Pamela
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Description
One of the most spectacular successes of the burgeoning literary marketplace of eighteeent-century London, Pamela also marked a defining moment in the emergence of the modern novel. In the words of one contemporary, it divided the world 'into two different Parties, Pamelists and Antipamelists', even eclipsing the sensational factional politics of the day. Preached up for its morality, and denounced as pornography in disguise, it vividly describes a young servant's long resistance to the attempts of her predatory master to seduce her. Written in the voice of its low-born heroine, but by a printer who fifteen years earlier had narrowly escaped imprisonment for the seditious output of his press, Pamela is not only a work of pioneering psychological complexity, but also a compelling and provocative study of power and its abuse.
Based on the original text of 1740, from which Richardson later retreated in a series of defensive revisions, this edition makes available the version of Pamela that aroused such widespread controversy on its first appearance.
ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.
Book Information
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Sehr alt aber modern!
Dieses Buch kommt aus dem Jahr 1740 und ist im deutschen Sprachraum kaum vertreten, weshalb ich dieses Buch auf Englisch gelesen habe. Das Buch handelt von einer 15 jährigen Dienerin. Als ihre Herrin gestorben ist, wird sie in die Hände des Herrn B. transferiert, der nun versucht die arme Pamela zu vergewaltigen. Nach einigen Versuchen wird sie verschleppt und in ihrem neuen zu Hause misshandelt. Ihre Tugendhaftigkeit und Standhaftigkeit bis zum Ende hin sollen Pamela jedoch letzten Endes belohnen. Dies wird von Pamela in der 1. Person beschrieben, was dem Buch also auch feministischen Charakter verleiht, da man sieht, wie die Protagonistin im ersten Teil unter der patriarchalen Gesellschaft leidet, in der die Männer, wenn sie reich sind, frei über Frauen verfügen können. Der Autor kritisiert mit diesem Buch die aristokratische Tugend und die geringe soziale Mobilität der damaligen Gesellschaft, was durch die Tugend der ärmeren Bevölkerungsschicht ausgeglichen werden könnte. Des Weiteren motiviert das Buch zu tugendhaften Verhalten egal, was eine Autorität einem aufzwingt. Somit hat das Buch also auch aufklärerischen Charakter, da Befehle von Autoritäten in Frage gestellt werden und Tugend auf die erste Stelle gestellt wird. Leider zieht sich das Buch an einigen Stellen, weshalb ich dem Buch keine 4 Sterne geben würde. Sonst, wenn man mal seinen Horizont erweitern will, ist dieses Buch herzlich zu empfehlen :)
I really enjoyed this, not just for the historical context (even though this was fascinating) but also for the story. Of course, the big twist is shocking and really questionable by today's standarts, but I believe this could have worked with a better, more elaborate and believable redemption ark. As it is, for the time it is written in, him kind of seeing the error in his ways and making a decision that wasn't acceptable for people of his class and therefore a sacrifice was enough. Apart from that, the first part of the book makes for a pretty terrifying domestic horror story, while everything after that is pretty nice and mostly sweet - for the time period. Of course, the more terrifying part was the most interesting one, but after that, the niceness of the second part felt totally needed. Pamela paints an interesting picture of 18th century. I really liked the writing, it felt more fluent and less over the top and complicated than what I've read from the time period, while still being somewhat poetic in its style. If you go in, knowing what to expect and being ok with reading that, you can actually have fun with this book. I still kept this spoiler free, in case someone really doesn't want to know in advance.
Description
One of the most spectacular successes of the burgeoning literary marketplace of eighteeent-century London, Pamela also marked a defining moment in the emergence of the modern novel. In the words of one contemporary, it divided the world 'into two different Parties, Pamelists and Antipamelists', even eclipsing the sensational factional politics of the day. Preached up for its morality, and denounced as pornography in disguise, it vividly describes a young servant's long resistance to the attempts of her predatory master to seduce her. Written in the voice of its low-born heroine, but by a printer who fifteen years earlier had narrowly escaped imprisonment for the seditious output of his press, Pamela is not only a work of pioneering psychological complexity, but also a compelling and provocative study of power and its abuse.
Based on the original text of 1740, from which Richardson later retreated in a series of defensive revisions, this edition makes available the version of Pamela that aroused such widespread controversy on its first appearance.
ABOUT THE SERIES: For over 100 years Oxford World's Classics has made available the widest range of literature from around the globe. Each affordable volume reflects Oxford's commitment to scholarship, providing the most accurate text plus a wealth of other valuable features, including expert introductions by leading authorities, helpful notes to clarify the text, up-to-date bibliographies for further study, and much more.
Book Information
Posts
Sehr alt aber modern!
Dieses Buch kommt aus dem Jahr 1740 und ist im deutschen Sprachraum kaum vertreten, weshalb ich dieses Buch auf Englisch gelesen habe. Das Buch handelt von einer 15 jährigen Dienerin. Als ihre Herrin gestorben ist, wird sie in die Hände des Herrn B. transferiert, der nun versucht die arme Pamela zu vergewaltigen. Nach einigen Versuchen wird sie verschleppt und in ihrem neuen zu Hause misshandelt. Ihre Tugendhaftigkeit und Standhaftigkeit bis zum Ende hin sollen Pamela jedoch letzten Endes belohnen. Dies wird von Pamela in der 1. Person beschrieben, was dem Buch also auch feministischen Charakter verleiht, da man sieht, wie die Protagonistin im ersten Teil unter der patriarchalen Gesellschaft leidet, in der die Männer, wenn sie reich sind, frei über Frauen verfügen können. Der Autor kritisiert mit diesem Buch die aristokratische Tugend und die geringe soziale Mobilität der damaligen Gesellschaft, was durch die Tugend der ärmeren Bevölkerungsschicht ausgeglichen werden könnte. Des Weiteren motiviert das Buch zu tugendhaften Verhalten egal, was eine Autorität einem aufzwingt. Somit hat das Buch also auch aufklärerischen Charakter, da Befehle von Autoritäten in Frage gestellt werden und Tugend auf die erste Stelle gestellt wird. Leider zieht sich das Buch an einigen Stellen, weshalb ich dem Buch keine 4 Sterne geben würde. Sonst, wenn man mal seinen Horizont erweitern will, ist dieses Buch herzlich zu empfehlen :)
I really enjoyed this, not just for the historical context (even though this was fascinating) but also for the story. Of course, the big twist is shocking and really questionable by today's standarts, but I believe this could have worked with a better, more elaborate and believable redemption ark. As it is, for the time it is written in, him kind of seeing the error in his ways and making a decision that wasn't acceptable for people of his class and therefore a sacrifice was enough. Apart from that, the first part of the book makes for a pretty terrifying domestic horror story, while everything after that is pretty nice and mostly sweet - for the time period. Of course, the more terrifying part was the most interesting one, but after that, the niceness of the second part felt totally needed. Pamela paints an interesting picture of 18th century. I really liked the writing, it felt more fluent and less over the top and complicated than what I've read from the time period, while still being somewhat poetic in its style. If you go in, knowing what to expect and being ok with reading that, you can actually have fun with this book. I still kept this spoiler free, in case someone really doesn't want to know in advance.