Blackport-on-Dwindle -'all granite, fog and female fiction'- has been the Gedges'dull hometown for some years. They leap, therefore, at the invitation to become the live-in guardians of the birthplace of the nation's literary hero. Anticipating romance and inspiration - all that has been lacking in their lives to date - they find, instead, that the house casts an altogether more sinister spell. In The Birthplace, James displays his eye for character and a wry appreciation of pretension and the absurd. As is famously recorded, James doubted Shakespeare's authorship of the plays ascribed to him and The Birthplace illustrates his cynical attitude towards the cult of the Bard and the visitor industry that it had engendered. The Birthplace is published here alongside The Private Life, another little-known work in which James again considers the relevance of the artist's persona - a theme with continued relevance in literature and the arts.

Mark Rylance

London: Hesperus Press

Minor

Nova

United Kingdom and Ireland, United Kingdom

Bookwire GmbH, London, 2012

London, cop. 2012

Reprint, 2012

In this lesser known classic James explores in miniature the themes of his major fiction, enlivened by a characteristically keen eye for character and a wry appreciation of both pretension and the absurd Blackport-on-Dwindle—'all granite, fog, and female fiction'— has been the Gedges'dull domain for some years. They leap, therefore, at the invitation to become the live-in guardians of the birthplace of their nation's literary hero. Anticipating romance and inspiration— in other words, everything that's been lacking in their daily lives to date— they find instead that the house casts an altogether more sinister spell. Also included is'The Private Life,'another little-known work in which James again considers the relevance of the artist's persona— a theme with continued relevance in literature and the arts.

The Birthplace -- The Private Life. Henry James ; [foreword By Mark Rylance]. Originally Published In A Short Story Collection Titled: The Better Sort. New York : C. Scribner's Sons, 1903. A Satire On The Excesses Of Bardolatry. The Protagonist, Custodian Of The Shakespeare House At Stratford-on-avon, Invents An Alternative Reality In His Lecture On Shakespeare's Supposed Childhood Activities.

xxi, 122 p. ; 20 cm
Originally published in a short story collection titled: The better sort. New York : C. Scribner's Sons, 1903
A satire on the excesses of bardolatry. The protagonist, custodian of the Shakespeare house at Stratford-on-Avon, invents an alternative reality in his lecture on Shakespeare's supposed childhood activities
The birthplace -- The private life

To noveller: Familien Gedges har boet i den kedelige by, Blackport-on-Dwindle i nogle år og griber chancen, da de bliver tilbudt at passe huset, der tilhørte Englands store forfatter, William Shakespeare. Indeholder også: The private life, samt en kort biografi af forfatteren

2024-07-01