St. Ronan's Well

by Walter Scott

Overview

Reprint of the original, first published in 1871. The publishing house Anatiposi publishes historical books as reprints. Due to their age, these books may have missing pages or inferior quality. Our aim is to preserve these books and make them available to the public so that they do not get lost.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9783382140076
Publisher:	Anatiposi Verlag
Publication date:	03/19/2023
Pages:	454
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 1.13(d)

About the Author

Sir Walter Scott (1771–1832), poet, historian, and pioneering novelist, stands as one of the most influential literary figures of the 19th century. A native of Edinburgh and deeply rooted in the Scottish Borders, Scott synthesized Enlightenment rationalism with Romantic historicism, creating a literary corpus that has shaped modern conceptions of national identity, historical memory, and narrative form. Trained as a lawyer and deeply versed in antiquarian studies, Scott was steeped in the oral traditions, folklore, and feudal legacies of Scotland. These threads are woven throughout his works, but his genius lay in his ability to elevate local material into the domain of epic storytelling.

Scott’s fame began with his narrative poetry, particularly The Lay of the Last Minstrel (1805) and Marmion (1808), which brought him national acclaim. However, it was with Waverley (1814) that he inaugurated the historical novel as a dominant literary genre. Under the pseudonym “The Author of Waverley,” he published a series of novels that charted the social, political, and moral transformation of Scotland, England, and occasionally continental Europe. These works blended romantic adventure with acute historical insight, foregrounding tensions between tradition and progress, honor and pragmatism, and local identity versus imperial ambition.

His storytelling is distinguished by an unparalleled ability to animate the past, not as a dead relic, but as a living force shaping the present. His characters often straddle competing worlds—Highland and Lowland, Catholic and Protestant, Jacobite and Hanoverian—offering readers not simply history, but its human cost. While Scott’s conservative politics affirmed the union of Britain and feared the radicalism of the French Revolution, his novels display a remarkable empathy for marginalized voices and a subtle critique of progress at the expense of heritage.

Editorial Reviews

The authoritative Edinburgh Edition brings modern scholarship to bear on Scott's (1771-1832) great Waverly Novels--which marked the emergence of the modern novel in the western world--and, at the same time, excises the ponderous pseudo-scholarship that characterized Scott's late Magnum Opus edition, and editions ever since. Saint Ronan's Well (1824) is a classic tale of Scottish country life. Annotation c. Book News, Inc., Portland, OR (booknews.com)

Booknews