Anne Sayre
Anne Sayre | |
---|---|
Born | Anne Colquhoun April 10, 1923 New York University Law School |
Genre | Short stories biography |
Literary movement | Feminism |
Years active | 1946–1975 |
Notable work | Rosalind Franklin and DNA (1975) |
Spouse |
Anne Sayre (
She was married to an American crystallographer David Sayre (1924–2012).[2]
Her literary contributions are in short stories, the earnings from which she supported her husband during his PhD course. She achieved her lifelong educational ambition of getting a
Biography
Anne Sayre was "born on a train passing through
She soon took up a writing career, mainly of short stories, of which many were included in the Foley's and the
In 1975, she revived her ambition to become a lawyer and got enrolled in
She initially served as volunteer
Rosalind Franklin and her biography
Anne Sayre first met Rosalind Franklin in 1949 at Laboratoire Central des Services Chimiques de l'État in Paris, where Franklin was working, and when she and her husband was visiting.[5] From then on she remained one of Franklin's closest friends. While she and her husband lived in Oxford, Franklin frequently met her whenever he visited England. When they moved to US, Franklin visited them several times when she attended scientific conferences. They regularly exchanged letters when they lived apart in different continents until the end of 1957, as Franklin developed ovarian cancer.
In October 1957, Franklin underwent her second operation. By that time Sayre was visiting around England and Scotland. She stayed with Franklin at the hospital and looked after Franklin's apartment. When Franklin was discharged from hospital, Sayre nursed her in a rented cottage for some days. After recovery, she left her in London and headed home to New York. This was the last time they met. On October 8, 1957, Franklin wrote to her that she was invited to a
Franklin's
However, her importance surfaced when Watson published his memoir The Double Helix: A Personal Account of the Discovery of the Structure of DNA in 1968. Although the DNA research centred on Franklin, Watson mostly portrayed her as "uninteresting", "belligerent", "sharp, stubborn mind", with her dresses showing "all the imagination of English blue-stocking adolescents", "the product of an unsatisfied mother", a physical bully, and always referring to her as "Rosy", the name she never appreciated.[7]
After reading the book, Sayre felt that Franklin was grossly misrepresented in her personal qualities. She called The Double Helix as "every known prejudice against intellectual women".[8] She quickly started researching for materials, and after five years, she published Rosalind Franklin and DNA in 1975, which she claimed not as a biography, but as a protest to Watson's.[9] These two books became the posthumous fame for Franklin.[10][11] However, Sayre's book has been criticized for its purported attempt to make Franklin as a feminist icon, and wrongly representing sexism of the time.[12][13]
Recognition
College of Engineering and Applied Sciences, Stony Brook University, has Anne Sayre Prize for students. The prize carries $500 and a copy of Anne Sayre's book.[14]
Books
- Sayre, Anne (1987) [1975]. Rosalind Franklin and DNA. New York: W.W. Norton & Company, Inc. ISBN 0-393-32044-8.
- Sayre, Anne (1957). Never Call Retreat. Crowell. ASIN B0007E7CO6.
External links
References
- ^ "Anne Colquhoun Sayre". Encyclopædia Britannica. Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. Retrieved August 28, 2014.
- PMID 22481349.
- ^ a b McG. Thomas Jr., Robert (March 18, 1998). "Anne Sayre, 74, Whose Book Credited a DNA Scientist, Dies". The New York Times. Retrieved August 28, 2014.
- ^ Sayre, David. "Obituary: Anne Sayre (1923–1998)". IUCr Newsletter. International Union of Crystallography. Retrieved August 28, 2014.
- ISBN 0-06-018407-8.
- ISBN 0-393-32044-8.
- OCLC 6197022.
- ^ Oman, Douglas W. (December 6, 1976). "DNA Conflict". The Harvard Crimson. The Harvard Crimson, Inc. Retrieved August 29, 2014.
- ^ Sayre, Anne (1987). Rosalind Franklin and DNA. pp. 23–24.
- S2CID 147304434.
- PMC 1083834.
- PMID 12540909.
- ISBN 978-1-85109-460-8.
- ^ "Anne Sayre Wise Award". College of Engineering, Stony Brook University. Archived from the original on September 3, 2014. Retrieved August 29, 2014.