Melmoth the Wanderer
(Paperback)
Available Formats
Paperback
Published: 3rd May 2018
Paperback
Published: 4th July 2000
Hardback
Published: 24th May 2022
Paperback
Published: 27th August 2021
Publishing Details
Melmoth the Wanderer
By (Author) Charles Maturin
Edited by Victor Sage
Introduction by Victor Sage
Notes by Victor Sage
Penguin Books Ltd
Penguin Classics
4th July 2000
25th May 2000
United Kingdom
Classifications
Physical Properties
Paperback
704
Width 129mm, Height 198mm, Spine 30mm
479g
Description
Melmoth the Wanderer is an archetypal Gothic romance Created by an Irish clergyman, Melmoth is one of the most fiendish characters in literature. In a satanic bargain, Melmoth exchanges his soul for immortality. The story of his tortured wanderings through the centuries is pieced together through those who have been implored by Melmoth to take over his pact with the devil. Influenced by the Gothic romances of the late 18th century, Maturin's diabolic tale raised the genre to a new and macabre pitch. Its many admirers include Poe, Balzac, Oscar Wilde and Baudelaire.
Author Bio
Charles Robert Maturin (1782-1824) was born in Dublin and educated at Trinity College. He took orders and worked as a curate in Loughrea and Dublin. Maturin enjoyed literary success with his Gothic novels and a tragedy 'Bertram' (1816). His later plays and fiction, including MELMOTH THE WANDERER, were neglected and he died in poverty. Victor Sage is Reader in Literature in the School of English and American Studies at the University of East Anglia.
