Castle Rackrent (Masterplots II: Women’s Literature Series)
At a glance:
- Author: Maria Edgeworth
- First Published: 1800
- Type of Work: Novel
- Type of Plot: Satire
- Time of Work: The late eighteenth century
- Setting: Ireland
- Principal Characters: Thady Quirk, Sir Condy Rackrent, Lady Isabella Rackrent, Jason Quirk
- Genres: Long fiction, Social realism, Regional fiction, Satire
- Subjects: Tradition, Social issues, Class consciousness, Oppression, Eighteenth century, Upper classes, Duty, Inheritance or succession, Loyalty, Castles, Landlords or tenants, Servants, Aristocracy or aristocrats, Ireland or Irish people, Satire, Nobility
- Locales: Ireland
Form and Content
While Maria Edgeworth’s name was not unknown to the reading public when Castle Rackrent was first published, nothing that she had previously written could have prepared even her most devoted reader for her first novel. In theme, tone, and form, Castle Rackrent is entirely original, and its originality is not merely a matter of fashion but endures so as to make this work a landmark in the development of fiction as not only an art but also a powerful form of cultural discourse. Even the story of Castle Rackrent is one that had either been...
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