9780140390650 |
0140390650 |
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Library | Material Type | Call Number | Shelf Location | Status | Item Holds |
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Searching... Calhan Library | Book | WIST | Western | Searching... Unknown | Searching... Unavailable |
Searching... Library 21c | Book | WIST | Western | Searching... Unknown | Searching... Unavailable |
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Summary
Summary
The epic novel of the American West and the heroic cowboy
Owen Wister's powerful story of the tall, silent stranger who rides into the uncivilized West and defeats the forces of evil has become an enduring part of American mythology. Set in Wyoming Territory, The Virginian depicts the loneliness and challenge of an unknown land where the whistle of a freight train sounds across great miles of silence, where easy camaraderie-and sudden violence-are found around the campfire, and where the rough honesty of "frontier justice" is just beginning to impose a sense of society on an unruly populace. For Wister, the West represented a territory of adventure that tested the worth of a man. His hero, as John Seelye writes in his Introduction, has his roots in the historical romances of Sir Walter Scott and James Fenimore Cooper; he is a man who lives by the classic code of chivalry, ruled by quiet courage and deeply felt honor.
For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust theseries to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-datetranslations by award-winning translators.
Author Notes
Owen Wister was born Philadelphia, Pennsylvania on July 14, 1860. He graduated from Harvard University in 1882 and studied musical composition in Paris for two years. He spent the summer of 1885 in Wyoming for his health. He graduated from Harvard Law School in 1888 and was admitted to the bar in 1889. He practiced law for two years in Philadelphia and continued to spend his summers in the West.
In 1891, after the acceptance by Harper's of two of his Western sketches, he decided to pursue a literary career. His works included Lin McLean, The Virginian, Lady Baltimore, and Roosevelt: The Story of a Friendship, 1880-1919. He also wrote a number of children's books. He died on July 21, 1938.
(Bowker Author Biography)
Reviews (1)
Library Journal Review
Considered by many to be the best Western novel, Wister's work essentially defined the genre, both in print and on film, and also created the archetypal Western hero: the strong silent type who rides in from the range and saves the day by shooting the bad guys full of holes. Like many in the genre, this also features a romantic subplot. This 100th-anniversary edition was produced in tandem with the Buffalo Bill Historical Center and has color and black-and-white art by Western artist Thom Ross. A beauty. (c) Copyright 2010. Library Journals LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary of Media Source, Inc. No redistribution permitted.
Table of Contents
Introduction | p. vii |
To the Reader | p. xxiii |
Re-Dedication and Preface | p. xxv |
I. Enter the Man | p. 1 |
II. "When You Call Me That, Smile!" | p. 6 |
III. Steve Treats | p. 19 |
IV. Deep into Cattle Land | p. 27 |
V. Enter the Woman | p. 37 |
VI. Em'ly | p. 40 |
VII. Through Two Snows | p. 52 |
VIII. The Sincere Spinster | p. 55 |
IX. The Spinster Meets the Unknown | p. 59 |
X. Where Fancy Was Bred | p. 66 |
XI. "You're Going to Love Me Before We Get Through" | p. 76 |
XII. Quality and Equality | p. 85 |
XIII. The Game and the Nation--Act First | p. 91 |
XIV. Between the Acts | p. 97 |
XV. The Game and the Nation--Act Second | p. 102 |
XVI. The Game and the Nation--Last Act | p. 108 |
XVII. Scipio Moralizes | p. 125 |
XVIII. "Would You Be a Parson?" | p. 129 |
XIX. Dr. MacBride Begs Pardon | p. 137 |
XX. The Judge Ignores Particulars | p. 141 |
XXI. In a State of Sin | p. 145 |
XXII. "What Is a Rustler?" | p. 155 |
XXIII. Various Points | p. 162 |
XXIV. A Letter with a Moral | p. 169 |
XXV. Progress of the Lost Dog | p. 173 |
XXVI. Balaam and Pedro | p. 183 |
XXVII. Grandmother Stark | p. 196 |
XXVIII. No Dream to Wake From | p. 218 |
XXIX. Word to Bennington | p. 220 |
XXX. A Stable on the Flat | p. 230 |
XXXI. The Cottonwoods | p. 239 |
XXXII. Superstition Trail | p. 246 |
XXXIII. The Spinster Loses Some Sleep | p. 259 |
XXXIV. "To Fit Her Finger" | p. 268 |
XXXV. With Malice Aforethought | p. 272 |
XXXVI. At Dunbarton | p. 295 |
Literary Allusions and Notes | p. 309 |
Suggestions for Further Reading | p. 321 |