Jerusalem the Golden
| Company type | Novel |
|---|---|
| Industry | Literature |
| Founded | 1967 |
| Founder | Margaret Drabble |
| Products | Book |
Jerusalem the Golden is a novel published in 1967 by Margaret Drabble, which received the prestigious James Tait Black Memorial Prize.
Development and title
The narrative of Jerusalem the Golden draws heavily on autobiographical influences: similar to its main character Clara, Drabble was raised in Yorkshire as the middle child among three sisters, with several figures in the story inspired by her own relatives. The character Mrs Maugham is modeled after Drabble's maternal grandmother.
The book’s title is taken from the hymn Jerusalem the Golden, continuing Drabble’s established use of Biblical allusions found in her previous novels such as The Millstone and The Needle's Eye.
Characters
- Clara Maugham – an intelligent and attractive young woman, who is in her final year at a university in London.
- Clelia – an artist and actress admired by Clara, who aspires to emulate her.
- Mrs. Maugham – Clara’s "miserable" mother, a character loosely inspired by Drabble’s grandmother; her harsh demeanor reflects a constrained inner life.
Themes
The novel explores issues related to women and gender, mirroring feminist currents of the 1960s. Scholar G. Suchita identifies elements of "liberationist tendencies," likening Clara to figures who wield their sexuality as a form of social influence. In contrast, critic Lisa Allardice stresses that Drabble’s primary aim is to depict her personal experience and worldview as a young woman rather than to produce explicitly feminist literature.
Allardice also draws attention to the prominence of intense female relationships within the narrative, a motif that recurs throughout Drabble’s earlier works like A Summer Bird-Cage and The Waterfall.
Intertextuality
Drabble places this novel within a wider literary context by incorporating themes and references from multiple sources. The title itself alludes to Biblical texts, while she frequently references Thomas Hardy, notably citing Tess of the D'Urbervilles. Furthermore, critic Lisa Allardice observes structural and narrative parallels between this work and Hilary Mantel’s An Experiment in Love.
Critical reception
Following its reissue by Penguin Modern Classics, critic Lisa Allardice described the novel as "very much a fairytale of its time," praising its complex moral landscape, insightfulness, humor, and polished writing style. She argued that it merits recognition on par with Drabble’s earlier acclaimed work, The Millstone.
Further reading
- The Believer - Margaret Drabble interviewed by Lydia Perović
- JERUSALEM THE GOLDEN by Margaret Drabble | Kirkus Reviews
- Margaret Drabble, The Art of Fiction No. 70 | Paris Review
- Feminine Sensibility in the Novels of Margaret Drabble: An Interpretation and Evaluation | Atlantic Publishers & Dist