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The Way of All Flesh
by Butler, Samuel
- Used
- Fine
- Hardcover
- first
- Condition
- Fine
- Seller
-
New York, New York, United States
Payment Methods Accepted
About This Item
London: Grant Richards, 1903 First edition, first printing. Finely bound by Zaehnsdorf in full red morocco with five raised bands to spine, spine and front panel lettered in gilt, gilt turn-ins, top edge gilt. Spine a touch faded, else a very fine copy. This semi-autobiographical novel was written from 1873 to 1884, though not published until 1903, after the author's death. Supremely critical of the Victorian era dignification of England, Butler would have likely been met with outrage if he chose to publish this piece of writing during his lifetime; instead, the book is regarded as one of many critiques of Victorian society published after Queen Victoria's reign. The book has been praised many British authors, including George Orwell: "[it is] a great book because it gives an honest picture of the relationship between father and son, and it could do that because Butler was a truly independent observer, and above all because he was courageous.". First Edition. Hard Cover. Fine.
Synopsis
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.
Read More: Identifying first editions of The Way of All Flesh
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Details
- Bookseller
- B & B Rare Books, Ltd., ABAA
(US)
- Bookseller's Inventory #
- SBU004
- Title
- The Way of All Flesh
- Author
- Butler, Samuel
- Format/Binding
- Hardcover
- Book Condition
- Used - Fine
- Edition
- First Edition
- Publisher
- London: Grant Richards
- Date Published
- 1903
- Bookseller catalogs
- Modern Firsts; Fiction; British Literature; Fine Bindings;
Terms of Sale
B & B Rare Books, Ltd., ABAA
~ All items are guaranteed as described. We recommend requesting pictures prior to purchasing. ~ Any items may be returned within seven days of receipt and in the same condition as originally sent. ~ We ship with FedEx, UPS and USPS. Please let us know if you prefer another shipping. ~ New York State are required to add 8.875% sales tax.
About the Seller
B & B Rare Books, Ltd., ABAA
Biblio member since 2006
New York, New York
About B & B Rare Books, Ltd., ABAA
Selling First Editions and Rare Books from all centuries. Specializing in 19th and 20th century literature, modern first editions, signed and inscribed books, early children's literature, and poetry.
Glossary
Some terminology that may be used in this description includes:
- Morocco
- Morocco is a style of leather book binding that is usually made with goatskin, as it is durable and easy to dye. (see also...
- Gilt
- The decorative application of gold or gold coloring to a portion of a book on the spine, edges of the text block, or an inlay in...
- Spine
- The outer portion of a book which covers the actual binding. The spine usually faces outward when a book is placed on a shelf....
- Raised Band(s)
- Raised bands refer to the ridges that protrude slightly from the spine on leather bound books. The bands are created in the...
- First Edition
- In book collecting, the first edition is the earliest published form of a book. A book may have more than one first edition in...
- Fine
- A book in fine condition exhibits no flaws. A fine condition book closely approaches As New condition, but may lack the...
- Top Edge Gilt
- Top edge gilt refers to the practice of applying gold or a gold-like finish to the top of the text block (the edges the pages...
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