Roxana: The Fortunate Mistress - Brossura

Defoe, Daniel

Brossura

ISBN 10: 0199536740 ISBN 13: 9780199536740

Casa editrice: Oxford, 2014

Riassunto

Roxana (1724), Defoe's last and darkest novel, is the autobiography of a woman who has traded her virtue, at first for survival, and then for fame and fortune. Its narrator tells the story of her own `wicked' life as the mistress of rich and powerful men. A resourceful adventuress, she is also an unforgiving analyst of her own susceptibilities, who tells us of the price she pays for her successes. Endowed with many seductive skills, she is herself seduced: by money, by dreams of rank, and by the illusion that she can escape her own past. Unlike Defoe's other penitent anti-heroes, however, she fails to triumph over these weaknesses.

The novel's drama lies not only in the heroine's `vast variety of fortunes', but in her attempts to understand the sometimes bitter lessons of her life as a `Fortunate Mistress'. Defoe's achievement was to invent, in `Roxana', a gripping story-teller as well as a gripping story.

This edition uses the rare first edition text, with a new introduction, detailed notes, textual history, and a map.

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Su questo libro

Recensione

Roxana is possible Defoe's most fascinating story-teller and this, one of his most intriguing stories. (The Daily Telegraph)

L'autore

John Mullan is Lecturer in English at University College, London.

Dettagli dell?edizione

• Editore: Oxford
• Data di pubblicazione: 2014
• ISBN 10: 0199536740
• ISBN 13: 9780199536740
• Rilegatura: Copertina flessibile
• Lingua: Inglese
• Numero di pagine: 400