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Thornton Niven Wilder was born in Madison, Wisconsin, in 1897. The son of a newspaper editor and American diplomat, he spent part of his childhood in China before studying at Oberlin College and Yale University. He later earned a master's degree in French literature from Princeton University and studied archaeology and Italian at the American Academy in Rome. His experiences there helped inspire his first novel, The Cabala.
Wilder became one of the most distinguished American writers of the twentieth century. His novels include The Bridge of San Luis Rey, The Woman of Andros, Heaven's My Destination, The Ides of March, The Eighth Day, and Theophilus North. As a dramatist, he is best known for Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth. His work frequently examines time, fate, history, community, and the hidden significance of ordinary human lives.
Wilder remains the only American writer to have received Pulitzer Prizes for both fiction and drama. He won for the novel The Bridge of San Luis Rey and for the plays Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth. He also taught, lectured widely, served in the United States military during both world wars, and received the National Book Award for The Eighth Day. Wilder died in Hamden, Connecticut, in 1975, leaving behind a body of work that continues to hold an important place in American literature and theater.
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