Ivanhoe (English Library)

by Walter Scott (Author), A. Wilson (Author)

• Used

  Paperback
  1984

  $4.23

  In the virulently male world of Ivanhoe, Jews are reviled and persecuted; women are at best political pawns and at worst the victims of rape or misogyny; the weak are subject to the relentless oppression of the master race, the Norman rulers of England; and violence is endemic. And yet there are suggestions of a better world: in the sisterhood of Jewess and Saxon princess, in the redistributive justice of Robin Hood and his band of outlaws, and in the determined attempt of the hero to effect political reconciliation between Saxons and Normans. Although set in 1194, after the return of Richard I of England from the Third Crusade, and although first published in 1820, Ivanhoe has a political modernity which makes it the most remarkable of all Scott's novels. It is also a superb and exciting tale, which culminates in the show trial of Rebecca the Jewess on a charge of sorcery. The text is based on the first edition and is emended by readings from Scott's manuscript and proof-corrections which were lost in the original process of preparing the novel for publication.

• Used

  Paperback
  1998

  $3.28

  More than a century after the Norman Conquest, England remains a colony of foreign warlords. The dissolute Prince John plots to seize his brother's crown, his barons terrorize the country, and the mysterious outlaw Robin Hood haunts the ancient greenwood. The secret return of King Richard and the disinherited Saxon knight, Ivanhoe, heralds the start of a splendid and tumultuous romance, featuring the tournament at Ashby-de-la-Zouche, the siege of Torquilstone, and the clash of wills between the wicked Templar Bois-Guilbert and the sublime Jewess Rebecca. In Ivanhoe Scott fashioned an imperial myth of national cultural identity that has shaped the popular imagination ever since its first appearance at the end of 1819. The most famous of Scottish novelists drew on the conventions of Gothic fiction, including its risky sexual and racial themes, to explore the violent origins and limits of English nationality. This edition uses the 1830 Magnum Opus text, corrected against the Interleaved Set, and incorporates readings from Scott's manuscript. The introduction examines the originality and cultural importance of Ivanhoe, and draws on current work by historians and cultural critics.

• New

  Paperback
  1995

  $7.11

  Introduction and Notes by David Blair, University of Kent at Canterbury. Set in the reign of Richard I, Coeur de Lion, Ivanhoe is packed with memorable incidents - sieges, ambushes and combats - and equally memorable characters: Cedric of Rotherwood, the die-hard Saxon; his ward Rowena; the fierce Templar knight, Sir Brian de Bois-Gilbert; the Jew, Isaac of York, and his beautiful, spirited daughter Rebecca; Wamba and Gurth, jester and swineherd respectively. Scott explores the conflicts between the Crown and the powerful Barons, between the Norman overlords and the conquered Saxons, and between Richard and his scheming brother, Prince John. At the same time he brings into the novel the legendary Robin Hood and his band, and creates a brilliant, colourful account of the age of chivalry with all its elaborate rituals and costumes and its values of honour and personal glory.