The Mint: Lawrence after Arabia

by T. E. Lawrence, Andrew Sattin (Introduction), Anthony Sattin (Introduction)

Overview

In 1922, his dreams of an independent Arabia shattered, T.E. Lawrence enlisted in the RAF under the assumed name John Hume Ross. Though methodical and restrictive, life there seemed to suit Lawrence: "The Air Force is not a man-crushing humiliating slavery, all its days. There is sun&decent treatment, and a very real measure of happiness, to those who do not look forward or back." With poetic clarity, Lawrence brings to life the harsh realities of barracks life and illuminates the strange twilight world he had slipped into after his war experiences. For anyone interested in the life of one of the 20th century's most enduring heroes and his life beyond the well-documented Arab revolt, The Mint is essential and compelling reading.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781786720160
Publisher:	Bloomsbury Publishing
Publication date:	08/30/2016
Sold by:	Barnes & Noble
Format:	eBook
Pages:	240
Sales rank:	229,942
File size:	442 KB

About the Author

Thomas Edward Lawrence (1888-1935) was a British archaeologist, army officer, RAF serviceman, diplomat, and author. He was renowned for his role in the Arab Revolt during the First World War.
Anthony Sattin is a writer of history and travel, a specialist on the Middle East and North Africa. The author of several highly-acclaimed books, including The Pharoah's Shadow, The Gates of Africa and A Winter on the Nile, he is also a regular contributor to the Sunday Times and Conde Nast Traveller and has been widely published in the UK and around the world. His broadcast work includes several high profile radio documentaries on the Arab world. He sits on the editorial advisory board of Geographical Magazine and has contributed to several guidebook series, including the Lonely Planet volumes on Egypt and Algeria.

Table of Contents

Introduction to the New Edition Anthony Sattin xi

Note A. W. Lawrence to the First Edition xxi

Part I The Raw Material

1 Recruiting Office 3

2 The Gate 6

3 In the Park 8

4 The Fear 10

5 First Day 13

6 Us 16

7 The New Skin 19

8 Officers' Mess 22

9 P.T. 25

10 Last Post 29

11 Fatigues 32

12 Reveille 34

13 Vanities 37

14 Holiday 40

15 Church 45

16 Mess-deck 50

17 Corporal Abner 52

18 Raper's Roll-call 55

19 Shit-cart 57

20 Our Commanding Officer 62

21 The Social Code 67

22 Breaking or Making 70

23 Cook's Mate 73

24 Inspection 76

25 Humbugging About 80

26 China's Trouble 83

27 A Sermon 86

28 Our Mould of Form 88

29 The Last Fatigue 91

Part II In the Mill

1 Disciplines 97

2 The Four Senses 100

3 Officers, Please 103

4 Non-commissioned Officers 106

5 My Hours 109

6 Intemperate 111

7 A Fresh Start 115

8 The Time-table 117

9 School 120

10 Our Instructor 123

11 Now and Then 126

12 Stock-taking 129

13 The Little More 132

14 Ceremony 135

15 Extras 139

16 Offensive 141

17 Another Chance 145

18 Audience 146

19 Odd Man Out 149

20 In the Guard-room 152

21 Stiffy 155

22 Gaol-delivery 158

Part III Service

An Explanation 165

1 Rail Journey 167

2 B. Flight 170

3 Manners 171

4 A First Note 173

5 Lodgings 174

6 Body and Soul 177

7 The Hangar 179

8 Work 182

9 Funeral 185

10 Dance Night 188

11 On Parade 190

12 Police Duty 192

13 The Way of a Bird 195

14 Classes 198

15 Fugitive 200

16 The Road 203

17 A Thursday Night 207

18 Interlude 209

Editorial Reviews

A severely chiselled picture of barrack life: Joycean in style, sometimes brilliant in evocation, structured as a series of set-pieces, showing a decided advance in control over Seven Pillars of Wisdom.” —Irving Howe

“The Mint, written in a very different style to Seven Pillars of Wisdom, is, like Solzhenitsyn's One Day in the Life of Ivan Denisovich, a work of observation written by a highly intelligent man who found himself effectively imprisoned. Lawrence distilled its spare descriptions from events that he had witnessed over and over again.” —Jeremy Wilson

From the Publisher