Anthony Trollope

Anthony Trollope – Life, Career, and Famous Quotes

A detailed biography of Anthony Trollope, exploring his life, career, literary style, famous quotes, and enduring legacy in Victorian literature.

Introduction

Anthony Trollope (24 April 1815 – 6 December 1882) was a prolific and influential English novelist of the Victorian era, whose works spanned social commentary, politics, romance, and clergy life. Though sometimes undervalued in his own time, his deep insights into daily life, institutions, and human nature have ensured his reputation endures. In this article we trace his life and career, highlight his memorable sayings, and reflect on what modern readers can learn from him.

Early Life and Family

Anthony Trollope was born in Marylebone, London, on 24 April 1815. He was the eldest son of Thomas Anthony Trollope and Frances Milton Trollope. His mother, Frances, was a writer and became better known during her life than his father.

Thomas Trollope was educated and intended for law, but lacked great success; financial difficulties followed. His mother, Frances Trollope, was more successful: she wrote travel and social commentary, and later helped support the family income.

Because of the family’s unstable finances, Anthony’s early years were marked by uncertainty. His father’s farming ventures were unprofitable and expectations of inheritance were dashed when a relative remarried and had children.

As a boy, Anthony Trollope attended Harrow School (as a day pupil, without fees) for a time, and later Winchester College, then back to Harrow again in a reduced capacity to manage costs. His schooling was not comfortable: he was bullied, felt precarious socially, and even struggled at times with the sense of being an outsider in elite institutions.

When his mother moved to the United States in 1827, with some siblings, Anthony remained in England. Subsequently the family lived for a period in Belgium due to debt, and Anthony found work in teaching and later obtained a clerkship at the Post Office.

His father died around this time, increasing the burden on his mother and on Anthony’s earning efforts.

Youth and Education

While Trollope had a relatively classical education, his schooling was frequently hampered by financial constraints and the family’s unsettled state.

His early adolescent years included spells at different schools, often under conditions of hardship and social instability.

In Belgium, to assist the family, Trollope worked briefly as an usher (a teaching assistant) to 30 boys while learning French and German, making up for his educational gap and helping keep the family afloat.

These experiences—of travel, displacement, and self-reliance—helped shape his worldview and sensitivity to character, class, and institution, which later emerged strongly in his novels.

Career and Achievements

Postal Career

Trollope entered the Post Office in London in 1834 (or thereabouts) by the help of a family acquaintance, becoming a clerk. He admitted that the first several years were “neither creditable to myself nor useful to the public service.”

In 1841, he was offered a posting in Ireland as a postal surveyor clerk, and he accepted—this move turned out to be pivotal. Although the position was seen as less prestigious, the lower cost of living and opportunities in Ireland allowed him a measure of financial breathing room.

While in Ireland, he worked and traveled across the region in inspection tours. It was also in Ireland where he began writing seriously. He used the long train and postal journeys to write fiction in a disciplined, daily routine.

His first novel, The Macdermots of Ballycloran, was begun and completed in Ireland, and several of his early works carry Irish settings or themes.

Later, he returned to England and took a senior Post Office position in 1859 as Surveyor for the Eastern District (covering counties east of London). He gradually rose in the postal service, paralleling his growing literary success.

By 1867, Trollope had enough income and savings to resign from the Post Office (rather than stay until retirement) so he could fully dedicate himself to writing.

One postal attribution sometimes credited to him (though partly apocryphal) is the popularization of the red pillar box (mailbox) in the UK.

Literary Career & Major Works

Trollope published 47 novels, 42 short stories, and multiple travel and non-fiction books in his lifetime.

He is best known for two major cycles:

• The Chronicles of Barsetshire (six novels) — focusing on the clergy, parish life, and the gentry in the fictional county of Barsetshire. The Warden (1855) was first in the series, followed by Barchester Towers (1857) and others.

• The Palliser Novels — a series centered on politics, power, marriage, and the aristocracy, featuring characters such as Plantagenet Palliser and Lady Glencora.

Other notable works include The Way We Live Now (1875), often considered his masterpiece for its trenchant social critique and sweeping scope.

Trollope’s novels often overlapped characters and settings, allowing him a coherent fictional world in which minor characters in one novel might appear in another.

In addition, he traveled abroad (to the U.S., Australia, South Africa) and published travel books such as North America (1862), Australia and New Zealand (1873), and South Africa (1877).

He also attempted politics: in 1868 he stood (unsuccessfully) as a Liberal candidate in Beverley, East Yorkshire. His campaign was marred by corruption in the electorate and ended in defeat. The experience influenced his fictional portrayals of elections and public life (e.g., Phineas Redux, Ralph The Heir).

Style, Themes, and Innovation

Trollope’s strength was in realism, social observation, and character detail. He often dealt with everyday institutions—law, church, bureaucracy—and human motivations.

He famously adhered to a disciplined writing schedule: he would rise early, write a set number of words, then attend to other duties. He dismissed the idea of waiting for “inspiration” as impractical. In An Autobiography, he is candid about writing for income, admitting that he wrote under contract and that the financial motive was real, which offended many critics who preferred the romantic idea of the inspired artist.

His narrative voice could intrude, commenting on plot, or explaining his choices; he considered this an honest approach.

