"Of the many metaphors for biography, two make useful starting points. One — a disturbing image — is the autopsy, the forensic examination of the dead body which takes place when the is unusual, suspicious, or ambiguous. ... There is something gruesome about this metaphor. It is used when commentators on biography want to emphasize its ghoulish or predatory aspects. ... A contrasting metaphor for biography is the portrait. Whereas autopsy suggests clinical investigation and, even, violation, portrait suggests empathy, bringing to life, capturing the character. The portraitist simulates warmth, energy, idiosyncrasy, and personality through attention to detail and skill in representation."
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Academics from EnglandBiographers from EnglandCritics from EnglandFellows of the British AcademyFellows of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences
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Hermione Lee
(born 29 February 1948) is a English biographer, literary critic, journalist, editor, , and academic. She was elected in 1992 a Fellow of the and in 2001 a Fellow of the . Her biography of Virginia Woolf (1996, Chatto & Windus) won the 1997 ', and her biography of Penelope Fitzgerald (2013, Chatto & Windus) won the 2013 . She was appointed in 2003 (CBE), in 2013 (DBE), and in 2023 (GBE).
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