The Hero of the Waverley Novels

One of the most influential works on Sir Walter Scott, The Hero of the Waverley Novels is a model for reconstructing ideas common at a given period in time. In this book Alexander Welsh draws upon the entire canon of Scott's fiction to demonstrate its bearing on property and the behavior prescribed for the propertied classes. Analyzing the "passive hero"--the protagonist who is acted upon by outside forces--he shows how Scott became such a powerful influence for nineteenth-century literature and history. Welsh has updated his book with an essay on history and revolution in Old Mortality, another on repression and the social contract in the novels, and an afterword on the contrast of styles. Originally published in 1993. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions.The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

“In this brilliant and closely reasoned book the hero of the Waverley Novels is for the first time made interesting, significant, and convincing; but Mr. Welsh has also confirmed . . . Scott's own ambivalence about the adequacy of society to fulfill the profoundest needs of the individual. ---Morse Peckham, Saturday Review”

"In this brilliant and closely reasoned book the hero of the Waverley Novels is for the first time made interesting, significant, and convincing; but Mr. Welsh has also confirmed ... Scott's own ambivalence about the adequacy of society to fulfill the profoundest needs of the individual."--Morse Peckham, Saturday Review

Alexander Welsh is Emily Sanford Professor of English Literature Emeritus, Yale University. His previous books include "Reflections on the Hero as Quixote," "George Eliot and Blackmail," "Strong Representations," "Freud's Wishful Dream Book," and "Hamlet in His Modern Guises," as well as a book on Scott and three on Dickens.

One of the most influential works on Sir Walter Scott, The Hero of the Waverley Novels is a model for reconstructing ideas common at a given period in time. In this book Alexander Welsh draws upon the entire canon of Scott's fiction to demonstrate its bearing on property and the behavior prescribed for the propertied classes. Analyzing the "passive hero"--the protagonist who is acted upon by outside forces--he shows how Scott became such a powerful influence for nineteenth-century literature and history. Welsh has updated his book with an essay on history and revolution in Old Mortality, another on repression and the social contract in the novels, and an afterword on the contrast of styles. Originally published in 1993. The Princeton Legacy Library uses the latest print-on-demand technology to again make available previously out-of-print books from the distinguished backlist of Princeton University Press. These editions preserve the original texts of these important books while presenting them in durable paperback and hardcover editions.The goal of the Princeton Legacy Library is to vastly increase access to the rich scholarly heritage found in the thousands of books published by Princeton University Press since its founding in 1905.

This item is eligible for free returns within 30 days of delivery. See our returns policy for further details.