William Makepeace Thackeray

Una de las grandes novelas del XIX inglés, adaptada al cine en 1975 por Stanley Kubrick. Traducción de Ana Nuño López Introducción de Andrew Sanders, profesor emérito de la Universidad de Durham Barry Lyndon narra el ascenso y caida de una ambicion desmesurada: la de Redmond Barry, un joven irlandes decidido a convertirse en un hombre rico e importante. Hipocrita y vanidoso, usa todos sus ardides para escalar en el mundo social del siglo XVIII, hasta alcanzar la cuspide al casarse con lady Lyndon, la joven viuda de un acaudalado conde. Sera entonces, sin embargo, cuando descubrira que, tras subir la montaña, solo queda bajarla. La primera novela de Thackeray es una fantastica fabula a la que se han dedicado innumerables estudios. Entre ellos se cuenta el de Andrew Sanders, autor de la brillante introduccion que precede a la obra, traducida aqui por la poeta y periodista Ana Nuño.Charlotte Bronte dijo...Cuanto mas leo la obra de Thackeray, mas convencida estoy de su singularidad: es unico en su sagacidad, unico en su veracidad, unico en su sensibilidad... Thackeray es un titan.

Valiente y certero retrato panorámico de la sociedad inglesa de su epoca, La feria de las vanidades es una de las grandes obras del XIX. Fue muy bien acogida desde su primera publicación y acreditó a William M. Thackeray como el mejor novelista victoriano, junto a Dickens. En un mundo donde nada es lo que parece, dos mujeres tratan de encontrar su lugar. Amelia, dulce y sensible pero insustancial, consagra su vida al hombre que ama. Rebecca, audaz, atractiva y llena de talento, se sirve de mil recursos en su afan de ascender en la escala social. En torno a ellas -y en una vitalista sucesion de intrigas y peripecias- se arremolina una esplendida galeria de ingenuos, cinicos, sofisticados, ganadores y perdedores, presentados con la lucidez y el peculiar sentido del humor que distinguen a Thackeray. La magistral conduccion narrativa del autor implica a los personajes en los apasionantes sucesos historicos de su tiempo, logrando un convincente engarce entre ficcion y realidad. William Makepeace Thackeray nacio en 1811 en Calcuta, pero a los siete años fue enviado a Inglaterra para estudiar. En su juventud viajo por Europa y mas tarde marcho a Paris para dedicarse a su gran pasion, la pintura. A partir de 1840 empezo a cobrar prestigio como autor y a colaborar en la revista 'P

The Luck of Barry Lyndon is a picaresque novel about a member of the Irish gentry trying to become a member of the English aristocracy. Redmond Barry of Ballybarry, born to a genteel but ruined Irish family, fancies himself a gentleman. At the prompting of his mother, he learns what he can of courtly manners and swordplay. He is a hot-tempered, passionate lad, and falls madly in love with his cousin, Nora. As she is a spinster a few years older than Redmond, she is seeking a prospect with more ready cash to pay family debts. The lad tries to engage in a duel with Noras suitor, an English officer named John Quin. Barry is made to think that he has assassinated the man, so he flees to Dublin, where he quickly falls in with bad company in the way of con artists, and soon loses all his money. Pursued by creditors, he enlists as a soldier in a British Army infantry regiment headed for service in Germany. His run of bad luck continues when he tries to desert, and he gets captured by Prussian officer, but Barrys temper and relentlessness keep his head above the ground as he never stops to fight in order to find his fortune.

Becky Sharp is a poor orphan when she first makes friends with the lovely Amelia Sedley at Miss Pinkerton's Academy for Young Ladies She may not have the natural advantages of her companion but she more than makes up for it with her wit, charm, deviousness and determination to make a success of herself whatever the cost...

