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Title: Ivanhoe by Sir Walter Scott ISBN: 0-8125-6565-7 Publisher: Tor Books Pub. Date: 01 September, 2000 Format: Paperback Volumes: 1 List Price(USD): $3.99 |
Average Customer Rating: 4.27 (26 reviews)
Rating: 5
Summary: Suspend your Inner Historian, Embrace the 19th Romantic
Comment: Being a mediaevalist by trade I expected "Ivanhoe" to press all the wrong buttons - ludicrous inaccuracies, two-dimensional stock characters and a Disney-esque storyline. So I was pleasantly suprised when I found myself physically incapable of putting it down.
This sudden love affair with "Ivanhoe" (and, as a result, all Walter Scott's historical novels) is even more surprising given the fact that it is indeed inaccurate, somewhat two-dimensional and very predictable. Yet, it is partly these "faults" that inspired me to enjoy it so much. "Ivanhoe" embodies all my favourite childhood misconceptions about the Middle Ages, most of which have now been destroyed, or at least suppressed, by long years of studying the period. But it is still impossible to resist the inherent charm invested in such veritable floods of buckling swash - knights, tournaments, ladies, dark forests, honest outlaws, sieges, hermits, swine-herders, jesters, evil Kings and crusades.
The story arc is incredibly simple: Ivanhoe, banished by his father, Cedric, for falling in love with Cedric's ward Rowena, wins the patronage and friendship of Richard the Lion-Heart on Crusade in the Holy Land. On his return to England, eager to reclaim both his birthright and his fair lady, he is drawn into the struggle between honourable ole' Richard I and his scheming, moustache-twiddling brother John (*boo!*). Then follows tournaments, sieges, intrigues, kidnaps, a mysterious Black Knight in disgiuse, an alliance with Robin Hood (and his merry men, of course), a witch trial and some evil villains (all moustache-twiddling). Add to this a not-so-ascetic hermit with an incredible appetite for pies, a beautiful and sincere Jewess, Rebecca, her rich father Issac and a bundle of memorable Saxon "yeoman" and the stage is set.
Scott eagerly caricatures the mediaeval period, with a self-reflexive understanding of his sources and historical reality. The framing "Dedicatory Epistle" to one Dr. Dry-as-dust alerts the reader to his purpose, which is not to relate historical fact but to create historical myth. This he does with a good helping of satircal humour and deprecation, evoking a parody of both of the mediaeval period and the Romantic period.
Yet, the parody is sincere. Scott understands the main attractions of mediaeval life and yokes them to his purpose, writing a romance which is both exciting and self-critical. Every character and actions is memorable in its ability to overwrite, and reinvoke, ideals already blooming in our minds.
When Scott's London publisher first received the proofs for the first Volume of the novel, he apparently took them to read on his journey from Edinburgh to York. He wrote to his Scottish associate the next day exlaiming: "I read it so anxiously that I did not take any exercise or physical relief at the stages. It is a most extroadinary book." I cannot recommend it higher than that.
Rating: 3
Summary: An Edinburgh Scot at the Court of King Richard
Comment: "Ivanhoe" is Romanticism writ large. The author's style is elegant and lucid - often very funny - and the interpolated poetry is fine, too. Dialogue, action and description are all well handled. Scott established the historical novel as a popular literary form, paving the way for Dumas, Fennimore Cooper and countless others since. Fennimore Cooper in particular, was directly inspired to take up writing by Scott's enormous success.
Although he has been criticized for historical errors, Scott includes a wealth of authentic detail and he certainly stays far closer to the truth than Hollywood ever does. (Here's a thought; why have we become ever more demanding of historical accuracy in our authors, yet able to accept the most glaring errors on the cinema screen?) The sensibilities reflected in this book are mostly those of a conservative gentleman and scholar of the nineteenth, rather than twelfth, century. In particular, the depiction of the Jewish characters and the master-servant relationships tells us as much about Victorian Britain as about medieval England. Nonetheless, it is in many ways a convincing portrait of life in the Middle Ages. Having lived in what is now the industrial wastescape of South Yorkshire (you saw it in "The Full Monty"), where much of the action of "Ivanhoe" takes place, I enjoyed Scott's vision of a still green and pleasant Merry England where deer roamed vast forests and knights went in search of adventure.
