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The Black Prince

Author Iris Murdoch
Introduction by Martha C. Nussbaum
Paperback
$16.00 US
Penguin Adult HC/TR | Penguin Classics
5.04"W x 7.7"H x 1"D   | 12 oz | 36 per carton
On sale Mar 25, 2003 | 448 Pages | 978-0-14-218011-2
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Bradley Pearson, an unsuccessful novelist in his late fifties, has finally left his dull office job as an Inspector of Taxes. Bradley hopes to retire to the country, but predatory friends and relations dash his hopes of a peaceful retirement. He is tormented by his melancholic sister, who has decided to come live with him; his ex-wife, who has infuriating hopes of redeeming the past; her delinquent brother, who wants money and emotional confrontations; and Bradley's friend and rival, Arnold Baffin, a younger, deplorably more successful author of commercial fiction. The ever-mounting action includes marital cross-purposes, seduction, suicide, abduction, romantic idylls, murder, and due process of law. Bradley tries to escape from it all but fails, leading to a violent climax and a coda that casts shifting perspectives on all that has preceded.
"One of her best . . . She offers an unusual compound of pleasures: ingenious storytelling, elegant design, the provocations of myth and philosophy." —Lawrence Graver, The New York Times

"An entertainment, but also a profoundly great work of art . . . It’s hard to keep my enthusiasm for it quiet—it’s such a delightful and deep book at the same time." ―John Williams, The New York Times Book Review (podcast)

"The most self-revelatory . . . of all her dark comedies." —The Guardian

"[A] marvelous, heroic novel [and] a gloriously rich tale." —The Times (London)

"A source of wonder and delight . . . No summary can do justice to the rich intricacy of character and incident with which Miss Murdoch crowds every page." —Spectator

"This is great Murdoch . . . Her humour is all the more achingly funny because she keeps it on the edge of our vision." —The Daily Mail
Iris Murdoch (1919–1999) was born in Dublin and brought up in London. She studied philosophy at Cambridge and was a philosophy fellow at St. Anne's College for 20 years. She published her first novel in 1954 and was instantly recognized as a major talent. She went on to publish more than 26 novels, as well as works of philosophy, plays, and poetry. View titles by Iris Murdoch
The Black PrinceIntroduction by Martha C. Nussbaum

THE BLACK PRINCE
Editor's Foreword
Bradley Pearson's Foreword

Bradley Pearson's Story
Part One
Part Two
Part Three

Postscript by Bradley Pearson
Four Postscripts by Dramatis Personae
Editor's Postscript

About

Bradley Pearson, an unsuccessful novelist in his late fifties, has finally left his dull office job as an Inspector of Taxes. Bradley hopes to retire to the country, but predatory friends and relations dash his hopes of a peaceful retirement. He is tormented by his melancholic sister, who has decided to come live with him; his ex-wife, who has infuriating hopes of redeeming the past; her delinquent brother, who wants money and emotional confrontations; and Bradley's friend and rival, Arnold Baffin, a younger, deplorably more successful author of commercial fiction. The ever-mounting action includes marital cross-purposes, seduction, suicide, abduction, romantic idylls, murder, and due process of law. Bradley tries to escape from it all but fails, leading to a violent climax and a coda that casts shifting perspectives on all that has preceded.

Praise

"One of her best . . . She offers an unusual compound of pleasures: ingenious storytelling, elegant design, the provocations of myth and philosophy." —Lawrence Graver, The New York Times

"An entertainment, but also a profoundly great work of art . . . It’s hard to keep my enthusiasm for it quiet—it’s such a delightful and deep book at the same time." ―John Williams, The New York Times Book Review (podcast)

"The most self-revelatory . . . of all her dark comedies." —The Guardian

"[A] marvelous, heroic novel [and] a gloriously rich tale." —The Times (London)

"A source of wonder and delight . . . No summary can do justice to the rich intricacy of character and incident with which Miss Murdoch crowds every page." —Spectator

"This is great Murdoch . . . Her humour is all the more achingly funny because she keeps it on the edge of our vision." —The Daily Mail

Author

Iris Murdoch (1919–1999) was born in Dublin and brought up in London. She studied philosophy at Cambridge and was a philosophy fellow at St. Anne's College for 20 years. She published her first novel in 1954 and was instantly recognized as a major talent. She went on to publish more than 26 novels, as well as works of philosophy, plays, and poetry. View titles by Iris Murdoch

Table of Contents

The Black PrinceIntroduction by Martha C. Nussbaum

THE BLACK PRINCE
Editor's Foreword
Bradley Pearson's Foreword

Bradley Pearson's Story
Part One
Part Two
Part Three

Postscript by Bradley Pearson
Four Postscripts by Dramatis Personae
Editor's Postscript

Other Books by this Author

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