Tolland One of the Tolland sisters, whom Jenkins later marries Lady Violet Pakenham, third daughter of the 5th Earl of Longford and Powell's wife. Kenneth Widmerpool A mediocre student whose rise seems unstoppable. Powell confirmed character inspired by Col. Denis Capel-Dunn, under whom he served in the Cabinet Office. Plus an element from Sir Reginald Manningham-Buller's schooldays. Soviet bloc connection may be intended to suggest Labour MP Denis Nowell Pritt. Charles Stringham Schoolfriend of Nick's. A romantic. Drawn from Hubert Duggan, whose glamorous mother married Lord Curzon, Viceroy of India. Not, as is often supposed, based on Powell's friend and fellow author Henry Green. Uncle Giles ("Captain Jenkins") Nick's uncle, unreliable and usually untraceable. Peter Templer Raffish schoolfellow of Nick's based on John Spencer, friend of the author's. Jean Templer Peter's sister; Nick's lover Sillery Manipulative Oxford don Professor Sir Ernest Barker, and "Sligger" Urquhart. Not Sir Maurice Bowra as often suggested. Pamela Flitton Femme Fatale based on Barbara Skelton, tempestuous sometime wife of Cyril Connolly. Mark Members Promising poet Peter Quennell, all-purpose literary personage, poet, and cultural historian. The name and the conference-going suggest Stephen Spender. Maclintick Music critic Peter Warlock. Edgar Deacon Disreputable painter and antique dealer Combination of Mr Bailey, an alcoholic antiques dealer, and eccentric bookseller Christopher Millard. Dr Trelawney Occultist Aleister Crowley, self-styled Great Beast 666 The Field Marshal Leader of desert warfare Bernard Law Montgomery, 1st Viscount Montgomery of Alamein X. Trapnel Novelist and parodist Julian Maclaren-Ross Hugh Moreland Composer Constant Lambert St John Clarke Passé author John Galsworthy Max Pilgrim Entertainer in the manner of Noël Coward inspired by Douglas Byng Sir Magnus Donners Magnate and government minister partly drawn from Lord Beaverbrook J. G. Quiggin Marxist writer Erridge (Earl of Warminster) Socialist peer; Jenkins's brother-in-law The Earl of Longford, Powell's brother-in-law. Also Powell's friend George Orwell – lives as a tramp for a time, fights in Spanish Civil War, dies in his forties. Adaptations[edit] The cycle was adapted by Frederick Bradnum as a Classic Serial on BBC Radio 4. In order to fit the material in, it was broadcast as four separate serials each based on a set of three books: the first three serials had six episodes, the last eight. The series were broadcast between 1979 and 1982.[7] The cycle was adapted again as a six-part Classic Serial on BBC Radio 4 from 6 April to 11 May 2008, directed by John Taylor. The cycle was adapted as a four-part TV series by Anthony Powell and Hugh Whitemore for Channel 4 in 1997, directed by Christopher Morahan and Alvin Rakoff.[8] Character 1997 TV series 2008 radio drama 1979 radio drama Narrator Corin Redgrave Noel Johnson Kenneth Widmerpool Simon Russell Beale Anthony Hoskyns Mark Heap Brian Hewlett Nicholas Jenkins James Purefoy John Standing Tom McHugh Alex Jennings Gareth Johnson, Noel Johnson Charles Stringham Paul Rhys David Oakes Timothy Watson Simon Cadell Peter Templer Jonathan Cake Jolyon Coy Ronan Vibert Christopher Good Jean Templer Claire Skinner Emma Powell Jane Asher Orn Dag Soerlie Christopher Bidmead Lindquist Christian Rubeck Eric Allan Prof. Sillery Alan Bennett Paul Brooke Preston Lockwood J.G. Quiggin Adrian Scarborough Julian Kerridge Gordon Dulleu Gypsy Jones Nicola Walker Emma Powell Susan Sloman Suzette Barbara Goring Abigail Hollick Josie Kidd Erridge Osmund Bullock Jonathan Keeble Alexander John Mona Annabel Mullion Abigail Cruttenden Tamara Ustinov Lady Molly Jeavons Sarah Badel Heather Tracy Sian Phillips Lady Isobel Tolland Emma Fielding Zoe Waites Elizabeth Proud References[edit] ^ "The Complete List , TIME Magazine – ALL-TIME 100 Novels". TIME. 16 October 2005. Archived from the original on 13 March 2010. Retrieved 15 May 2011. ^ Search for a Title or Author. "The Modern Library , 100 Best , Novels". Randomhouse.com. Archived from the original on 7 February 2010. Retrieved 15 May 2011. ^ Ciabattari, Jane (7 December 2015). "The 100 greatest British novels". BBC. Retrieved 8 December 2015. ^ Spurling, Hilary. (2005). Invitation to the dance : a handbook to Anthony Powell's A dance to the music of time. London: Arrow. ISBN 0-09-948436-6. OCLC 60511965. ^ The time-line of the novels, how the various episodes recur in the movement of the Dance and the career, character and relationships of Kenneth Widmerpool are analysed in extracts taken from An Index to 'A Dance to the Music of Time' by B. J. Moule (published by consent). The latter extract is accessible in standard format at Kenneth Widmerpool ^ "Anthony Powell Society – A Dance to the Music of Time Character Models". Anthonypowell.org.uk. Archived from the original on 22 July 2012. Retrieved 15 May 2011. ^ Marshall, Keith (15 February 2005). "Dance on BBC Radio 4". Archived from the original on 20 September 2008. ^ A Dance to the Music of Time on IMDb External links[edit] A synopsis of each novel from Anthony Powell Society "Models for Characters in Anthony Powell's A Dance to the Music of Time" Poussin's painting v t e Anthony Powell's A Dance to the Music of Time Novels A Question of Upbringing (1951) A Buyer's Market (1952) The Acceptance World (1955) At Lady Molly's (1957) Casanova's Chinese Restaurant (1960) The Kindly Ones (1962) The Valley of Bones (1964) The Soldier's Art (1966) The Military Philosophers (1968) Books Do Furnish a Room (1971) Temporary Kings (1973) Hearing Secret Harmonies (1975) Related A Dance to the Music of Time (painting) Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=A_Dance_to_the_Music_of_Time&oldid=1000376587" Categories: A Dance to the Music of Time 20th-century British novels Novel sequences Hidden categories: Articles with short description Short description matches Wikidata Use British English from May 2011 Use dmy dates from March 2012 Navigation menu Personal tools Not logged in Talk Contributions Create account Log in Namespaces Article Talk Variants Views Read Edit View history More Search Navigation Main page Contents Current events Random article About Wikipedia Contact us Donate Contribute Help Learn to edit Community portal Recent changes Upload file Tools What links here Related changes Upload file Special pages Permanent link Page information Cite this page Wikidata item Print/export Download as PDF Printable version Languages Español Edit links This page was last edited on 14 January 2021, at 21:10 (UTC). 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