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The Biography of Tobias Wolff

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Words: 487 |

Page: 1|

3 min read

Updated: 16 January, 2025

Essay grade:
Good
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Words: 487|Page: 1|3 min read

Updated: 16 January, 2025

Essay grade:
Good
arrow downward Read Review

Tobias Wolff was born on June 19th, 1945 in Birmingham, Alabama. He is the second son of Arthur Samuels Wolff and Rosemary Loftus Wolff. At age five, Tobias faced a family breakup where he and his mother separated from his father and older brother, Geoffrey, due to the instability his father kept in his family life. Wolff and his mother constantly moved. They lived first in Florida, then moved to Utah in 1955, and finally settled in the Pacific Northwest, where his mother remarried a troublesome man, Dwight Hansen. They lived in Newhalem, Washington with Hansen and his three children.

Wolff attended Concrete High School until he left for Hill School in Pottstown, Pennsylvania, where he faked his references to be accepted. He attended Hill School for a year but did not graduate and instead ended up joining the military for four years. Wolff’s family also did not reunite until 1961 when he saw his older brother and father after eleven years. From 1964 to 1968, Wolff served in the U.S. Army Special Forces, where he was assigned his post in Vietnam.

After serving those years, Wolff traveled to England and enrolled at Oxford University. In 1972, he received his bachelor’s degree at Oxford and in 1975, received a master’s degree at Oxford. Returning to America, he worked first as a reporter for The Washington Post, then at various restaurant jobs in California. In 1975, he married Catherine Dolores Spohn, a teacher and social worker. They later had two sons and a daughter; Michael, Patrick, and Mary Elizabeth. Wolff enrolled at Stanford University the same year and soon received a master’s degree from Stanford in 1978. While at Stanford, he met and became friends with other writers, including Raymond Carver. During this time, he supported himself by teaching.

Besides short stories, Tobias Wolff has published a novella, The Barracks Thief (1984), and a memoir, This Boy’s Life (1989). He also edited short-story anthologies, including The Best American Short Stories (1994). While pursuing his own writing, Wolff has taught creative writing at Goddard College and Arizona State University. Currently, he lives with his family in upstate New York and teaches at Syracuse University. Wolff has also influenced countless people, including the famous David Sedaris, an American comedian and author. Sedaris claims he is Wolff’s “biggest fan” as he has read every word Wolff has ever written.

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Wolff’s work has won numerous literary prizes. He received a Wallace Stegner Fellowship in 1975 to study creative writing at Stanford University and won creative writing grants from the National Endowment for the Arts. Wolff has been awarded the 1985 PEN/Faulkner Award for Fiction for The Barracks Thief and a John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation Fellowship. His This Boy’s Life: A Memoir won The Los Angeles Times book prize for biography. He has also received a Whiting Foundation Award (1990), a Lila Wallace-Reader’s Digest Award (1994), and a Lyndhurst Foundation Award (1994).

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This essay was graded by
Dr. Oliver Johnson
Essay’s grade:
Good
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Expert Review
The essay on Tobias Wolff provides a comprehensive overview of his life and accomplishments, effectively capturing the essence of his journey and contributions to literature. It covers key aspects of Wolff’s biography, including his early life, education, military service, and professional achievements. The narrative is well-structured, offering insights into both his personal experiences and literary career. However, the essay could benefit from a more engaging writing style to captivate readers further. While it includes important dates and milestones, there is room for deeper analysis or anecdotes that might bring Wolff's story to life more vividly. Additionally, the essay briefly mentions some of Wolff's notable works but could delve deeper into their themes or impact on literature. Overall, the piece succeeds in providing an informative account but lacks a certain depth or flair that might elevate it from being purely factual to more reflective or analytical in nature.
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What can be improved
The essay on Tobias Wolff offers a solid foundation by outlining his life and achievements, yet there are several areas for improvement that could enhance its overall impact. First, the writing style could be more engaging; incorporating varied sentence structures and vivid language would help captivate readers and draw them into Wolff’s narrative. Additionally, while the essay presents important dates and milestones, it would benefit from deeper exploration of specific themes within Wolff's works. For instance, discussing the emotional resonance of "This Boy's Life" or analyzing the narrative techniques in "The Barracks Thief" would provide readers with a richer understanding of his contributions to literature. Moreover, personal anecdotes or reflections on Wolff’s experiences could humanize the biography, making it relatable and memorable. Including insights into how his tumultuous childhood influenced his writing style or thematic choices would add depth to the narrative. Lastly, a more critical examination of Wolff’s influence on contemporary writers like David Sedaris could highlight his significance in modern literature. By addressing these aspects—style, thematic analysis, personal anecdotes, and critical insights—the essay could transition from a straightforward biography to a compelling exploration of Tobias Wolff's life and work.

Cite this Essay

The Biography of Tobias Wolff. (2018, October 08). GradesFixer. Retrieved February 3, 2025, from https://gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/the-biography-of-tobias-wolff/
“The Biography of Tobias Wolff.” GradesFixer, 08 Oct. 2018, gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/the-biography-of-tobias-wolff/
The Biography of Tobias Wolff. [online]. Available at: <https://gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/the-biography-of-tobias-wolff/> [Accessed 3 Feb. 2025].
The Biography of Tobias Wolff [Internet]. GradesFixer. 2018 Oct 08 [cited 2025 Feb 3]. Available from: https://gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/the-biography-of-tobias-wolff/
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