16731

12 Volumes. Includes Pamela, Clarissa, and Sir Charles Grandison. Includes a "Prefatory Chapter of Biographical Criticism" which is an essay by Leslie Stephen (father of Virginia Woolf and Vanessa Bell). This Introduction is one of the coldest roasts we've ever read, starting with Stephen calling Richardson a "milksop" on the second page, "steeped in the incense of ceaseless adulation from a throng of middle-aged lady worshippers." It goes on from there, 46 pages in all, as Stephen marvels that such mediocrity could result in such popular novels, tsking at the fantastic contrivances Richardson used to sustain his plots, and grudgingly admitting that Lovelace, although unbelievable as a real human being, nonetheless has "every merit but that of existence." Finally, he concludes that Richardson's belief in his characters sustains our interest, after explaining that, in the old days, people had a lot more time to read, and a lot less choices. Unashamed, even after reading this scorching tirade of an introduction, we present to you Pamela, Clarissa, and Sir Charles Grandison, paragons of virtue, true pictures of perfection, and their struggles, effusively illuminated in letters so voluminous they must have been written faster than I can type, with no need for correction. Numbered set 183, 184, 187 out of 750 published copies. First vol. title frontispiece, some end papers, and title pg with some foxing, although for the most part the entire set is free of foxing. Brown buckram with gilt titles to spine, some light wear or tears to cloth. Enjoy novels Austen's family read! Henry Sotheran & Co., London. 1883. USED. Additional shipping costs apply. $325.00