SHE - H. Rider Haggard - 1st UK Ed, 1887 and 12 similar items

?SHE A History of Adventure? H. Rider Haggard London: Longmans, Green Company, 1887 Original dark blue cloth over bevel-edged boards. Gilt stamping of the scarab ornaments and lettering on the front board and spine. Patterned endpapers in gray and brown of swans and ships. Illustrated with two Chromolithographic plates of the Sherd of Amenartas and illustration in the text on page 126 of the scarabus. Fine copy without foxing as usually encountered with this book. Bright boards and gilt stamping with a touch of shelf wear to bottom corner of the front board. The internal endpapers are solid with only the hint of a hairline cracking. A superiour copy in the uncorrected state. Haggard is recorded to have told his literary agent upon completion of the manuscript that ?She? is what he would be remembered for. First edition errors: ?geneleman? on p. 59, (not considered an error misprint as ?gentlemen? by D. E. Whatmore, but rather considered to be spoken in Job?s colloquial style of speech as written by Haggard.) ?mysogymist? on p. 88, line 4, (should read ?misogynist?) ?had? on p. 126, line 26, (should read ?have?) 'it? on p. 258, line 37, (should read ?if?) ?Godness me? p. 269, line 38 (should read ?Goodness me?) (Ref: Scott; Whatmore; Sadleir) ??? Some information about the importance in the literary world regarding ?She: A History of Adventure?: SHE was inspired by Haggard's experiences living in South Africa for seven years (1875-1882) working at the highest levels of the British colonial administration. In the themeology of SHE the novel notably explored themes of female authority and feminine behavior. Its representation of womanhood has received both praise and criticism, but the book proved to be very popular and has never been out of print. Several films were made from this book. The story is a first-person narrative which follows the journey of Horace Holly and his ward Leo Vincey to a lost kingdom in the African interior. They encounter a native people and a mysterious white queen named Ayesha who reigns as the all-powerful "She" or "She-who-must-be-obeyed". Haggard developed many of the conventions of the lost world genre which countless authors have emulated. ??- SHE Themes Henry Rider Haggard made a bold literary statement with the narrative of ?She: A History of Adventure? by challenging the female societal roles prevalent during his time. In the late 1800?s most European cultures were male-dominated and women were still seen as subservient to men. In ?She: A History of Adventure? Haggard created a female character who is powerful, terrifying, and nearly immortal. While the story is told from the viewpoint of a male character named Horace Holly, the narrative's central figure is Ayesha. She dominates all the characters with her power, beauty, and knowledge, - more knowledgeable on the history of the world than the learned professor Holly. Ayesha's love interest Leo Vincey is spellbound by Ayesha and he becomes subservient to Ayesha. This reversal of the male and female roles in literature of the late 1800?s is very uncommon and bold. The Amahagger tribe that Ayesha rules over is a native tribe where women are equal to men and the dominant gender in choosing a mate. In the Amahagger society women are not only upon terms of equality with the men and not held to them by any binding ties- women choose a man to be their husband by "advancing and embracing him in public.? Men initiated courtship in most societies around the world in the late 19th century. This is reversed in the Amahagger tribe. Dominant feminism in late 1800 literature is rare. The book was ahead of its time setting the standard for many other ?lost race? adventure novels that were to follow. Haggard treats the themes of death and immortality using a combination of mysticism and science to create a character who is ageless, yet still able to die. Ayesha possibly could be thousands of years old, yet appear to be beautiful and youthful, but an ?immortal? character that can face death. Was Ayesha not ageless at all? She has been living behind a veil for centuries- the natives have never seen her real face, Perhaps Ayesha could be a different woman who passes along her knowledge and power to her younger daughter, who becomes Ayesha and proceeds to repeat the process for generations. The book could also be hinting that Ayesha is ageless and has been alive for over two thousand years. Ayesha tells Horace and Leo that she obtained her immortality by stepping into the ?Pillar of Life,? - a swirling pillar of flames that rises out of a cavern in the mountains. She relates how she stepped into the flame and was given eternal life. When Ayesha re-enters the column of fire again her immortality is ?accidentally ? reversed, the flame leaving Ayesha shrunken, withered, and dead. Love and relationships are unconventional in SHE. When Horace Holly and Leo Vincey first come in contact with the Amahagger tribe, they realize that love is something very different in the tribe's culture than the men are used to. Ustane's love for Leo is sudden and comes from little more than viewing him from afar. She has had no prior contact with Leo and knows nothing about him save for his outward appearance. She feels connected to him from the first moment they meet and pledges herself to be his wife before even learning his name. While Leo seems to return the sentiment, it is difficult to tell how much of his feelings are just a way to humor Ustane so that he doesn't cause her grief or offend the Amahagger. Love and loyalty are big themes in the novel and reflected in Ayesha's undying love for Kallikrates. Ayesha tells Holly that she is waiting for her true love Kallikrates and cannot love anyone but him. Holly falls in love for Ayesha based on appearance alone when she removes ger veil in the same way that Ustane falls in love for Leo. When Ayesha looks at Leo for the first time she believes that Leo is the reincarnated form of her true love Kallikrates. Ayesha turns on Ustane and casts her out forever. Ustane refuses to relinquish her husband to Ayesha and she kills her. Ustane's unending loyalty becomes her ultimate demise, but her heart remains loyal to Leo until the end. Leo, however, appears to forget Ustane quickly as he falls in love with Ayesha even though she killed Ustane. It's interesting that once Leo falls in love with Ayesha, Holly no longer thinks about pursuing his feelings about Ayesha. Holly is devoted to Leo and loyal to him. None of the depictions of love are meaningful except for one- Ustane's sacrificial love for Leo is good and noble, even though superficial as they don't understand anything about each other. ??? 10,000 copies of ?SHE? were published by Longmans, Green Co. on January 1, 1887. A January 3, 1887 letter by Rider Haggard written to his brother Alfred is laid into the book consisting of 2 attached pages folded once, written in brown ink. This letter mentioning his masterpiece ?She? dated as such must be one of the earliest letters where the published book is mentioned especially to his brother. The letter discusses some interesting topics - adverse reactions to a publication by critics Edmund Gosse and George Saintsbury (including his friend Andrew Lang who was a later ?co-author? with Haggard in ?The World?s Desire?) regarding ?the interesting subject of virginity. ?She? is also mentioned and how his friend Walter Besant ?raved? about the book. (Besant writing about ?She?: ?I must write to congratulate you upon a work which most certainly puts you at the head ? a long away ahead?of all contemporary imaginative writers. If fiction is best cultivated in the field of pure invention then you are certainly the first of modern novelists.?? Sir Walter Besant) ?????? The letter: 3 January 1887 ?My dear Alfred, I have not seen the Pall Mall assault but the fact after the book being dedicated to Lang would be quite sufficient to account for it- Lang was among those who refused to have anything more to do with them after their publications on the interesting subject of virginity- Gosse was another Saintsbury another and they are never weary of attacking them all. On the contrary there is a most glowing review in The Scotsman of Monday - I saw Besant yesterday- he raves about ?She.? Your very affectionate brother, H. Rider Haggard ? ???? Enclosed with the book and letter is a cabinet card signed by Rider Haggard dated in 1887, the year SHE was published. The lower right corner of the cabinet card is chipped. A professionally constructed clamshell case in Moroccan leather with gilt lettering as shown protects the book, letter and cabinet card. John Anthony Miller Phantom Bookshop Ventura, California