EM_ark13960t7xm14p7p_001
Author: Collins, Wilkie, 1824-1889
Title: The Frozen Deep and Other Tales
Publisher: Chatto and Windus
Publication Date: 1887
URL: archive.org/details/06805261.1871.emory.edu
Description and Synopsis:
The cover depicts a group of warmly-dressed, burly men standing around a barrel, seemingly deep in thought. This book includes three pieces of short fiction by Collins: The Frozen Deep, The Dream Woman, John Jago’s Ghost; or, The Dead Alive. The cover image likely relates to the story of The Frozen Deep which follows the tragi Franklin Expedition of 1845, which left England in search of the Northwest Passage. The work has an interesting publication history. It began as a play that Collins later revised into a novella. Not only did Charles Dickens provide editorial guidance to Collins in the writing of the original play but he also played the leading part in early performances. In this book’s edition of The Frozen Deep, Collins notes the sad changes that have passed (numerous deaths of its original players) since its first performance and claims that this edition, which includes a copy of the original playbill from a Manchester performance, is meant as a “curiosity” to commemorate the play (Collins 2).
Further Notes:
Wilkie Collins was a prominent Victorian novelist best known for writing The Woman in White and The Moonstone. Collins lived most of his life in and around London and is remembered for his unconventional lifestyle and behavior. He was born with mild physical deformities and experienced chronic health problems as an adult; such health issues informed his depictions of many of his characters. After getting positive reviews on his first published novel, Antonina, Collins pursued a writing career. He befriended Charles Dickens, who encouraged Collins to write for Household Words, All the Year Round, and Bentley’s Miscellany. Collins also befriended other major writers and artists of the day. Collins never married, and instead lived with two women in separate houses. His critical views on the problematic roles of sex, marriage, and divorce in Victorian society are evident in his writing. A critical reevaluation of Collins’ oeuvre emerged during the late twentieth century (Peters).
Works Cited:
Peters, Catherine. “Collins, (William) Wilkie (1824–1889).” Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004. Web. 10 Feb. 2015. www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/5961
EM_ark13960t7xm14p7p_001
Author: Collins, Wilkie, 1824-1889
Title: The Frozen Deep and Other Tales
Publisher: Chatto and Windus
Publication Date: 1887
URL: archive.org/details/06805261.1871.emory.edu
Description and Synopsis:
The cover depicts a group of warmly-dressed, burly men standing around a barrel, seemingly deep in thought. This book includes three pieces of short fiction by Collins: The Frozen Deep, The Dream Woman, John Jago’s Ghost; or, The Dead Alive. The cover image likely relates to the story of The Frozen Deep which follows the tragi Franklin Expedition of 1845, which left England in search of the Northwest Passage. The work has an interesting publication history. It began as a play that Collins later revised into a novella. Not only did Charles Dickens provide editorial guidance to Collins in the writing of the original play but he also played the leading part in early performances. In this book’s edition of The Frozen Deep, Collins notes the sad changes that have passed (numerous deaths of its original players) since its first performance and claims that this edition, which includes a copy of the original playbill from a Manchester performance, is meant as a “curiosity” to commemorate the play (Collins 2).
Further Notes:
Wilkie Collins was a prominent Victorian novelist best known for writing The Woman in White and The Moonstone. Collins lived most of his life in and around London and is remembered for his unconventional lifestyle and behavior. He was born with mild physical deformities and experienced chronic health problems as an adult; such health issues informed his depictions of many of his characters. After getting positive reviews on his first published novel, Antonina, Collins pursued a writing career. He befriended Charles Dickens, who encouraged Collins to write for Household Words, All the Year Round, and Bentley’s Miscellany. Collins also befriended other major writers and artists of the day. Collins never married, and instead lived with two women in separate houses. His critical views on the problematic roles of sex, marriage, and divorce in Victorian society are evident in his writing. A critical reevaluation of Collins’ oeuvre emerged during the late twentieth century (Peters).
Works Cited:
Peters, Catherine. “Collins, (William) Wilkie (1824–1889).” Oxford Dictionary of National Biography. Oxford: Oxford University Press, 2004. Web. 10 Feb. 2015. www.oxforddnb.com/view/article/5961