Trilby

George Du Maurier

Oct 1998 · OUP Oxford

About this ebook

'You shall see nothing, hear nothing, think of nothing but Svengali, Svengali, Svengali!' First published in 1894, the story of the diva Trilby O'Ferrall and her mesmeric mentor, Svengali, has entered the mythology of the time alongside Dracula and Sherlock Holmes. Immensely popular for a number of years, the novel led to a hit play, a series of popular films, and the trilby hat. The setting of the story reflects the author's bohemian years as an art student in Paris; indeed James McNeill Whistler was to recognize himself in one of the early serialized instalments. George Du Maurier was a celebrated caricaturist for Punch magazine and his drawings for the novel form part of its appeal - this edition includes his most significant illustrations. 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.

About the author

Elaine Showalter is Professor and Chair of the English Department at Princeton University. Her books include The New Feminist Criticism and Sexual Anarchy: Gender and Culture at the Fin de Siecle. George Du Maurier was born in Paris into a bilingual household and spent his childhood shuttling between London, Paris, Boulogne, and Belgium. After studying art in Paris, he made a career in London in journalism and magazine illustration. He joined the staff of Punch and quickly became known for his witty lampoons of high society. Encouraged by his friend Henry James, he wrote his first novel, Peter Ibbetson, in 1891. Trilby (1894), his second novel, became an immense international success, generating a craze - `Trilby-mania' - that went beyond the novel itself. Manufacturers vied to produce Trilby products - from ice-cream to shoes - and a town in Florida named its streets after characters in the book.