
The Good Soldier
A Tale of Passion
Ford Madox Ford(Author)
Max Saunders(Editor)
Oxford University Press
1st Edition
Published on 6. September 2012
Book
Paperback/Softback
320 pages
978-0-19-958594-6 (ISBN)
Description
'This is the saddest story I have ever heard.'
Wealthy American John Dowell describes in a disarmingly casual, compellingly intimate manner how he and his wife Florence meet an English couple in a German spa resort. They become friends over the years and gradually the history of their relationships and the passions that lie behind the orderly Edwardian facade are unveiled. Dowell is the archetypal 'unreliable narrator', and his casual revelations are both unexpected and explosive.
A masterpiece of early Modernism and a virtuoso performance of literary skill, Ford's 'Tale of Passion' reflects contemporary interests in psychology, sexuality, and the New Woman. Its portrayal of the destruction of a civilized elite anticipates the cataclysm of the First World War, which erupted while Ford was finishing the book. This new edition includes Ford's important essay 'On Impressionism', which sheds valuable light on his artistic technique.
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.
Wealthy American John Dowell describes in a disarmingly casual, compellingly intimate manner how he and his wife Florence meet an English couple in a German spa resort. They become friends over the years and gradually the history of their relationships and the passions that lie behind the orderly Edwardian facade are unveiled. Dowell is the archetypal 'unreliable narrator', and his casual revelations are both unexpected and explosive.
A masterpiece of early Modernism and a virtuoso performance of literary skill, Ford's 'Tale of Passion' reflects contemporary interests in psychology, sexuality, and the New Woman. Its portrayal of the destruction of a civilized elite anticipates the cataclysm of the First World War, which erupted while Ford was finishing the book. This new edition includes Ford's important essay 'On Impressionism', which sheds valuable light on his artistic technique.
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.
Reviews / Votes
[a] masterpiece * Jake Kerridge, The Sunday Telegraph *More details
Series
Language
English
Place of publication
Oxford
United Kingdom
Target group
Fiction readers and lovers of Edwardian literature and classic twentieth-century literature; students of the novel, Modernism, fin de siécle.
Dimensions
Height: 196 mm
Width: 128 mm
Thickness: 20 mm
Weight
224 gr
ISBN-13
978-0-19-958594-6 (9780199585946)
Copyright in bibliographic data and cover images is held by Nielsen Book Services Limited or by the publishers or by their respective licensors: all rights reserved.
Schweitzer Classification
Other editions
Additional editions

Ford Madox Ford | Max Saunders
The Good Soldier
E-Book
09/2012
1st Edition
OUP eBook
€4.99
Available for download

Ford Madox Ford | Max Saunders
The Good Soldier
E-Book
09/2012
1st Edition
OUP eBook
€4.99
Available for download
Previous edition

Book
09/2008
Oxford University Press
€9.89
Article exhausted; check for reprint
Persons
Max Saunders is the author of the highly acclaimed Ford Madox Ford: A Dual Life (2 vols, OUP 1996) and Self Impression: Life-Writing, Autobiografiction, and the Forms of Modern Literature (OUP, 2010). He has edited a range of Ford's poetry and prose for Carcanet and written widely on modern literature. He is the general editor of International Ford Madox Ford Studies.