Vera or the Nihilists A Drama in a Prologue and Four Acts Classic Reprint Oscar Wilde Books
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Excerpt from Vera, or the Nihilists A Drama in a Prologue and Four Acts
Scene. A Russian Inn.
Large door opening on snowy landscape at back of stage.
Peter Sabouroff and Michael.
Peter (warming his hands at a stove). Has Vera not come back yet, Michael?
Mich. No, Father Peter, not yet; 'tis a good three miles to the post office, and she has to milk the cows besides, and that dun one is a rare plaguey creature for a wench to handle.
Peter. Why didn't you go with her, you young fool? she'll never love you unless you are always at her heels; women like to be bothered.
Mich. She says I bother her too much already, Father Peter, and I fear she'll never love me after all.
Peter. Tut, tut, boy, why shouldn't she? you're young and wouldn't be ill-favoured either, had God or thy mother given thee another face. Aren't you one of Prince Maraloffski's game-keepers; and haven't you got a good grass farm, and the best cow in the village? What more does a girl want?
Mich. But Vera, Father Peter -
Peter. Vera, my lad, has got too many ideas; I don't think much of ideas myself; I've got on well enough in life without 'em; why shouldn't my children? There's Dmitri! could have stayed here and kept the inn; many a young lad would have jumped at the offer in these hard times; but he, scatter-brained featherhead of a boy, must needs go off to Moscow to study the law! What does he want knowing about the law! Jet a man do his duty, say I, and no one will trouble him.
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Vera or the Nihilists A Drama in a Prologue and Four Acts Classic Reprint Oscar Wilde Books
Wilde's first play is almost universally panned.While nowhere near as accomplished as his masterworks like Earnest, there is a satisfying mix of clever comedy, prince (or czarevich) and the pauper plot, and melodrama.
You want witty epigrams? He's got witty epigrams!
"When you are as old as I am, Prince, you will understand that there are few things easier than to live badly and to die well."
"To make a good salad is to be a brilliant diplomatist—the problem is so entirely the same in both cases. To know exactly how much oil one must put with one's vinegar."
"You have been married twice already; suppose you try—falling in love, for once."
"Life is much too important a thing ever to talk seriously about it."
But the bold thing here is that an Irishman, whose mother was a (in)famous republican, would write lines that advocate terrorism, assassination, and revolution. A comedy about regicide!
Imagine as Gladstone's government is debating the Irish Question in parliament (and passing the Irish Coercion Act), a long-haired dandy from Dublin is writing: "There should be no crowned man in Europe. Have I not sworn it? To be strong our new Republic should be drunk with the blood of kings."
It is ripe for a reappraisal.
Plus Wilde is funnier than Dostoevsky on his best day.
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Vera or the Nihilists A Drama in a Prologue and Four Acts Classic Reprint Oscar Wilde Books Reviews
This rewriting of Romeo and Juliet is not convincing at all because the Nihilists are reduced to sectarian fanatics, the Czar to a manipulated tyrant, the courtiers to bloodthirsty powerhungry wolves, the Czarevitch to a romantic puppy suddenly grown adult. Vera, the most popular and feared Nihilist, will kill herself out of love to save the Czarevitch who is on a trail of reforms after the assassination of his father. This caricature has nothing to compare with Gorki?s The Mother, nor Brecht?s Mother Courage and Her Children. It is yet interesting to see how Oscar Wilde is far from understanding what simple suffering people can be in Russia at that time and what the psychology of the Nihilists was. He uses quite many clich?s and does not get into any depth. So the superimposing of a pale Romeo and Juliet ending does not give depth to something that is shallow.
Dr Jacques COULARDEAU, University of Perpignan
Other reviews before me have done a better job on the literary and artistic value of Vera, so I wont offer any arts review.
I ordered and read this play because it was Wildes first, and was interested to read and imagine it staged, and compared it mentally to his other well known works that I enjoyed, like the Importance of Being Ernst, etc. This, to me, was a far superior play - it was not a satire in the way we think of Wilde, it was a very intellectual and fascinating work, that I read 3 times at one sitting.
