The King’s Indian (Masterplots II: Short Story Series, Revised Edition)
At a glance:
- Author: John Gardner
- First Published: 1974
- Type of Plot: Fable
- Time of Work: The early nineteenth century
- Setting: Boston, Nantucket, and the Atlantic and Pacific oceans
- Principal Characters: Jonathan Upchurch, Dr. Luther Flint, Miranda Flint, Captain Dirge, Augusta, Jeremiah, Mr. Knight, Billy More, Wilkins (Swami Havananda), Jim Ngugi, Kaskiwah, Wolff
- Genres: Fable, Short fiction
- Subjects: Maturation or coming of age, Values, Self-discovery, Love or romance, Nineteenth century, New England, Truth, Faith, Atlantic Ocean, Pacific Ocean
- Locales: Boston, MA, Oceans, Nantucket Island
The Story
John Gardner's “The King's Indian” is told by an ancient mariner to his “guest,” later revealed to be Gardner himself. The tale is about hoaxes, according to Jonathan Upchurch, its narrator, as well as “devils and angels and the making of man.” Upchurch promises to answer the question, “Ain’t all men slaves, either physical or metaphysical?”
Upchurch begins with his boyhood infatuation with beautiful seven-year-old Miranda Flint, the stage foil to her mesmerist father, Dr. Luther Flint. Nine-year-old Jonathan experiences visions of birds...
[The entire page is 1776 words long]
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