Scott, Paul (Paul Mark Scott), 1930–78, British author, b. London. He joined the British army in 1940 and served in India, Burma, and Malaya from 1943 to 1946. His observations of the British there formed the basis for The Raj Quartet (The Jewel in the Crown, 1966, The Day of the Scorpion, 1968, The Towers of Silence, 1971, and A Division of the Spoils, 1975). This fictionalized study of imperialism details the final years of British colonialism in India from the viewpoint of English, Muslim, and Hindu characters. The television miniseries The Jewel in the Crown is based on the books. The novel Staying On (1977; Booker Prize), about a British couple who continued to live in independent India, was also filmed for television.
See biography by H. Spurling (1991).
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