Vathek and Other Stories

by William Beckford, Malcolm Jack (Introduction)

An enthralling work of Gothic fiction, modelled on the Arabian Nights

This collection of writings features the complete text of William Beckford's best-known book,  Vathek . Beckford's talent for satire emerges in selections from  Biographical Memoirs , a collection of essays on imaginary artists, and the novel Azemia, a scathing attack on British politics.

For more than seventy years, Penguin has been the leading publisher of classic literature in the English-speaking world. With more than 1,700 titles, Penguin Classics represents a global bookshelf of the best works throughout history and across genres and disciplines. Readers trust the series to provide authoritative texts enhanced by introductions and notes by distinguished scholars and contemporary authors, as well as up-to-date translations by award-winning translators.

Genres: Classics, Fiction, Gothic, Horror, Literature, Fantasy, 18th Century

352 pages, Paperback

First published December 31, 1993

About the author

William Thomas Beckford was an English novelist, a profligate and consummately knowledgeable art collector and patron of works of decorative art, a critic, travel writer and sometime politician, reputed at one stage in his life to be the richest commoner in England. His parents were William Beckford and Maria Hamilton, daughter of the Hon. George Hamilton. He was Member of Parliament for Wells from 1784 to 1790, for Hindon from 1790 to 1795 and 1806 to 1820.

He is remembered as the author of the Gothic novel Vathek (1786), the builder of the remarkable lost Fonthill Abbey and Lansdown Tower ("Beckford's Tower"), Bath, and especially for his art collection.

Reviews

[Naim · Rating 2 out of 5]

Rambling 3rd rate facsimile of a 1001 night tale. :-)

[Ryan · Rating 3 out of 5]

An extravagant chronicle of the debaucheries indulged in by the Caliph Vathek in the name of attaining forbidden knowledge. Supposedly inspired by a wild 3-day Christmas party, it's driven more by its trippy imagery than the (pretty thin) plot. There's a scary grinning demon, child sacrifices, gay eroticism, a castrating mother figure, genies, and it has the gall to end as a 'moral tale.' All I can say is, that party must have been fucking crazy.

HISTORICAL IMPORTANCE: First published in 1787, Vathek is one of the first Gothic novels, and also notable as a transition from the Oriental tale genre made popular in Europe by Antoine Galland's translation (1704-17) of the Arabian Nights.

[Tobias Smith · Rating 4 out of 5]

A classic gothic tale of the oriental variety. As vibrant as it’s libertine author!

[Dylan Rock · Rating 4 out of 5]

An interesting collection with " A Vision " and" Vathek" standing tall against the other pieces.

[Natacha Pavlov · Rating 3 out of 5]

Grotesquery with dark humor? Check.
Ample learned notes that disrupt the flow of reading? Check.
Excessive use, of commas? Double, check.

All these combine to make William Beckford's 'Vathek' (1786) a biting-comical Gothic-fantastical read with a dash of tediousness. It follows the knowledge-hungry Caliph Vathek who, encouraged by his (Greek!) mother, increasingly engages with dark arts and demonic forces. At times it reminded me of the earlier (and satirical) 'Castle of Otranto.'
Both of these reflect the genre in its infancy in the late 18th c, and likely contrast from our traditional definition of Gothic based on later, more effective classics.
After reading more on the author, it also smacks of the biographical via an escapist orientalist theme that was popular at the time.
I'll check out his other writings in due time, which I suspect I may prefer to this curiosity.

[Todd Ewing · Rating 3 out of 5]

The writing style is very strong. I like the flow and use of words, but in the end, I was not thrilled by the materials in it. Classic works for my 1001 list, and the ghost story was cool, but the satires and travel narratives, had some interesting parts, but one feels you are missing something, if you are not well versed in the literature of the day that he is mocking.

[Joas · Rating 1 out of 5]

Maybe not as bad as one star, but it just was not very interesting or entertaining to read. There's a fun twist, and some of the satirical writing after the main story is fun, but I don't think I'm fond of the 18th century style of writing. That said, Beckford's life seems wild and interesting, and I liked learning about the biographical components he put into his work

[David · Rating 4 out of 5]

A good example of 18th Century Gothic Literature.

A bit on the moralizing side but good nonetheless.

Worth a read for those interested in Gothic Literature.

Rating: 4 out of 5 Stars

[Wally Nobody · Rating 3 out of 5]

The story of "Vathek" is like trying to make sense of a bad dream. I have no clue what happened, but a lot sure did. I only stuck with it because it was short and the imagery was so weird.

[April · Rating 2 out of 5]

Only the Vathek tale was assigned. Read most of it--skimmed the ending. Although interesting for its literary historical significance (one of the first Gothic novels), I would not have ever read this just for the story.

University of Saint Thomas' Graduate English - The Rise of the Novel

[David Meijer · Rating 3 out of 5]

didnt read the satires and travel diaries since they were only excerpts. liked the story of vathek a lot