Demons of the Night is a trove of haunting fiction—a gathering, for the first time in English, of the best nineteenth-century French fantastic tales. Featuring such authors as Balzac, Mérimée, Dumas, Verne, and Maupassant, this book offers readers familiar with the works of Edgar Allan Poe and E. T. A. Hoffman some of the most memorable stories in the genre. With its aura of the uncanny and the supernatural, the fantastic tale is a vehicle for exploring forbidden themes and the dark, irrational side of the human psyche.
The anthology opens with "Smarra, or the Demons of the Night," Nodier's 1821 tale of nightmare, vampirism, and compulsion, acclaimed as the first work in French literature to explore in depth the realm of dream and the unconscious. Other stories include Balzac's "The Red Inn," in which a crime is committed by one person in thought and another in deed, and Mérimée's superbly crafted mystery, "The Venus of Ille," which dramatizes the demonic power of a vengeful goddess of love emerging out of the pagan past. Gautier's protagonist in "The Dead in Love" develops an obsessive passion for a woman who has returned from beyond the grave, while the narrator of Maupassant's "The Horla" imagines himself a victim of psychic vampirism.
Joan Kessler has prepared new translations of nine of the thirteen tales in the volume, including Gérard de Nerval's odyssey of madness, "Aurélia," as well as two tales that have never before appeared in English. Kessler's introduction sets the background of these tales—the impact of the French Revolution and the Terror, the Romantics' fascination with the subconscious, and the influence of contemporary psychological and spiritual currents. Her essay illuminates how each of the authors in this collection used the fantastic to articulate his own haunting obsessions as well as his broader vision of human experience.
"synopsis" may belong to another edition of this title.
Text: English (translation)
Original Language: French
"Dream is a second life," begins Nerval's classic, "Aurelia," and that is the theme illuminated by this memorable anthology of supernatural tales of 19th-century French fiction. Kessler has gracefully translated nine of the 13 stories and written an introduction that puts the stories in an historical context of the French Revolution, the Terror and contemporary scientific and spiritualist schools of thought. Stories by Balzac, Dumas, Maupassant and Verne delve into that gray slip of a space between dreams and wakefulness where somnambulism is not the exception but rather the rule. The anthology opens with the first English appearance of Nodier's stunning "Smarra," in which vampires and nightmarish images violate the landscape. In Balzac's "The Red Inn," a crime is committed by one man in thought and by another in deed. In Merimee's compelling "The Venus of Ille," a demonically beautiful statue comes to life to exact revenge on a man who pays her disrespect. Severed heads do not mean severed tongues in Dumas's "The Slap of Charlotte Corday," (also in its first English translation), an effective exploration of irrational terror evoked by the subconscious. These haunting tales are definitely not bedtime stories for the faint of heart. But for stronger sorts, this superb anthology is a literary tour of the phantasmagoric landscape of dreams.
Copyright 1995 Reed Business Information, Inc.
"About this title" may belong to another edition of this title.
Shipping:
US$ 3.99
Within U.S.A.
Shipping:
US$ 4.00
Within U.S.A.
Seller: KuleliBooks, Phoenix, AZ, U.S.A.
Condition: Good. The book may have minor cosmetic wear (i.e. creased spine/cover, scratches, curled corners, folded pages, minor sunburn, minor water damage, minor bent). The book may have some highlights/notes/underlined pages - Accessories such as CD, codes, toys, may not be included - Safe and Secure Mailer - No Hassle Return. Seller Inventory # 521PY6001T0D
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Book Deals, Tucson, AZ, U.S.A.
Condition: Fair. Acceptable/Fair condition. Book is worn, but the pages are complete, and the text is legible. Has wear to binding and pages, may be ex-library. 1.2. Seller Inventory # 353-0226432084-acp
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: GF Books, Inc., Hawthorne, CA, U.S.A.
Condition: Good. Book is in Used-Good condition. Pages and cover are clean and intact. Used items may not include supplementary materials such as CDs or access codes. May show signs of minor shelf wear and contain limited notes and highlighting. 1.2. Seller Inventory # 0226432084-2-4
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Books Unplugged, Amherst, NY, U.S.A.
Condition: Good. Buy with confidence! Book is in good condition with minor wear to the pages, binding, and minor marks within 1.2. Seller Inventory # bk0226432084xvz189zvxgdd
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Goodwill Industries of VSB, Oxnard, CA, U.S.A.
Condition: Good. The book is nice and 100% readable, but the book has visible wear which may include stains, scuffs, scratches, folded edges, sticker glue, torn on front page,highlighting, notes, and worn corners. Seller Inventory # 4JQV1N0004AZ
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Midtown Scholar Bookstore, Harrisburg, PA, U.S.A.
Paperback. Condition: Good. Good - Bumped and creased book with tears to the extremities, but not affecting the text block, may have remainder mark or previous owner's name - GOOD PAPERBACK Standard-sized. Seller Inventory # M0226432084Z3
Quantity: 3 available
Seller: Solr Books, Skokie, IL, U.S.A.
Condition: Good. There is light highlighting or handwriting throughout the book. Minor shelf wear The binding is tight and in great condition Fast Shipping - Each order powers our free bookstore in Chicago and sending books to Africa!. Seller Inventory # 5D4WH700070D_ns
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: Better World Books Ltd, Dunfermline, United Kingdom
Condition: Good. Ships from the UK. Former library book; may include library markings. Used book that is in clean, average condition without any missing pages. Seller Inventory # 7814807-75
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: BookReading, Artesia, CA, U.S.A.
Condition: Fair. IMP: Acceptable- Do not include ACCESS CODE, CD-ROM or companion materials even if stated in item title. It may contain highlighting/markings throughout, and the covers and corners may show shelf wear. Corners, pages may be dent. All text is legible. Seller Inventory # A0226432084
Quantity: 1 available
Seller: GreatBookPrices, Columbia, MD, U.S.A.
Condition: good. May show signs of wear, highlighting, writing, and previous use. This item may be a former library book with typical markings. No guarantee on products that contain supplements Your satisfaction is 100% guaranteed. Twenty-five year bookseller with shipments to over fifty million happy customers. Seller Inventory # 1525013-5
Quantity: 5 available