John le Carré, prolific and profound novelist of such renowned Cold War thrillers as Tinker, Taylor, Soldier, Spy and The Man Who Came In From The Cold, died in Cornwall, England, this past weekend. The writer was eighty-nine years old. He penned extremely engaging stories, but his mark upon literature is distinct and deserving of far more than just entertainment value.
The New York Times featured an obituary on the author “whose exquisitely nuanced, intricately plotted Cold War thrillers elevated the spy novel to high art by presenting both Western and Soviet spies as morally compromised cogs in a rotten system full of treachery, betrayal and personal tragedy.” Certainly le Carré’s creations stand the test of time, infiltrating our colloquialisms and influencing our consideration of an entire genre of fiction. No one can argue that an adept thriller is a lot of fun, but an unanimous consensus that the same novel is elegant and inventive proves that something exceptional has appeared on the literary scene.
The New York Times goes on to note that his works “portrayed British intelligence operations as cesspools of ambiguity in which right and wrong are too close to call and in which it is rarely obvious whether the ends, even if the ends are clear, justify the means … Mr. le Carré’s spies are lonely, disillusioned men whose work is driven by budget troubles, bureaucratic power plays and the opaque machinations of politicians — men who are as likely to be betrayed by colleagues and lovers as by the enemy.” Indeed, such sketches demonstrate a master at work. It is astounding that le Carré managed such a feat not once, but myriads of times, and right until his passing at the cusp of a venerable ninety years.
The author was once a spy himself, a fact that provides the realistic foundation for his abundant creativity. His website, johnlecarre.com, lauds him as “the master chronicler of our age,” a man whose “work has come to define not only the best of spy fiction but the very colour of our times. An insightful observer of the human condition and contemporary geopolitics alike, le Carré’s novels are exciting, thought-provoking and touch on both eternal truths and deeply felt issues of the moment.” These statements are no exaggeration. The world lost a truly noteworthy individual, and we would do well to revisit Mr. le Carré’s works to both honor his legacy and honor our own inclinations towards artistry and delight.
