Read more
Sybil, or The Two Nations is one of the finest novels to depict the social problems of class-ridden Victorian England. The book's publication in 1845 created a sensation, for its immediacy and readability brought the plight of the working classes sharply to the attention of the reading public. The 'two nations' of the alternative title are the rich and poor, so disparate in their opportunities and living conditions, and so hostile to each other. that they seem almost to belong to different countries. The gulf between them is given a poignant focus by the central romantic plot concerning the love of Charles Egremont, a member of the landlord class, for Sybil, the poor daughter of a militant Chartist leader.
List of contents
- Introduction
- Note on the Text
- Select Bibliography
- Chronology
- SYBIL
- Explanatory Notes
About the author
Benjamin Disraeli (1804 - 1881) - Earl of Beaconsfield - entstammte einer jüdisch-italienischen Familie. Konvertiert zum Christentum, politische Karriere bis zum britischen Premierminister. In seinem literarischen Werk Anprangerung von sozialer Ungerechtigkeit sowie Forderung von religiöser Toleranz (insbesondere) gegenüber dem Judentum.
Summary
Disraeli vividly depicts the appalling conditions of the poor-their pitiful wages, their miserably overcrowded tenements, and their exploitation by the new breed of powerful industrialists-as an indirect plea for social and political reform and for the fulfilment of his dream of a new, more democratic England.
Additional text
perfect timing for this new edition ... with a brilliant introduction that throws fresh light on Disraeli's views, explains the novel's culutural roots and defends its place as an accomplished work of fiction in its own right
Report
perfect timing for this new edition ... with a brilliant introduction that throws fresh light on Disraeli's views, explains the novel's culutural roots and defends its place as an accomplished work of fiction in its own right The Lady