Romanzo picaresco che narra gli sforzi del protagonista, un esponente della borghesia irlandese, di farsi accettare come membro dellaristocrazia inglese. Libro in lingua originale inglese con traduzi

Thackeray's panoramic, satirical saga of corruption at all levels of English society, was published in 1847 but set during the Napoleonic Wars. It chronicles the lives of two women who could not be more different: Becky Sharp, an orphan whose only resources are her vast ambitions, her native wit, and her loose morals; and her schoolmate Amelia Sedley, a typically naive Victorian heroine, the pampered daughter of a wealthy family. Becky's fluctuating fortunes eventually bring her to an affair with Amelia's dissolute husband; when he is killed at Waterloo, Amelia and her child are left penniless, while Becky and her husband Rawdon Crawley rise in the world, managing to lead a high life in London solely on the basis of their shrewdness. (The chapter entitled "How to Live on Nothing" is a classic.) Thackeray's subtitle, "A Novel Without a Hero," is understating the case; his view of humanity in this novel is distinctly bleak and deliberately antiheroic. Critics of the time misunderstood the book, decrying it as (among other things) vicious, vile, and odious. But VANITY FAIR has endured as one of the great comic novels of all time, and a landmark in the history of realism in fiction.

This edition of one of the greatest social satires of the English language reproduces the text of the Oxford Thackeray and includes all of Thackeray''s own illustrations. William Makepeace Thackeray (1811-1863) was an English novelist famous for his satirical works.

Hay libros que te cambian la vida. Este, aunque extraordinariamente entretenido y muy divertido, con toda seguridad, no es uno de ellos. Se trata de un conjunto de relatos que narra las estrafalarias y por momentos hilarantes aventuras en la India previa al Raj de un soldado irlandés perteneciente al ejército privado de la Muy Honorable Compañía Británica de las Indias Orientales. Thackeray ensaya con el comandante Gahagan la sátira despiadada de un tiempo —la recién estrenada época victoriana—, de la moral asociada a ellos —el deber, el decoro y la propiedad— y de unos comportamientos —los de los arribistas sin escrúpulos— que luego perfeccionaría en sus dos obras maestras, La suerte de Barry Lyndon y La feria de las vanidades, y en sus respectivos protagonistas, Redmond Barry y Becky Sharp; sin olvidar alguna que otra andanada dirigida al «invencible valor británico» y a los militares del Imperio. En estas tremebundas aventuras, Thackeray compone un personaje que es el prototipo del irlandés baladrón y matasiete, todo un miles gloriosus que se convierte en digno heredero de ese otro fanfarrón insigne, el barón de Münchhausen de Rudolf Erich Raspe (1785), y que merecería, como este, dar nombre a una enfermedad muy extendida en nuestra época y cuyos síntomas son la mentira patológica, la ambición sin cuento y la inmoderada exageración.

I think I could be a good woman, if I had five thousand a year, observes beautiful and clever Becky Sharp, one of the wickedestand most appealingwomen in all of literature. Becky is just one of the many fascinating figures that populate William Makepeace Thackerays novel Vanity Fair, a wonderfully satirical panorama of upper-middle-class life and manners in London at the beginning of the nineteenth century.Scorned for her lack of money and breeding, Becky must use all her wit, charm and considerable sex appeal to escape her drab destiny as a governess. From Londons ballrooms to the battlefields of Waterloo, the bewitching Becky works her wiles on a gallery of memorable characters, including her lecherous employer, Sir Pitt, his rich sister, Miss Crawley, and Pitts dashing son, Rawdon, the first of Beckys misguided sexual entanglements.Filled with hilarious dialogue and superb characterizations, Vanity Fair is a richly entertaining comedy that asks the reader, Which of us is happy in this world? Which of us has his desire? or, having it, is satisfied?

