Jurgen, A Comedy of Justice (1919) is a comic fantasy novel by
James Branch Cabell. Set in a world where history and fantasy
collide, where a lowly pawnbroker can encounter monsters, gods, and
devils, Jurgen, A Comedy of Justice is one of Cabell's best-known
works of fiction. For several years after its initial publication,
the novel was the subject of an obscenity trial pursued by the New
York Society for the Suppression of Vice. In 1923, after winning
his case, Cabell made sure to immortalize the event with a revised
edition featuring a "lost" chapter where Jurgen is persecuted for
his writing by grotesque Philistines. Jurgen, A Comedy of Justice
is one work in a series of novels, essays, and poems known as the
Biography of the Life of Manuel. "For now had come to Jurgen and
the Centaur a gold-haired woman, clothed all in white, and walking
alone. She was tall, and lovely and tender to regard: and hers was
not the red and white comeliness of many ladies that were famed for
beauty, but rather it had the even glow of ivory [...] to Jurgen
this woman's countenance was in all things perfect. Perhaps this
was because he never saw her as she was." Unsatisfied with life as
a lowly pawnbroker, Jurgen follows his heart in pursuit of ideal
love. A proponent of medieval chivalry, he encounters gods,
goddesses, kings, and queens as he passes from one otherworldly
realm to the next. On his wondrous journey, he meets some of the
most celebrated women in history and literature, including
Guinevere, Anaitis, and Helen of Troy. Jurgen, a wily poet and
legendary lover with a head full of dreams and desires, is an
allegorical figure for modern humanity, a flawed hero whose
kaleidoscopic world is not entirely different from our own.
Cabell's work has long been described as escapist, his novels and
stories derided as fantastic and obsessive recreations of a world
lost long ago. To read Jurgen, A Comedy of Justice, however, is to
understand that the issues therein-the struggle for power, the
unspoken distance between men and women-were vastly important not
only at the time of its publication, but in our own, divisive
world. With a beautifully designed cover and professionally typeset
manuscript, this edition of James Branch Cabell's Jurgen, A Comedy
of Justice is a classic of fantasy and romance reimagined for
modern readers.
General
Imprint: |
Graphic Arts Books
|
Country of origin: |
United States |
Series: |
Mint Editions |
Release date: |
April 2023 |
Authors: |
James Branch Cabell
|
Contributors: |
Mint Editions
|
Dimensions: |
203 x 127mm (L x W) |
Format: |
Paperback - Trade
|
Pages: |
260 |
ISBN-13: |
978-1-5132-9569-5 |
Categories: |
Books >
Fiction >
Genre fiction >
Fantasy
|
LSN: |
1-5132-9569-1 |
Barcode: |
9781513295695 |
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