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The Crock of Gold (1912), one of three original novels by James Stephens, is a work only a master of fiction and folklore could imagine. Taking up the major philosophical and psychological concerns of the early-twentieth century-over a decade before works by T.S. Eliot, James Joyce, and Virginia Woolf, among others, would cement literary Modernism's place in history-Stephens' novel is a groundbreaking and important work.
The text centers on the Philosopher and his wife, the Thin Woman, who undergo a series of journeys and harrowing trials. Faced with danger both human and divine, the two characters are forced to weather the winds of change in order to change themselves. Divided into six books, The Crock of Gold-no doubt inspired by the Irish oral tradition of storytelling-follows the Philosopher's quest to save the most beautiful woman in the world; his encounter with the gods who have captured her; his return home and arrest for murder (he has been framed by leprechauns incensed at the loss of their crock of gold); and finally, the Thin Woman's quest to find the fabled Three Infinites.
James Stephens' The Crock of Gold is perhaps unparalleled in its ability to weave together ancient narrative techniques, mythological sources, and such dominant themes of its day as gender equality and humanity's quest for self-understanding beyond the traditional boundaries of faith and religion. It is also a darkly comic novel, full of ironic political commentary and suspiciously human conversations situated within the animal world. Most popular of Stephens' works, The Crock of Gold conceals in its humorous, irreverent outlook a deeply serious, ultimately reverent love for the human soul-unsurprising for an author whose life was marked with difficulty from the very beginning.
With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this new edition of James Stephens' The Crock of Gold is a classic of Irish literature reimagined for modern readers.
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James Stephens was an Irish author and artist who lived from February 9, 1880, to December 26, 1950. Stephens' father died when he was two years old, and his mother remarried when he was six. For begging on the streets, Stephens was sent to the Meath Protestant Industrial School for Boys in Blackrock, where he spent most of the rest of his youth. Before he became a solicitor's clerk, he went to school with his adopted brothers Thomas and Richard (Tom and Dick) Collins. They participated in and won a number of sports events, even though James was very short. People loved him and called him "Tiny Tim." He became very interested in military bravery after hearing stories about his adoptive family. He would have become a fighter if he wasn't so tall. Stephens became more interested in socialism and the Irish language in the early 1900s. By 1912, he was a committed Irish Republican. He was good friends with the leader of 1916, Thomas MacDonagh. At the time, MacDonagh was editor of The Irish Review and deputy teacher at St. Enda's, PH Pearse's radical bilingual Montessori school. Later, he became manager of the Irish Theatre.
Riassunto
The Crock of Gold (1912), one of three original novels by James Stephens, is a work only a master of fiction and folklore could imagine. Taking up the major philosophical and psychological concerns of the early-twentieth century—over a decade before works by T.S. Eliot, James Joyce, and Virginia Woolf, among others, would cement literary Modernism’s place in history—Stephens’ novel is a groundbreaking and important work.
The text centers on the Philosopher and his wife, the Thin Woman, who undergo a series of journeys and harrowing trials. Faced with danger both human and divine, the two characters are forced to weather the winds of change in order to change themselves. Divided into six books, The Crock of Gold—no doubt inspired by the Irish oral tradition of storytelling—follows the Philosopher’s quest to save the most beautiful woman in the world; his encounter with the gods who have captured her; his return home and arrest for murder (he has been framed by leprechauns incensed at the loss of their crock of gold); and finally, the Thin Woman’s quest to find the fabled Three Infinites.
James Stephens’ The Crock of Gold is perhaps unparalleled in its ability to weave together ancient narrative techniques, mythological sources, and such dominant themes of its day as gender equality and humanity’s quest for self-understanding beyond the traditional boundaries of faith and religion. It is also a darkly comic novel, full of ironic political commentary and suspiciously human conversations situated within the animal world. Most popular of Stephens’ works, The Crock of Gold conceals in its humorous, irreverent outlook a deeply serious, ultimately reverent love for the human soul—unsurprising for an author whose life was marked with difficulty from the very beginning.
With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset manuscript, this new edition of James Stephens’ The Crock of Gold is a classic of Irish literature reimagined for modern readers.
