Rites of Passage (Cyclopedia of Literary Characters)
At a glance:
- Author: William Golding
- First Published: 1980
- Type of Work: Novel
- Type of Plot: Moral
- Time of Work: The early nineteenth century
- Setting: Aboard a ship, en route from England to the Antipodes
- Genres: Long fiction, Parable
- Subjects: Maturation or coming of age, Voyages, Sex or sexuality, Nineteenth century, Christianity, Death or dying, Good and evil, Ships, Sailing or sailors, Atonement
- Locales: England, Antipodes
Characters Discussed
Edmund Talbot, the epistolary narrator of the novel. He is writing to his godfather and patron, an influential aristocrat who has not only acquired a government position for him in one of the new British colonies in Australasia but also has instructed him to write a full account of how he progresses. Edmund takes the task seriously, not only to please his godfather but also because he sees himself egotistically as the central character in a drama played out on board the ship taking him to his destination. He defines “central” as “highest born” at...
[The entire page is 938 words long]
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