The Irish Sketch-book is a travelogue and collection of essays written by the famous 19th-century British author William Makepeace Thackeray. It was published in 1843 and presents Thackerays observations and experiences during his travels in Ireland.In "The Irish Sketch-book," Thackeray provides a series of witty and satirical sketches that depict Irish society, culture, and landscapes. He offers both humorous and critical insights into various aspects of Irish life, including the people, traditions, history, and social conditions prevalent in Ireland at that time.The book is divided into several chapters or sketches, each focusing on a different topic or location. Thackeray explores various regions of Ireland, such as Dublin, Wicklow, Cork, Killarney, and the Giants Causeway, providing vivid descriptions of the scenery and recounting his interactions with the locals.Thackerays writing style is characterized by his keen observations, biting humor, and occasional sentimentality. Through his sketches, he aims to entertain readers while also shedding light on the complex realities of Irish society during the 19th century. He discusses topics like poverty, politics, religion, and the contrasting lifestyles of the Irish aristocracy and the working class.It is worth noting that Thackerays perspective is that of an outsider, and his observations may reflect the biases and stereotypes prevalent during his time. Some critics argue that his portrayal of the Irish people perpetuates certain stereotypes and fails to capture the full complexity of Irish culture and history. Nonetheless, "The Irish Sketch-book" remains a significant literary work that provides valuable insights into Irelands past and serves as a historical document of its time.William Makepeace Thackeray (18 July 1811 24 December 1863) was a British novelist, author and illustrator. He is known for his satirical works, particularly his 1848 novel Vanity Fair, a panoramic portrait of British society, and the 1844 novel The Luck of Barry Lyndon, which was adapted for a 1975 film by Stanley Kubrick.

Ésta es la historia de Becky Sharp, una joven muy bella, muy lista y muy ambiciosa, consagrada en cuerpo y alma a escalar peldaños en la competitiva sociedad inglesa de principios del siglo XIX. Becky esta enamorada del placer, del lujo, del dinero, de las fiestas, de la alta posicion social, y pondra en juego todas sus armas para conseguirlo. Recien terminados sus estudios en una escuela de señoritas de buena posicion, y habiendo aprendido a cultivar las relaciones adecuadas, Becky se lanza a la Feria de las Vanidades mundanas dispuesta a convertirse en una de las cortesanas mas deslumbrantes.El retrato de esta inolvidable esnob, de esta arribista sin escrupulos abriendose paso en un avispero en plena ebullicion, se pinta sobre el telon de fondo de las guerras napoleonicas y se completa con una abigarrada galeria de personajes, con los que Thackeray teje uno de los tapices morales mejor diseñados de la narrativa universal. Los valores que definirian la Inglaterra victoriana aparecen satirizados con toda crudeza en esta obra maestra.

In "George Cruikshank," William Makepeace Thackeray presents an incisive exploration of the life and artistic contributions of the renowned caricaturist and illustrator. Written in a witty and satirical style characteristic of Thackerays oeuvre, the book situates Cruikshank within the broader context of 19th-century English society, examining how his work reflected and critiqued the social and political issues of the time. Thackeray deftly combines biographical narrative with social commentary, using a richly descriptive language that paints a vivid picture of Cruikshanks world, showcasing both the artists talent and the turbulent environment in which he operated. Thackeray, a contemporary of Cruikshank, was deeply influenced by the social dynamics of his era, often drawing upon his own experiences as a keen observer of English society. His background in art and literature, along with his commitment to social reform, provided him with a unique lens through which to appreciate and critique Cruikshanks work. This insight allowed Thackeray to present a multi-faceted portrait of the artist, intertwining their lives through shared cultural and artistic pursuits. "George Cruikshank" is an essential read for scholars and enthusiasts of 19th-century literature and art alike. Thackerays blend of biography and literary critique invites readers to engage with the transformative power of satire, making it an invaluable resource for understanding the interplay between art and society.

Thackeray, author of the masterpiece Vanity Fair, was considered one of the finest writers of the Victorian heyday: Dickens was his closest rival. This anthology covers all of Thackerays versatile genius: his sketches, journalism, essays, cartoons and fiction. With explanatory notes by Scholar and writer John Sutherland, this varied selection offers a lens into Victorian life by one of its most distinctive voices.

With a specially commissioned afterword, the "Collector''s Library" series includes a brief biography of the author, and a further reading list. This edition contains an afterword by Henry Hitchings.