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Robert Stone

ロバート・ストーン

Robert Stone

Profile

Gender
Male
Born
1937-08-21 （Brooklyn, New York, U.S.）
Died
2015-01-10 （Key West, Florida, U.S.） age 77
Nationality
United States
Languages
English
Residence History
Brooklyn (birthplace) → New Orleans (residence) → New York (residence) → Key West (winter residence)

Career

Occupations
novelist, journalist, college professor
Active Years
1962-2015
Affiliations
Stanford University (Stegner Fellowship), Johns Hopkins University (Writing Seminars, lecturer), Yale University, Beloit College (2006–2007, creative writing), Texas State University (endowed chair, English), PEN/Faulkner Foundation (chairman, Board of Directors), Key West Literary Seminar (honorary director)
Memberships
PEN/Faulkner Foundation (chairman), American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters
Influenced By
Ken Kesey, Jack Kerouac, Allen Ginsberg, Neal Cassady

Education

New York University
Period: 1960年代初頭（在籍、学位は未取得）
Country: United States
Attended but did not complete a degree
Stanford University (Stegner Fellowship)
Creative Writing Center
Period: 1962–1963（Stegner Fellowship）
Country: United States
Stegner Fellow; no formal degree

Awards

National Book Award (Fiction)
1975
Work: Dog Soldiers
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: winner
William Faulkner Foundation Award (best first novel)
1967
Work: A Hall of Mirrors
Organization: William Faulkner Foundation
Result: winner
Guggenheim Fellowship
Organization: John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation
Result: recipient
Mildred and Harold Strauss Living Award
Organization: Strauss Living Award (institute)
Result: recipient
John Dos Passos Prize for Literature
Organization: Dos Passos Prize organization
Result: recipient
American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters Award
Organization: American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters
Result: recipient
Pulitzer Prize (finalist)
1982
Work: A Flag for Sunrise
Organization: Pulitzer Prize Board
Result: finalist
Pulitzer Prize (finalist)
1998
Work: Bear and His Daughter
Organization: Pulitzer Prize Board
Result: finalist
PEN/Faulkner Award (finalist)
1981
Work: A Flag for Sunrise
Organization: PEN/Faulkner Foundation
Result: finalist
National Book Award (finalist)
1982
Work: A Flag for Sunrise
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: finalist
National Book Award (finalist)
1983
Work: A Flag for Sunrise (paperback reissue)
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: finalist
National Book Award (finalist)
1992
Work: Outerbridge Reach
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: finalist
National Book Award (finalist)
1998
Work: Damascus Gate
Organization: National Book Foundation
Result: finalist

Awards & Nominations

Works

Major Works

A Hall of Mirrors

1967 novel (political/social novel)

A debut novel set in New Orleans depicting political conflict and social tensions; it established Stone's reputation.

political tensionmoral decaylocal society
Adaptations
  • [film (screenplay adaptation)] WUSA / Stuart Rosenberg (1970)

Dog Soldiers

1974 novel (crime/political novel)

A dark novel inspired by Stone's time in Vietnam, about a journalist involved in heroin smuggling. Winner of the 1975 National Book Award.

war and violencedrugs and addictionmoral collapse
Adaptations
  • [film (screenplay co-author)] Who'll Stop the Rain / Karel Reisz (1978)

A Flag for Sunrise

1981 novel (political novel)

A multi-character novel set in a fictional banana republic, dealing with political chaos and ethics; it was a finalist for several awards.

political upheavalviolencemorality and redemption

Children of Light

1986 novel (character study)

A misfortunate tale of a Hollywood actress; a smaller-scale character-centered novel.

the collapse of fameloneliness

Outerbridge Reach

1992 novel (adventure/character novel)

About an eccentric man undertaking a solo circumnavigation; finalist for the 1992 National Book Award.

adventureisolationmadness

Bear and His Daughter

1997 short story collection

A short story collection that was a finalist for the 1998 Pulitzer Prize.

familyloss

Damascus Gate

1998 novel (political thriller)

Set in Jerusalem, about a man with messianic delusions entangled in a terrorist plot; finalist for the 1998 National Book Award.

religious delusionterrorism and violence

Bay of Souls

2003 novel

A mid-period novel that continues Stone's engagement with political and spiritual themes.

politicsspirituality

Death of the Black-Haired Girl

2013 novel (thriller elements)

A late novel exploring political intrigue and the darker sides of human nature.

conspiracysin and redemption

Prime Green: Remembering the Sixties

2007 memoir / nonfiction

A memoir recounting Stone's experiences in the 1960s counterculture.

counterculturedrug experiences

Fun with Problems

2010 short story collection

A collection of short stories published late in his career.

everyday violencehuman relationships

Bibliography

  • A Hall of Mirrors
  • Dog Soldiers
  • A Flag for Sunrise
  • Children of Light
  • Outerbridge Reach
  • Bear and His Daughter
  • Damascus Gate
  • Bay of Souls
  • Death of the Black-Haired Girl
  • Prime Green: Remembering the Sixties
  • Fun with Problems
  • The Eye You See With: Selected Nonfiction (posthumous)

Adaptations

  • WUSA (1970, directed by Stuart Rosenberg; screenplay based on A Hall of Mirrors)
  • Who'll Stop the Rain (1978, directed by Karel Reisz; screenplay co-written based on Dog Soldiers)

Style & Themes

Literary Style
naturalistic depictionstream of consciousness elementsdark humor and action-oriented narration
Recurring Motifs
war and its aftermathdrugs and addictionpolitical upheaval and violencecoastal/exotic settingssearch for faith and redemption

Health

  • chronic obstructive pulmonary disease (emphysema)
    晩年（公表は72歳頃）
    Smoking-related decline in respiratory function; contributed to cause of death

Legacy

Robert Stone is regarded as one of the major American novelists after the Vietnam era; winner of the 1975 National Book Award and multiple-time award finalist. His politically and ethically engaged fiction, marked by dark humor, continues to be anthologized and studied after his death.

Academic Societies

  • American Academy and Institute of Arts and Letters (member)

Archives

  • New York Public Library (Robert Stone Papers)

In Popular Culture

  • Film adaptations such as Who'll Stop the Rain based on his novels

Quotes

  • "Havana was my first liberty port, my first foreign city. ... At the time, I was struck less by the frivolity of Havana than by its unashamed seriousness."
    Source: Interview / memoir (referenced in Prime Green and interviews) (2007)

Trivia

  • Expelled from a Marist high school in his senior year
  • Served four years in the U.S. Navy and travelled to places including Antarctica and Egypt
  • Quit heavy smoking in his 40s but later developed severe emphysema
  • Served as chairman of the PEN/Faulkner Foundation board for over thirty years