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John le Carré

ジョン・ル・カレ

John le Carré

Pen Names: John le Carré（Pseudonym used for publishing while employed by the Foreign Office/intelligence services and thereafter as an author）

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1931-10-19 （Poole, Dorset, England）
Died
2020-12-12 （Truro, Cornwall, England） age 89
Nationality
United Kingdom, Ireland
Languages
English
Residence History
St Buryan, Cornwall — lived for over 40 years → Gainsborough Gardens, Hampstead, London — owned a house

Career

Occupations
Novelist, Intelligence officer (MI5/MI6), Writer / columnist
Active Years
1958-2020
Influenced By
John Bingham (influential friend and crime-writer model for early characters), Vivian H. H. Green (tutor and influence)

Education

University of Bern
Faculty of Languages (Foreign Languages) / Foreign Languages (German)
Period: 1948–1949
Country: Switzerland
Attended for language studies; did not complete a degree at Bern
Lincoln College, Oxford
Modern Languages (German Literature)
Degree: BA (First-Class honours)
Period: 1952–1956
Year of Graduation: 1956
Country: United Kingdom
Worked covertly for MI5 during his studies

Awards

Gold Dagger
1963
Work: The Spy Who Came in from the Cold
Organization: Crime Writers' Association
Result: 受賞
Somerset Maugham Award
1964
Work: The Spy Who Came in from the Cold
Organization: Society of Authors
Result: 受賞
Edgar Award
1965
Work: The Spy Who Came in from the Cold
Organization: Mystery Writers of America
Result: 受賞
Gold Dagger
1977
Work: The Honourable Schoolboy
Organization: Crime Writers' Association
Result: 受賞
James Tait Black Memorial Prize (Fiction)
1977
Work: The Honourable Schoolboy
Organization: James Tait Black Memorial Prize
Result: 受賞
Japan Adventure Fiction Association Prize
1983
Work: The Little Drummer Girl
Organization: Japan Adventure Fiction Association
Result: 受賞
Edgar Grand Master
1984
Organization: Mystery Writers of America
Result: 受賞（生涯業績）
Diamond Dagger
1988
Organization: Crime Writers' Association
Result: 生涯功労賞
Dagger of Daggers
2005
Work: The Spy Who Came in from the Cold
Organization: Crime Writers' Association
Result: 受賞（過去作品から選出された栄誉）
Commander of the Order of Arts and Letters
2005
Organization: Ordre des Arts et des Lettres
Result: 受章
Goethe Medal
2011
Organization: Goethe-Institut
Result: 受賞
Olof Palme Prize
2020
Organization: The Olof Palme Memorial Fund
Result: 受賞（賞金はMSFへ寄付）

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

The Spy Who Came in from the Cold

1963 Spy fiction

A Cold War espionage novel portraying the moral ambiguity and compromises of intelligence work through the story of Alec Leamas.

Cold Warmoral ambiguitybetrayal
Adaptations
  • [Film] The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (film) / Martin Ritt (1965)
Translations
  • The Spy Who Came in from the Cold

Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

1974 Spy fiction

George Smiley returns to uncover a mole within the Circus; a complex depiction of institutional failure and betrayal in intelligence services.

institutional decaybetrayalorganizational corruption
Adaptations
  • [TV series / Film] Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (2011 film) / Tomas Alfredson (2011)
Translations
  • Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy

A Perfect Spy

1986 Autobiographical-tinged spy novel

Chronicles Magnus Pym's upbringing and moral formation that lead him to become a spy; widely seen as le Carré's most autobiographical novel.

family relationshipscon art and deceptionidentity
Translations
  • A Perfect Spy

The Night Manager

1993 Spy fiction (post-Cold War)

Deals with post–Cold War international crime: arms and drug trafficking, shadow banking and corrupt officials; the protagonist becomes embroiled in a global conspiracy.

post-Cold War crimeinternational corruptionconspiracy
Adaptations
  • [TV series] The Night Manager (TV series, 2016) / 複数（主にSusanne Bier等） (2016)
Translations
  • The Night Manager

The Constant Gardener

2001 Political suspense / Spy fiction

A pursuit to expose corruption linking pharmaceutical companies and political interests in Africa; themes of justice and moral responsibility.

corporate malfeasanceethics of international aidrevenge and justice
Adaptations
  • [Film] The Constant Gardener (film) / Fernando Meirelles (2005)
Translations
  • The Constant Gardener

The Little Drummer Girl

1983 Spy fiction

A novel exploring the Israeli–Palestinian conflict through the lens of espionage, with ethical dilemmas and political complexity.

Middle East conflictpolitical duty vs individualundercover operations
Adaptations
  • [Film / TV] The Little Drummer Girl (film/TV adaptations) / 次作により異なる (1984)
Translations
  • The Little Drummer Girl

Bibliography

  • Call for the Dead (1961)
  • A Murder of Quality (1962)
  • The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (1963)
  • Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (1974)
  • The Honourable Schoolboy (1977)
  • Smiley's People (1979)
  • A Perfect Spy (1986)
  • The Night Manager (1993)
  • The Constant Gardener (2001)
  • Agent Running in the Field (2019)
  • Silverview (2021)

Adaptations

  • The Spy Who Came in from the Cold (film, 1965)
  • Tinker Tailor Soldier Spy (TV series 1979, film 2011)
  • The Constant Gardener (film, 2005)
  • The Night Manager (TV series, 2016)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
measured and observant prosefocus on moral and psychological ambiguity rather than actionmeticulous plotting
Recurring Motifs
betrayalduality / double lifefragility of Western democracy

Legacy

Internationally acclaimed for Cold War-era spy novels that brought moral and psychological depth to espionage literature. Many works adapted for screen; he profoundly influenced late-20th and early-21st century English-language fiction.

Academic Societies

  • Crime Writers' Association (CWA)

Archives

  • Donated literary archive to the Bodleian Library, Oxford (initial deposit 2010)

In Popular Culture

  • Numerous film and TV adaptations; became canonical within the spy fiction genre

Quotes

  • "A Perfect Spy" was called "the best English novel since the war."
    Source: Philip Roth (quotation) (1986)
  • “I think my own ties to England were hugely loosened over the last few years. And it's a kind of liberation, if a sad kind.”
    Source: Interview (The Guardian) (2019)

Trivia

  • Born David John Moore Cornwell.
  • Wrote early novels while employed by MI5/MI6 and therefore used a pen name.
  • Acquired Irish citizenship late in life.
  • Final novel Silverview was published posthumously in 2021.
  • Donated his literary archive to the Bodleian Library.