The varied cast of characters is one of the novel's great strengths. The reader cares what happens to them because they are so real. Oddly, the eponymous hero plays a minor, albeit crucial, role in the tale and the putative heroine Rowena is overshadowed by the more interesting Rebecca.
Scott is best known however, for his storytelling skills. "Ivanhoe" has a terrific plot. At times, credibility is stretched a little too far for my taste. For example, characters rather too easily adopt disguises that fool even those who know them intimately. But you keep wanting to know what happens next, which is the essence of good plotting, and the story is blessedly free of the incredible coincidences that plagued eighteenth and nineteenth century English novels.
I think "A Tale of Two Cities" (despite what I call 'the curse of the coincidence'), "Vanity Fair" and especially, "The Cloister and the Hearth" are all better examples of historical novels by Victorian British writers, but "Ivanhoe" is still well worth reading. Most editions include Scott's introduction, spoof 'dedication' and copious notes. Modern readers may be tempted to skip these. They are well written but not essential to enjoying the novel itself. BEWARE; the introduction and the notes include spoilers. My advice is to read the novel first and then, if you enjoyed it, read those other sections. They do give some insight into the book's genesis.
Rating: 5
Summary: Great Twists and Turns
Comment: This review is of Ivanhoe strictly as a fun FICTIONAL book to read. I can not vouch for any historical accuracy nor is that my intent.
I turned onto Ivanhoe because I had heard that this story influenced Dumas when he wrote the Three Musketeer saga and I am really glad that I gave it a chance. The story of Ivanhoe is about the return of the Wilfred of Ivanhoe and King Richard from the Crusades. Wilfred is the disinherited son of Cedric of Rotherwood, aka Cedric the Saxon. Cedric dreams of restoring the Saxon monarchy and has been trying to facilitate a union between his ward, Rowena and Athelstane, whose pure bloodline would give credit to a claim for rule. A strong affection between Rowena and his son Wilfred (henceforth called Ivanhoe) has caused him to exile his son - his sacrifice to promote the Saxon cause. The disinherited Ivanhoe went to serve with Richard the Lion Heart in the Crusades. While Richard and Ivanhoe have been gone, Richard's brother, Prince John, has been gathering friends and making schemes for wresting control from Richard before he could get back and squelch his efforts. The conflict between the Normans and Saxons and the absence of King Richard (Lion Heart) has created the perfect conditions for a rebellion of the Saxons and/or a coup by John - both of which seem almost imminent.
The twists and turns are great. When Richard and Ivanhoe return incognito and fight in a tournament, besting all of the strongest, the wheels start turning that will see damsels abducted, the storming and sacking of a castle with the aid of Robin Hood and his Merry Men, a witch trial and more swordplay. Great, great, great. It's no wonder that this work is still being read almost two hundred years later and influenced what I consider to be one of the best adventure stories ever - the Three Musketeers. If you like Dumas, you will more than likely like this even though it is not as involved or long as a Dumas novel.
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Title: Rob Roy by Walter, Sir Scott ISBN: 0679443622 Publisher: Everyman's Library Pub. Date: 01 June, 1995 List Price(USD): $20.00 |
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Title: The Three Musketeers by Alexandre Dumas ISBN: 0140367470 Publisher: Puffin Books Pub. Date: 01 November, 1995 List Price(USD): $4.99 |
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Title: A Tale of Two Cities by Charles Dickens ISBN: 0451526562 Publisher: Signet Book Pub. Date: 01 May, 1997 List Price(USD): $4.95 |
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Title: Waverley by Walter Scott, Andrew Hook ISBN: 0140430717 Publisher: Penguin Books Pub. Date: 01 February, 1981 List Price(USD): $10.95 |
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Title: The Black Arrow: A Tale of the Two Roses by Robert Louis Stevenson, N.C. Wyeth ISBN: 0684188775 Publisher: Atheneum Books Pub. Date: 01 October, 1987 List Price(USD): $28.00 |
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