He also showed sensitivity toward women’s inner conflicts in Victorian society, often giving female characters complexity and moral dilemmas.

Later Years & Death

After his political failure, Trollope concentrated fully on his writing career. He edited St. Paul’s Magazine and continued publishing novels.

He traveled, continued to observe contemporary issues (e.g. land reforms, colonial matters), and remained busy until late in life.

In 1880, he moved to South Harting in West Sussex. He spent his final years researching a last novel, The Landleaguers, and travelling to Ireland in relation to agrarian unrest.

Anthony Trollope died on 6 December 1882 in Marylebone, London. He was buried in Kensal Green Cemetery.

His posthumous Autobiography was published and became a bestseller; though it also exposed the money-minded side of his craft, provoking both admiration and criticism.

Historical Milestones & Context

• Trollope wrote during a period of great change in Britain: industrialization, political reform, expansion of the British Empire, debates over class, gender, and governance. His works reflect these tensions.

• The Reform Acts, debates over representation, the Irish question, and church/state issues were contemporary issues that intersected with his interests and narrative settings.

• The rise of periodical publishing and serialization gave Trollope opportunity: he published many novels serially in magazines like Cornhill Magazine.

• The evolution of the civil service and bureaucratic institutions is mirrored in his choice of characters and settings, especially in The Three Clerks and related works.

• Toward the late Victorian era, literary tastes shifted toward aestheticism, psychological complexity, and experimental styles. Trollope’s steady, realistic approach fell somewhat out of critical fashion, though later revival rescued parts of his legacy.

Legacy and Influence

Trollope’s reputation dipped toward the end of his life, partly because critics frowned on his productivity and his admission of writing for money. But in the 20th century, especially mid-century, his reputation underwent a revival. Scholars and readers rediscovered his strengths in realism, moral nuance, and institutional insight.

He influenced subsequent novelists in his treatment of the commonplace, the interplay of public and private life, and the balance between character and plot. George Eliot is said to have acknowledged Trollope’s precedent in her major work Middlemarch.

Among Trollope’s admirers have been:

• Sir Alec Guinness, who reputedly never travelled without one of Trollope’s novels.

• British Prime Ministers such as John Major.

• Economists, novelists, and judges who cited his works for insight into social life.

A Trollope Society exists in the UK, and a Trollope Prize has been established to promote interest in his work.

Critics today often appreciate his subtle treatment of gender issues, morality, the endemic influence of money, and the tension between duty and desire.

Personality and Talents

Trollope was disciplined, pragmatic, and unromantic about his craft. He believed in work habits over waiting for inspiration. He combined both the roles of bureaucrat and creative artist, seeing no shame in earning by writing.

He was socially curious, observant, and empathetic toward a broad spectrum of society—from aristocrats to lesser civil servants.
He enjoyed hunting, travel, and social engagement.

At times he was criticized for moral earnestness or for a somewhat conventional worldview, but his capacity to recognize human folly and to portray it without cynicism is one of his strengths.

Even in later life, he never ceased to work, to travel, or to engage with contemporary issues. His longevity, both in life and in output, reflects a robust internal drive.

Famous Quotes of Anthony Trollope

Here are some memorable quotes attributed to Anthony Trollope (or from his works):

“A small daily task, if it be really daily, will beat the labours of a spasmodic Hercules.” “What on earth could be more luxurious than a sofa, a book, and a cup of coffee?” “Life is so unlike theory.” “Success is the necessary misfortune of life, but it is only to the very unfortunate that it comes early.” “Nobody holds a good opinion of a man who has a low opinion of himself.”

From An Autobiography and his letters:

“No novel is anything, for the purposes either of comedy or tragedy, unless the reader can sympathise with the characters whose names he finds upon the pages.” “If dishonesty can live … then dishonesty is not disgraceful … the man dishonest … is not a low scoundrel.”

These quotes reflect his understanding of human nature, modest ambition, and belief in steady work over grand gestures.

Lessons from Anthony Trollope

1. Consistency is power
   Trollope’s disciplined daily writing routine—small but constant effort—enabled him to produce a vast body of work. His saying about a daily task surpassing heroic but intermittent labor still resonates.

2. Work and art can coexist
   He showed that a person need not wait for inspiration alone: a plan, schedule, and steady commitment can produce meaningful art.

3. Empathy toward ordinary life
   He did not always seek dramatic or exotic subjects; many of his best scenes come from church disputes, small-town politics, or everyday domestic dilemmas.

4. Courage to admit motive
   Trollope was honest about writing for income, which cost him reputation but also grounded his work in real needs and connections to readers.

5. Institutional insight
   His novels teach us that understanding the structures—church, law, bureaucracy—is vital to understanding human lives.

6. Engage with your time
   Though he lived in the 19th century, Trollope addressed the pivotal issues of his day—reform, politics, gender, empire—and thus made his work live beyond his era.

Conclusion

Anthony Trollope was more than a Victorian novelist: he was a moral observer, a social chronicler, a disciplined craftsman, and an unapologetic realist. His life—marked by hardship, public service, and ceaseless writing—offers lessons in persistence, modesty, and thoughtful engagement. His novels remain readable and relevant because their core concern is human nature in social context.

If you’d like, I can share a deeper analysis of one of his novels (e.g. The Way We Live Now or Barchester Towers) or a full list of his best quotes. Would you like me to do that?