Home The Way of All Flesh by Samuel Butler (ISBN: 9781481829250)

Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different

The Way of All Flesh Paperback - 2012

Name: The Way of All Flesh
Price: 20.17 GBP
Availability: InStock
Author: Samuel Butler
ISBN: 9781481829250

by Samuel Butler

Browse more copies for sale ↓

About this book

The Way of All Flesh by Samuel Butler is a semi-autobiographical novel that attacks Victorian-era hypocrisy. The story traces the history of the Pontifex family from the early eighteenth century until about 1880 and focuses, for the most part, on the life of young Ernest Pontifex, the novel’s protagonist. Yet Ernest isn’t born until 1835, in the book’s 17th chapter. Butler uses the first 16 chapters to provide a psychological portrait of the Pontifex family background as a means of allowing readers to understand what factors have gone into forming Ernest’s personality and the longevity of the chains of tradition he must break.

Upon publication in 1903, the book seemed very much of its time, an early 20th century groundbreaker alongside the work of Sigmund Freud and Pablo Picasso. The Way of All Flesh seemed to celebrate the end of the Victorian age just as it was decidedly over. But in fact, Butler had written the book decades earlier, between 1873 and 1884, though he deemed it too shocking for publication during his lifetime. As a result, Richard Alexander Streatfeild, a friend of Butler’s, arranged the publication — as the author requested of him — a year after his death. Streatfeild proved to be a good friend indeed as The Way of All Flesh was ranked twelfth on the Modern Library’s list of the 100 best English-language novels of the 20th century.

From the publisher

"The Way of All Flesh" is the best known of Victorian novels that thumbed its nose at Victorian novels. For this reason, it's frequently mentioned in talks of literary history, though it could also be praised from an artistic perspective. Though it may seem dry at first glance, readers may be surprised to find themselves caught up in the story and finding it actually very funny--though it may take a second read to catch the very best of the humor. Butler's novel is one of a genre intended to deflate the pompous bubble of Victorian morality. There is a maturity to Butler's writing, however, that is not present in other Victorian writers. This novel feels much more modern than anything else written pre-1900, and even feels more modern than some books written after. Unlike Dickens, whose characters are either all good or all bad and have about as much depth as the characters you'd find in a comic book, Butler's characters seem very much alive and flawed. The scathing criticism of religious hypocrisy and moral bombast exhibited by the majority of people in Ernest's life can be funny, especially if you agree with it, but the story itself is much more interesting than the social commentary. Though 'The Way of All Flesh' isn't a page turner, it can consistently hold reader interest. Just remember that it's supposed to be funny.

First Edition Identification

Grant Richards first published The Way of All Flesh in London in 1903. First editions are bound in dark red cloth with gilt-lettered titling on the spine and front cover. They also include a prefatory note by Streatfeild, who edited the book.

Details

Title The Way of All Flesh
Author Samuel Butler
Binding Paperback
Pages 308
Volumes 1
Language ENG
Publisher Createspace Independent Publishing Platform
Date 2012-12-28
ISBN 9781481829250 / 1481829254
Weight 0.91 lbs (0.41 kg)
Dimensions 9.02 x 5.98 x 0.64 in (22.91 x 15.19 x 1.63 cm)
Reading level 1340

About the author

Samuel Butler (1835-1902) was an individualistic Victorian era writer who published a variety of works. He is also known for examining Christian orthodoxy, considerable studies of evolutionary thought, studies of Italian art, and works of literary history as well as criticism. Butler even made prose translations of "The Iliad" and "The Odyssey" which remain some of the most popular to this day. His authority on literature came through his posthumous novel, "The Way of All Flesh". Butler completed it in the 1880s but it was left unpublished until 1903 to protect his family. The novel was so modern in its time of release that it influenced a new school of writing, predominantly through its use of psychological examination and analysis of the fictional characters of the story. "The Way of All Flesh" is a satiric portrait of Butler's own childhood reflecting the worst aspects of Victorian family life: of extreme strictness, embellished godliness, and hypocrisy. It consists of mostly polemic essays in which Butler attacks the world of his childhood growing up in a clergyman's family and expresses his basic philosophy of common sense.

More Copies for Sale

Stock Photo: Cover May Be Different