A great play! I wish I could have seen it staged, all I can add to you, all I can offer, is the hope you will take this opportunity and read it. Its well worth it, and deserves an audience.
If you are a Wilde lover, you will want to read it, and if you are not, perhaps this will truly impress you.
I bought The Importance of Being Earnest for a friend's birthday and found this play by accident. I had never known or thought about Wilde's first play before, until finding it here on , (what a great book store!), I'm half way through, and I'm impressed. Its actually good to read, as its not some social commentary, but a very literary work, there are many elements from other historical works here, which I have read up on to understand more, and that's one of the reasons I like it, it challenges me and makes me think.
Wilde does that to people! If you are just looking for some witty remarks, try The Importance of Being Earnest but if you want a little more, add this to your order, as I did, and read something different.
Truly recommended!
The Importance of Being Earnest A Trivial Comedy for Serious People
Oscar Wilde's first play, written in 1880-it is described by Wilde's son Vyvyan Holland - in the introduction to "Complete Works of Oscar Wilde" as " A rather immature play, which ran for one week in New York, and never reached the boards in London".
It is weak and clichéd in some parts but not without flashes of brilliance in others. Beautiful peasant girl, Vera Sabouroff joins a fanatical band of Nihilists, to avenge her bother, Dmitri, who is excelled by the Tsar. She becomes their heroin and Russia's most wanted assassin. The Nihilists are joined by Tsarevitch Alexis, who after the assassination of his father, becomes Tsar, and is thus marked for assassination by the Nihilists. Vera, who has fallen in love with the Tsarevitch, is chosen to carry out the operation to assassinate Alexis, who has embarked on a string of reforms. What follows is an ending, which mirrors Romeo and Juliet as Vera takes her own life to `save Russia'.
The hallmarks of the play are the wit of the Tsar Senior's Prime Minister Paul Maraloffski, and Vera's Lady Macbethesque speech where she steels herself to assassinate Alexis, before turning from Lady Macbeth into Juliet.
It lacks the finesse of Wilde's later plays like The Importance Of Being Earnest , Lady Windermere's Fan and Salome , but is interesting as part of a study into the development of Wilde's work.
pretty short and, uh, to the point
The first piece magnificent Wilde. Simple plot, but as always stunning humor.
Other then Act III, most of the book is fairly cute and funny. There are a lot of interesting lines in the first part of the book through act II. Then the plot starts to suffer from "dumb and dumber" plot movements. I forced myself through act III, and found the end of the book not so bad, but not so good either. The beginning makes the book worth reading, and then you have to read the ending for closure. It is a relatively short work, so not a big loss, if you feel obligated to finish it. Definitely read up to act III.
Wilde's first play is almost universally panned.
While nowhere near as accomplished as his masterworks like Earnest, there is a satisfying mix of clever comedy, prince (or czarevich) and the pauper plot, and melodrama.
You want witty epigrams? He's got witty epigrams!
"When you are as old as I am, Prince, you will understand that there are few things easier than to live badly and to die well."
"To make a good salad is to be a brilliant diplomatist—the problem is so entirely the same in both cases. To know exactly how much oil one must put with one's vinegar."
"You have been married twice already; suppose you try—falling in love, for once."
"Life is much too important a thing ever to talk seriously about it."
But the bold thing here is that an Irishman, whose mother was a (in)famous republican, would write lines that advocate terrorism, assassination, and revolution. A comedy about regicide!
Imagine as Gladstone's government is debating the Irish Question in parliament (and passing the Irish Coercion Act), a long-haired dandy from Dublin is writing "There should be no crowned man in Europe. Have I not sworn it? To be strong our new Republic should be drunk with the blood of kings."
It is ripe for a reappraisal.
Plus Wilde is funnier than Dostoevsky on his best day.
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