Evan Harrington is an 1861 novel by George Meredith, a glowing comedy of Victorian presumptions.
The second of Meredith's 'mainstream' novels, the work is loosely autobiographical in inspiration; [1] and concerns the social climbing family (three married daughters; one unmarried son) of the recently deceased tailor, Melchisedec (The Great Mel) Harrington. [2]
Two of Meredith's most notable comic creations - The Great Mel and his daughter Louisa, the scheming Countess of Saldar - appear in the book. [3] Among lesser comic figures are Jack Raikes and Mr Parsley. [4]
The love interest of the hero, Evan - who is urged up the social ladder by his three sisters - is Rose Jocelyn: [5] she was taken as the epitome of mid-Victorian womanhood by the scholar Henry Sidgwick. [6]
Evan Harrington is an 1861 novel by George Meredith, a glowing comedy of Victorian presumptions.
The second of Meredith's 'mainstream' novels, the work is loosely autobiographical in inspiration; [1] and concerns the social climbing family (three married daughters; one unmarried son) of the recently deceased tailor, Melchisedec (The Great Mel) Harrington. [2]
Two of Meredith's most notable comic creations - The Great Mel and his daughter Louisa, the scheming Countess of Saldar - appear in the book. [3] Among lesser comic figures are Jack Raikes and Mr Parsley. [4]
The love interest of the hero, Evan - who is urged up the social ladder by his three sisters - is Rose Jocelyn: [5] she was taken as the epitome of mid-Victorian womanhood by the scholar Henry Sidgwick. [6]