Iris Murdoch was a writer.
A Severed Head is a satirical , sometimes farcical 1961 novel by Iris Murdoch . Dame Jean Iris Murdoch ( [ ˈmɜrdɒk ] 15 July 1919 -- 8 February 1999 ) was an Anglo-Irish novelist and philosopher , best known for her novels about good and evil , sexual relationships , morality , and the power of the unconscious . Her first published novel , Under the Net , was selected in 1998 as one of Modern Library 's 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century .