Perilous Escapades: Dimensions of Popular Adventure Fiction

by Gary Hoppenstand

Overview

Adventure fiction is one of the easiest narrative forms to recognize but one of the hardest to define because of its overlap with many other genres. This collection of essays attempts to characterize adventure fiction through the exploration of key elements--such as larger-than-life characters and imperialistic ideas--in the genre's 19th- and 20th-century British and American works like The Scarlet Pimpernel by Orczy and Captain Blood by Sabatini. The author explores the cultural and literary impact of such works, presenting forgotten classics in a new light.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781476670553
Publisher:	McFarland & Company, Incorporated Publishers
Publication date:	04/19/2018
Pages:	183
Product dimensions:	6.00(w) x 9.00(h) x 0.37(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Award winner Gary Hoppenstand is a professor in the department of English at Michigan State University. He has published numerous books and more than sixty scholarly articles on topics ranging from popular culture studies to literary studies to media studies. He lives in Holt, Michigan.

Table of Contents

Table of Contents

Preface
Introduction: A Brief Story of Adventure
Power and Politics as Adventure: Robert Louis Stevenson’s The Black Arrow: A Tale of the Two Roses
The Swashbuckling Pirate as Rebel Hero: Rafael Sabatini’s Captain Blood: His Odyssey
Justified Bloodshed and the Origins of the Vigilante Hero:Robert Montgomery Bird’s Nick of the Woods
The Romance of Adventure: Baroness Orczy’s The Scarlet Pimpernel
Revolution and Revenge: Rafael Sabatini’s Scaramouche
Empires in Decline: C.J. Cutcliffe Hyne’s The Lost Continent: The Story of Atlantis
The Ruritanian Romance: Anthony Hope’s The Prisoner of Zenda
Science Fantasy and the Adventure Story: Edwin L. Arnold’s Lieut. Gullivar Jones: His Vacation
Empire and the Bright Face of Danger: A.E.W. Mason’s The Four Feathers
Soldiering for Fortune: Robert E. Howard’s “The Treasures of Tartary”
Mystery as Adventure: Elizabeth Peters’ The Last Camel Died at Noon
Redemption and Honor: P.C. Wren’s Beau Geste
Popular Fiction as Thriller Propaganda: Ian Fleming’s From Russia, with Love
Dinosaur Doctors and Jurassic Geniuses: The Changing Image of the Scientist Adventurer in the Lost World Adventure
Bibliography
Index