Dec 1, 2008
The Absentee | The Absentee
At a glance:
- Author: Maria Edgeworth
- First Published: 1812
- Type of Work: Novel
- Type of Plot: Social criticism
- Time of Work: The early nineteenth century
- Setting: Ireland
- Principal Characters: Lord Colambre, Grace Nugent, Count O’Halloran, Lady Clonbrony, Larry Brady
- Genres: Long fiction, Social realism
- Subjects: Self-discovery, Genealogy, Class conflict, Love or romance, Nineteenth century, Social issues, Marriage, Rural or country life, Class consciousness, England or English people, Inheritance or succession, Landlords or tenants, Business or business people, Ireland or Irish people, Nobility
- Locales: London, England, Ireland
Form and Content
Maria Edgeworth wrote two series entitled Tales of Fashionable Life. The first was
published in 1809, and the second, to which The Absentee belongs, appeared three years
later. Although The Absentee is an important work of Irish fiction, it may also be seen as a
commentary on London’s life of fashion and on the moral consequences of such a life.
In one sense, The Absentee resembles a travel work, a form in which Edgeworth was
very interested, to which numerous members of her very large family contributed in their letters,...
[The entire page is 2375 words long]
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